Category: Stations

Categories
Announcements Rapidways Stations Urban Planning

the future of transit has arrived!

The launch of the first section of the rapidway along Highway 7 from Bayview Avenue to Highway 404 is this Sunday, August 18.

Riders can now board viva in the centre lane rapidway.  Vivastations are directly accessible from crosswalks at signalled intersections.  Pedestrian signals come with an audible tone and visual countdown.  During the first week of new service the YRT\Viva teams will be on the street to assist customers and answer any questions to help familiarize everyone with the new system.

Not only is this section of Highway 7 now more efficient for pedestrians, cyclists, riders and drivers, but the landscape has been transformed with new trees and other greenery. We welcome the wide pedestrian-friendly, tree-lined boulevards and sleek, modern, vivastations. The new vivastations will be open at Chalmers, Valleymede, West Beaver Creek, Leslie, and East Beaver Creek. Vivastations at Bayview will open in early September. An additional 3.9 kilometres of rapidway along Highway 7 from Highway 404 to Warden Avenue will open in 2014.

New dedicated centre lanes for viva vehicles will allow riders to enjoy faster and more consistent travel times.  Also drivers need to be aware of the changes to the street as they make turns onto Highway 7, red asphalt indicates a bus only lane.  Emergency vehicles are permitted to access the rapidways should they need to, but they will have their flashing lights on for safety.

The stations include arched glass canopies inspired by transportation architecture from historic and modern European examples. The 27-metre glass canopy offers protection from the elements, including a nine-metre enclosed and heated waiting area. The stations include all the existing viva technologies we love, including off-board fare collection, GPS navigation, real-time information, Presto, new card readers and traffic signal priority. Safety and accessibility features include textured surfaces near platform edges, level boarding from the platform to the bus, a public address system for updating riders and an emergency call button.

The York Viva BRT project received $1.4 billion from the province, and is an example of The Big Move in action – Metrolinx’s 25-year plan to implement a common vision for transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area.

The transformation of this urban corridor will help support growth, and reduce congestion to help make York Region a more inviting place to live, work, shop and play.

Come take a ride on the new rapidway and check it out! Tweet and let us know what you think!

 

Categories
Live-work-play Rapidways Stations Urban Planning

planting for beauty and longevity

One of the wonderful new elements of the vivaNext streetscape is the number and variety of new plants that are being added, from the planters on the stations and in the median, to the trees and shrubs being planted along the boulevards and intersections.  The Landscape Architects, in conjunction with York Region’s Forestry Department, have worked long and hard on which plants will be included at each location.  Here’s what you’re going to be seeing planted along the rapidway corridor, and how they made their choices.

All the plant selections have been made with maximum survivability and sustainability in mind.  That means plants have to survive the urban conditions they’ll be surrounded by – with the main threat being the de-icing salt that needs to be used on the roads in winter.  Salt is toxic to many plants, so finding plants that can cope with having salt spray on their leaves and stems over the winter is a key consideration.  Plants also have to survive the wind and drought conditions that are part of being next to a roadway.  Another consideration for species selection concerns trees for planters under hydro lines.  In these locations, we need to find species with a maximum size and shape that will allow them to grow to their full potential, without needing to be pruned away from the lines.

Fortunately, York Region’s Forestry Department has had a lot of experience with the plants that thrive in the Region so coming up with lists of viable plants was straightforward.

Other considerations were related to the basic elements of design: shape, scale and colour.  We had clear overall design objectives to work with, consistent with the larger vivaNext aesthetic: the look was to be urban, stylized, and modular, similar to the look of our pavers.

Here are some images of our plants, including deciduous shrubs, evergreen shrubs for winter interest, hardy roses, ornamental grasses and perennials.

And to give them the best chance for survival, they will be planted in a special planting mix developed by the Region’s Forestry Department that will provide the optimum growing conditions.  Each tree will have a full 16 cubic metres of soil – that’s about the same amount as two dump truck-loads!

We’re looking forward to having people see the new landscaping, and we know it’s going to make a huge contribution to our goal of creating a more attractive, welcoming streetscape.  With the waving grasses and flowering plants, and shapely trees and shrubs, these public spaces will be more beautiful for years to come.

 

Categories
Rapidways Stations

putting the rapid in rapid transit

We’re excited about the transformation of York Region’s major corridors from busy highways to complete streets designed to be shared by transit-users, pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.  But first and foremost, vivaNext is about building a true rapid transit system.  Because they’re not going through mixed traffic, these dedicated rapidways will help viva vehicles move past congested stretches of Highway.  But the bus rapid transit system will also use a number of other technologies or “transit priority measures” to put the rapid into the system.  Here’s the rundown on how we’re going to help keep viva buses reliably rapid.

The first main component is that all buses will have GPS systems installed, which will constantly calculate the vehicle’s speed, heading, latitude and longitude.  That way, the transit system will know exactly where each vehicle is, relative to where the schedule says it should be.

The next main component is the traffic signal control system that governs all the intersections along the rapidway route.  The system relies on the findings of sophisticated traffic analysis that has worked out the optimal timing for each intersection to ensure the most efficient use of the corridor.  This analysis takes into account long-term traffic data reflecting all the users of each intersection, including east/west traffic, north/south traffic, pedestrians and cars making left turns.

Using this analysis, each traffic signal is pre-programmed for the optimal phasing, including how long a green light should last going in each direction.

With real-time information available about where each vehicle is, the transit system will constantly calculate whether a viva vehicle approaching an intersection is on time, or delayed.  If the vehicle is behind schedule, a signal sent from the bus to the traffic signal at that intersection will temporarily adjust the phasing so that the vehicle doesn’t have to stop.

The last major component of this complex system is the one that tells our customers when the next bus will arrive at the station. The variable message signs (VMS) installed at each station display real-time arrival information showing the arrival times for all buses expected within the next while, based on the information sent by the vehicle’s on-board GPS system.  These message boards are a feature of the viva system that customers really appreciate.

Using this multi-layered approach, we’ll be able to help each viva bus move along quickly, and you’ll be able to know how soon it will arrive.  All of which adds up to rapid transit!

Categories
Construction Rapidways Stations

ITS – balancing the needs of all travellers

It’s stating the obvious to say that our roadways are getting slower because they’re carrying too much traffic – that’s the basic definition of gridlock, and it’s an increasing problem everywhere across the GTA.  But what can be done about it?  VivaNext is one part of the solution – if people have the choice of taking a reliable and convenient rapid transit system, there will be fewer cars on the road, and everyone will be able to get around more quickly.

But even with vivaNext, there’s still going to be a lot of traffic out there, and York Region doesn’t have room for more or bigger roads.  So what else can be done to help traffic move better?  This is where ITS comes in.

Although some people may think ITS is connected to “Information Technology”, in the vivaNext world ITS stands for “Intelligent Transportation Systems”. ITS is an international transportation-engineering discipline that is concerned with trying to improve the efficiency of travel, whether it involves the travelling public, commercial vehicles, or transit.  The basic assumptions behind ITS are that delays cost money, and more efficient travel saves money. This new technology is an absolutely critical, although low-visibility, component of the vivaNext program.

ITS is used to ensure that all parts of a traffic corridor’s infrastructure – the physical roadway’s design, lane markings and signs, traffic signal design and timing, and the brains that connect all these pieces – are designed as one coordinated system.  In a transit project ITS has an additional layer which is concerned with how the transit system is integrated into that larger system.

ITS is also about giving people accurate information so they can make better choices about travel, whether that means building roadside signage to alert drivers to upcoming congestion and suggest alternative routes, or giving transit riders real-time information about next bus arrivals.

Overall, ITS is about finding the perfect balance so that all the users of a roadway find it works better; making a roadway faster for one group of users cannot come at the expense of all the other users.  ITS starts with an understanding of who is using the roadway now and who will be using it in the future, and then develops strategies to make it more efficient for everyone.

Along Highway 7, we know that drivers and transit are the main users currently, but that’s going to change as development intensifies. The future Highway 7 will be significantly more urbanized, with more people living and working along the corridor.  That means there will be more pedestrians and cyclists whose travel needs need to be considered, in addition to car and truck traffic.  Helping transit vehicles stay on schedule is also a priority, since rapid transit can’t be rapid if it’s stuck in traffic.

These ITS strategies will balance everyone’s needs, to help everyone get to where they’re going as fast as possible!

 

Categories
Construction Live-work-play Rapidways Stations Urban Planning

countdown

As we get closer and closer to the time when the Highway 7 rapidway will be ready for service, our teams are working hard to finish all sorts of little details.  With much of the construction complete, we’re now focused on the final stages of completion and testing, and then getting ready for handover, when the system is officially turned over to York Region and YRT, the system owners and operators.

Handover means just what it says – it’s the moment in time when a system is handed over to the owner for care and custody.  From that time going forward, a system – which until then has been the responsibility of the Contractor/Design Builder – becomes the private property of the owner, and anyone needing access to do any additional work needs to get the permission from the owner for access.

Because the formal handover is such a significant development, especially on a major infrastructure project like the vivaNext rapidway, it’s important to ensure everything is in perfect working order.  The various steps involved in commissioning, which is the testing period that takes place before handover, vary depending on what is being handed over.  For example, with the fare equipment, we make sure the ticket vending machine [TVM] prints properly.  With the traffic signals, once they’re programmed the permanent signals are turned on and each phase is tested individually, and all the push buttons are tested to make sure they work.

Streetlights are inspected to ensure all the wiring is according to the drawings; that the bases are level, and the power connections are all correct.  The teams go out at night to actually turn on the lights, to ensure all the lamps come on and nothing is flickering.  Lighting is an important safety feature for both pedestrians and vehicles.

Viva driver testing is completed to make sure drivers know how to use the rapidway, its signals, and the stations.

Every single detail is inspected through a visual walk-down and a list of the things that still need to be finished or perfected is created with items graded from most serious to least serious.

Once handover takes place, legal ownership and responsibility is transferred to the owner, and the Contractor/Design Builder’s warranty period begins, just the way it happens when a homebuyer takes possession of a new house.

Handover in this case means some elements of the rapidway, like the rapidway, stations, boulevards and planters, are transferred to the Region.  Others, like the sidewalks and streetlights are transferred to the local municipality to maintain.

Ultimately, everyone who has a stake in vivaNext wants to see it work as designed, to provide a reliable, efficient rapid transit system and beautiful streetscape.  Because, at the end of the day, the ultimate owners are the people who are depending on it to work well: the public of York Region and we all want this to be a system to be proud of.

 

Categories
Rapidways Stations Urban Planning

driver training in progress

We’re really counting down the days to the start of vivaNext rapidway service, and we know you are too: being able to get on board a viva bus and zip past congestion is going to be a wonderful advantage for York Region transit users.  So you’ll know we’re really in the final stretches once you see viva buses out on the rapidway starting this week, which is when York Region Transit (YRT) starts the training process for operators and other staff.

YRT is doing training in two stages, with the first stage during the week of July 29 and the second stage over two weeks starting August 5.

In the first stage, training will be provided for everyone who will need to be familiar with the rapidways, the stations and equipment.  We will have vehicles out on the rapidway, taking customer service staff and other YRT staff along the rapidways and spending time at the new stations.  This will give staff a chance to really interact with all the new features so they’ll be ready to provide support to the public once the system is open.

During this time YRT will also be working with emergency services (police, fire, ambulance) to help them become familiar with the rapidway and safety features at the stations including the emergency call button.  Emergency services personnel will be familiarized with access points where they can enter and exit the rapidway, and in the future emergency services vehicles will have the option of using the rapidway when responding to calls.

The actual operator training begins the week of August 5 and will go on for 2 weeks, running from 8:00 AM to as late as 9 PM some nights, seven days a week.  During this time you can expect to see quite a lot of viva buses running up and down the rapidway, stopping at stations.  They will be clearly marked as YRT Training Vehicles to avoid confusion.  The training will focus on entering and exiting the rapidways, especially entering back into mixed traffic at the east end, and exiting the rapidway at the west end and crossing to the curb to service the Bayview Towers station.

Training will also focus on the new transit signals at intersections, which will provide a single green arrow for transit operations.  This signal will be clearly marked as being for transit only, but YRT operators will be trained to be cautious and on the lookout to make sure members of the driving public are obeying the signals correctly.

As part of their training, operators will spend time at the Chalmers station learning about the station’s layout and features, including the parking pad which will be used by support and maintenance staff for future station and rapidway maintenance and snow clearing.  Operators will also get training on the new fare equipment that passengers will be using once service starts.

Trainees will be taken out in groups of six or less, with one trainer to every three trainees.  They’re all experienced viva operators, so they know the route and the vehicle.   They’re really excited to get going, knowing that in just a few more weeks the rapidway will be open for service.  We hope you follow along with us through this blog series to get all the details as we count down the days!

 

Categories
Construction Live-work-play Rapidways Stations Uncategorized Urban Planning

testing, testing, testing

As you will know from driving along Highway 7, our rapidway construction is really coming along, and this summer a segment will be going into operation.  We still have a bit more work ahead of us before service operation can begin, including some work which will be obvious such as final paving, striping and landscaping.  But in addition to that work, we’re just getting underway on a less-obvious but highly important part of the job, which is to ensure that all parts of the rapidway project are ready for active service.

This stage – known in the construction world as commissioning – is critically important, and planning for it on the Highway 7 rapidway has already been in progress for many months.

So what does commissioning involve, and how do we do it?

First of all, the technical definition of commissioning is that it is the process of assuring that all systems and components of a system are designed, installed and tested according to the operational requirements that have been established.

In the case of vivaNext, the most visible components of the project include the new roadways, passenger stations and amenities, and streetscape elements such as lighting, sidewalks and landscaping.  Ongoing inspections are being done as construction progresses to ensure that these are being built to certain specifications, before they are handed over for use.  Commissioning is a more detailed focus on the key systems and components that together make up the overall communications network.

These components include the fare collection equipment that will be installed at all stations; the station information systems such as the variable message signs, clocks and Public Address systems; passenger security elements such as closed circuit TV systems and emergency call buttons; and the traffic signals at intersections.  It also includes the sophisticated Transit Vehicle Detection system, which will provide information to the traffic signals when rapid transit vehicles are approaching intersections, as well as the overall communications system and fibre optic network that links all of these components.

Obviously these components are very complex, and a huge amount of effort goes into designing and building this equipment to the highest standards in the first place to make sure it will work as intended.  But we also build in a lengthy process of testing to make sure all the pieces are talking to each other in the way they’re designed to.

Testing starts at the factory, where the fabricator verifies that the equipment works as it is intended, and then each component is tested again once it’s installed.  Once all the components are installed and each one is confirmed to be working as designed, a series of additional tests are carried out to confirm that the entire system is integrated properly and working together.

The final step involves testing the reliability and function of the entire system, including simulating actual operation using buses and staff acting as passengers, which gives the people who will be involved in the future operation, maintenance and service of the rapidway an opportunity to become familiar with the new equipment and facilities.

This entire process takes several months, and is done at each individual station and intersection as its equipment is installed.  So you can see that there’s still a lot of work behind the scenes to get to the day we’re all looking forward to – when the first viva vehicle pulls into the rapidway for the first time on Highway 7 in August.

 

Categories
Construction General Live-work-play Rapidways Stations Urban Planning

what’s a rapidway?

The word rapidway is new to most people, but pretty soon it’s going to be a very familiar concept for people in York Region.  We’ve had lots of interest from people wondering how exactly the rapidway on Highway 7 is going to work once it’s in service this year, and whether it will result in any changes for drivers, transit users and pedestrians.  So to get you started, here’s a primer on some rapidway basics.  Then for more detailed information, check out this blog over the upcoming days and weeks, for lots more information about what’s being built and how it’s going to benefit all of us.

  1. Who can actually drive in the rapidway?

    2. The rapidway will only be used by vivavehicles.  YRT buses will continue to run in mixed traffic as they do now, and will continue to use their existing curbside stops.  The exception is emergency vehicles; fire, ambulance, police, who may use the rapidways to help them through traffic.

    Under no circumstances will cars or other vehicles ever use the rapidway.  We’ll have signs at the beginning of the rapidway in each direction, making it very clear that non-viva vehicles must not enter.

  2. How will I know how to stay off the rapidway?

    3. We’ve made it easy to see where the rapidway begins, by paving the whole rapidway with distinctive bright red asphalt (see my blog in the next couple of weeks on red asphalt). It will be very obvious where the edges of the rapidway begin and end. To make it even more obvious, a rumble strip has been installed along the edges of the rapidway. Driving over the rumble strip will produce a loud noise if a driver begins to edge into the rapidway by mistake.

  3. How will I make a turn across the rapidway

    4. We’ve designed several features that will make it very clear where and when drivers can turn across the rapidway. (look for my blog in the next couple of weeks for more description of the new intersections and traffic signals). Left turns will only be allowed at intersections, which will have well-marked turning lines painted on them. The rapidways will have their own dedicated transit signals for viva drivers, which will be clearly marked and separate from the left turn signals for all other drivers. Lastly, there will be a protected left turn phase, meaning that drivers turning left (or making u-turns) will get a separate green arrow on its own phase, before through-traffic is allowed to move.

  4. How will pedestrians get to the vivastations?

    5. Every station is located adjacent to a signalized intersection, with a clearly marked crosswalk to make it easy to cross to the station in the median. Because Highway 7 with the rapidway lanes in the middle is now wider than it used to be, some pedestrians may want to cross the road in two stages, going to the median on the first stage, and then crossing to the other side on the second stage.

So that’s the most basic primer on how the rapidway will work, but I know people have many more questions. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to post an ongoing series of blogs on all the features of the new Highway 7 rapidway. But in the meantime, we want to know what you’d like more information on. Help us out by filling in your priority topics in this simple survey:

    [poll id=”43″]
Categories
General Live-work-play Rapidways Stations Urban Planning

bringing a long-term plan for the future to life, one step at a time

With crews working on the finishing touches on the western half of the Highway 7 rapidway, we’re getting closer to the day rapid transit finally becomes a reality for York Region.  As much as we’re looking forward to celebrating this milestone, it’s only one (very exciting) step in a long path that started years ago, and is going to take time to complete.

There’s a lot of media coverage these days on the general need for better transit all across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA).  We’re proud that York Region has been actively working to bring rapid transit to our region.  In 2002 the Region produced the York Region Transportation Master Plan and the follow-up Rapid Transit Plan, committing the Region to a blueprint of multiple transportation initiatives to be built over the next 30 years.

With approval to the Rapid Transit Plan, we got to work quickly.  In 2005 the viva team – our formal name is York Region Rapid Transit Corporation – first launched “QuickStart”, the first phase of viva service.  Viva offered enhanced features that made transit more comfortable and convenient, and put the customer first in a way that was new for a transit service in the GTHA. With ridership levels that have increased steadily, viva changed the way people in York Region viewed transit.

But while our new viva service was a major success and an important first step in encouraging people to try transit, designing the vivaNext rapid transit system was our longer-term priority. Since 2005, Provincial government policy has required that Ontario municipalities plan for sustainable, more intensive land use, and rapid transit is a key component to achieve that goal.  Anticipating this, the 2002 Transportation Master Plan directed that future growth in York Region would be concentrated in new downtowns in Markham, Newmarket, Richmond Hill and Vaughan. By building more intensively in these areas, there would be less pressure for growth in existing neighbourhoods and a reduction in traffic congestion.

These urban centres would be connected by transportation “corridors”, making it easier for people to get around the region. The vivaNext rapidways will be built along the corridors, providing connections across York Region and into the rest of the GTHA.

Much of the new development built around vivastations will be compact and mixed-use, providing housing, employment, retail, dining, services and recreation, all within walking distance of transit. Developments will also include more welcoming public spaces, attractive landscaping, and other amenities that will contribute to the centres becoming more dynamic destinations.

Our plan is well and truly underway, and rapidways are being built on Highway 7 in both the east and west, as well as in Newmarket. The Toronto-York Spadina subway extension is under construction, and the design for rapidways on Yonge Street are being finalized.  Great new developments are popping up all over the new urban centres across the Region.

So when the first rapidway on Highway 7 starts service this year, we’re going to be celebrating the implementation of the first phase of our transportation and growth management blueprint.

We have many more phases to deliver, but with such a clear plan to follow, people in York Region can be assured it’s going to come true.  Check out our construction progress so far.

 

Categories
General Rapidways Stations Subways Uncategorized Urban Planning

Exploring Vaughan with vivaNext

With the early stages of rapid transit developments underway along Highway 7 West in Vaughan, now is the perfect time to reflect on everything this great city has to offer. Already an attractive destination for residents, businesses and visitors, Vaughan is a perfect location to integrate Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) rapidways and cultivate a thriving transit system.

Vaughan is comprised of six communities including Maple, Woodbridge, Kleinburg, Concord, Thornhill and Vaughan Metropolitan Centre [VMC]. With a growth rate of 80.2%, it was the fastest growing municipality in Canada from 1996-2006, and this diverse city shows no signs of slowing down.  The nation’s largest amusement park, Canada’s Wonderland, averages approximately 3.5 million visitors per season and the Kortright Centre for Conservation hosts around 135,000 visitors annually.

Vaughan is also home to many social, historical and cultural hotspots that maintain its reputation as a vibrant place to live, work, shop and eat. Residents and visitors can browse over 200 retail stores at Vaughan Mills, the 15th largest mall in Canada, or view an extensive collection of paintings by Tom Thomson, the Group of Seven and their contemporaries at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg. Before hopping on a viva bus home, stop by Reptilia Zoo and visit “The King” – the largest venomous Cobra snake at any zoo in Canada, or tour the Thoreau MacDonald House – home of the Group of Seven painter J.E.H MacDonald from 1914 to 1974. Other various parks, theatres, recreation centres and educational institutions leave no shortage of things to do and explore.

The future rapidway vivastation at VMC will make travelling to and from your favourite places in Vaughan easier and more efficient. In the VMC, mixed-use transit-oriented development is proposed along a tree-lined main street, including businesses, residences, entertainment and cultural facilities, as well as pedestrian shopping areas. With connections to both the new TTC subway station and an inter-regional bus terminal, VMC will be one of the most ambitious development projects in the area’s history. It will be a convenient transportation hub unique to the city, and yet another main attraction that Vaughan can call its own.

Check out some more fast facts about Vaughan below:

  • Non-official languages include:
    Italian – 15.2% | Russian – 6.7% | Spanish – 2.7% | Tagalog (Filipino) – 1.9% | Punjabi – 1.8%
  • Twin city: Lanciano, Italy (2002)
  • Folklore associates the name “Maple” with the numerous Maple trees once found along Keele St.
  • The name “Woodbridge” derived from a wooden bridge that crossed the Humber River as an entry point into the town
  • A direct German translation of “Kleinburg” is small town

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