Tag: Bus Rapid Transit

Categories
Announcements Rapidways

We’re on our way!!

metrolinx-announcement_2010_05_20

Yesterday, we got positive news.  But first: rewind back to March 2010, when the Province announced in their budget that, due to their major financial pressures, they would need to rejig their transit spending schedule, to focus on getting the most urgent projects built first.  So we sat down with Metrolinx to work through our plans.  We needed to figure out the best schedule that would still benefit the region-wide transit system, but with some pieces coming sooner and others coming later.  It took a lot of hard work, and yesterday, Metrolinx announced the proposed new schedule.

Metrolinx’ board gave its unanimous endorsement to the proposed plan, which means the vivaNext projects can continue to move forward, one in each of Markham, Newmarket, Richmond Hill and Vaughan. This first phase of building will see York Region getting $790 million for rapid transit expansion over the next five years.

The plan also has a second series of rapidways, which will expand the rapid transit foundation established through the first set of routes. This second phase will get $965 million for projects to be constructed between 2016 and 2020.

The bottom line is that between these two phases, the entire vivaNext plan as originally announced in April 2009 will be built. We’ve always believed that the vivaNext plan is one of the keys to getting the GTA moving, and now, after working closely with our partners at Metrolinx, we believe that the revised plan will still help us address the building gridlock that’s such a risk for us all. That’s good news for York Region, and for everyone who lives or works here.

So with this revised schedule now approved, we can really get underway towards building the vivaNext vision of true rapid transit for York Region. We’ve got our design teams, our engineers and our construction crews all revved up to finalize their planning and, as the Metrolinx proposal is confirmed by the province next month, we can keep on going. So keep visiting us at vivaNext.com for updates and news as we, with real excitement, get on our way!

Categories
Announcements Rapidways

Looking at the past, to move into the future

philglauberman

As we move forward to meet the needs of the future with our expanded vivaNext rapid transit system, most of our thoughts are on the future: our design plans, our construction schedule, our excitement about helping bring more choices to people in York Region. But at the same time, there’s one important step of our project that is focused on looking back to the past: we do an archaeological assessment of our construction site.

Next week, that backwards-looking step is going to be visible to the people who live, work or shop on Davis Drive, as archaeologists will be working along the side of the roadway.

This assessment, apart from being important to help us understand our heritage, is also a legislated obligation. Before large projects like our rapidways are built, they go through an Environmental Assessment, which is done to assess the existing environment and the impacts the proposed project could have on that environment, and commit to the steps needed to avoid or minimize those impacts. One aspect of the environment that is assessed is the existing cultural environment, which includes heritage artifacts and structures.

Under the terms of the Environmental Assessment done for the rapidways , archaeologists will be doing follow-up tests along the roadside of selected Davis Drive properties next week, to look for heritage artifacts.

People have been moving along Davis Drive for many years – Europeans since the middle of the 19th century, and aboriginal people for many centuries before that. And because Davis Drive crosses a stream, which is often where people tended to settle, it is inevitable that those early people left things behind.

Our archaeologists tell us that it’s not too likely they will find many really important artifacts. Most artifacts are found where the soil hasn’t been disturbed before, such as in a farmer’s field, but with the road, parking lots, shops and driveways, there has been a lot of development along Davis Drive over the past century or two.

Even so, there are often surprises. So the archaeologists will take their time, carefully digging small holes, each one about the size you’d dig for a rose bush. They’ll sift the soil, looking for anything of historical interest: square-headed nails or bits of pottery.

Anything they find will be identified and catalogued. And we’ll enjoy watching (and taking pictures) and be glad our project is giving us a chance to look back, even as we move forward.

Categories
Announcements Live-work-play Urban Planning

Places to Grow: setting the stage for growth

For those of us living in York Region and in the Greater Toronto Area, growth is one of those things that we cannot escape. In fact, the entire Province of Ontario is set to expand its population by nearly 30% over the next 30 years. Obviously, no one community is an island; growth in one area affects all of us.

To make sure all this growth has a positive impact on our communities, in 2005 the provincial government passed the Places to Grow Act. This Act set out specific growth targets and densities for the province. It also produced individual growth plans for key regions, including the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe Region. This plan is the basic rule book that is guiding planning for all the regions and municipalities in the region, including York Region and all its towns and cities. It calls for municipalities to look for ways to:

  • Revitalize downtowns to become vibrant and convenient centres;
  • Create complete communities that offer more options for living, working, learning, shopping and playing;
  • Provide housing options to meet the needs of people at any age;
  • Curb sprawl and protect farmland and green spaces; and
  • Reduce traffic gridlock by improving access to a greater range of transportation options.

This plan was welcomed as great news by people who understand the need for sustainable, smart management of growth. In fact, although the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe may sound like a bit of a mouthful, it has many admirers. It has won numerous awards – including from the Ontario Professional Planners Institute, the Canadian Institute of Planners, and the American Planning Association (APA) as the first recipient from outside the United States of the APA’s Daniel Burnham Award. Watch a video that showcases why they received the award. This is the most prestigious planning award in the United States, given to a comprehensive plan that, among other things, best represents the APA’s slogan of “Making Great Communities Happen”.

So we’re pretty fortunate in York Region to have this strong policy framework, and we’ve continued to build on it to shape the York Region of the future. It’s a long-term plan, and as they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day. But bit by bit, this future vision is taking shape, and vivaNext is a key component.

Categories
Announcements Community Events Rapidways Urban Planning

VivaNext comes to Yonge Street

vivaNext Public Information Meeting
Attendees listen intently at a past public information meeting.

VivaNext rapidways are going to make a huge difference to people travelling around Newmarket.  With their own dedicated rapid transit lanes, special transit-priority traffic signals at intersections and welcoming vivastations with many special features, Viva will soon get people around Newmarket faster and more comfortably than ever before.

We’re excited to be moving forward on the vivaNext rapidway that’s planned for Davis Drive, with some pre-construction activities already in motion. And now we’re moving forward with our second Newmarket rapidway, which will run north-south along the busy stretch of Yonge Street from Mulock to Davis Drive.

On February 22, we’re hosting a special public information meeting to introduce this rapidway segment.  We’re going to have our whole team on hand, ready to answer all your questions about where Viva will stop along the rapidways, the design for stations and platforms, and how the special traffic features will make it easier and safer for drivers along Yonge Street. We’ll also be joined by our friends from the Town of Newmarket, who will talk about the long-term vision for this community as it continues to grow and expand, and how our leading-edge rapidways are part of that future plan.

We’re hoping that everyone who is interested in vivaNext rapidways and the Newmarket of the future will join us for an informative, inspiring evening.

When

Monday, February 22
Open House 6 to 8 p.m.
Presentation 7 p.m.

Where

Ray Twinney Complex
Lounge 1
100 Eagle Street West
Newmarket

We look forward to seeing you there!

Categories
General Going Green Rapidways

VivaNext will help you keep your New Year’s resolutions!

Getting in shape is a popular New Year's Resolution. Photo courtesy of Jennoit.
Getting in shape is a popular New Year's resolution. Photo courtesy of Jennoit.

Each January, certain New Year’s resolutions consistently make the Top Ten most popular lists. They include:

1. Spending more time with family & friends
2. Getting fit
3. Losing weight
4. Enjoying life more
5. Saving money
6. Helping the environment
7. Reducing stress
8. Helping others
9. Being more punctual
10. Reading more

In future, vivaNext rapid transit projects will make it easy for you to keep all of these New Year’s resolutions. How so? Rapid transit is faster, easier, less expensive and more environmentally friendly than driving. As a result, it can reduce your stress levels, allow you to arrive at your destination on time, and give you more time to work out, do the things you enjoy, be with the people you love, and of course, help you save money and the environment.

We think that’s a lot of added value for the cost of a YRT\Viva fare. Speaking of which, did you know that YRT\Viva fares will remain unchanged throughout 2010?!

Tell us about your New Year’s resolutions. Did they include any of the above Top Ten?

Categories
Announcements General Urban Planning vivaNext.com

Reflecting back on a year of many milestones!

With a new year just around the corner, we wanted to celebrate by reflecting back on some significant milestones for vivaNext in 2009.

In early spring, the Province of Ontario committed $1.4 billion for the construction of dedicated rapidways along Davis Drive, Highway 7 and Yonge Street for Viva vehicles.

The following month, the Ministry of the Environment unconditionally approved the Environmental Project Report for the proposed Yonge subway extension.

Around this time, our new website was also launched along with this blog and other social media initiatives to help keep you informed of all the latest vivaNext developments.

By the fall, preliminary rapidway construction activities were underway in Newmarket and Markham, and a contract for conceptual design work regarding the Yonge subway extension was awarded. In addition, preliminary station designs were also unveiled for several of the Spadina subway extension stations at a series of public open houses, and the project took an important step forward with a groundbreaking ceremony at the Wilson Subway Yard.

Then, just before the holiday season, a ceremony was held on the site of the planned rapidway alongside Enterprise Drive in Markham (which is part of the Highway 7 rapidway project) to commemorate the start of construction of the first 37 km of rapidways.

From every side of York Region, this past year has been filled with milestones for the vivaNext projects. We look forward to bringing you many more in 2010.

Happy New Year from vivaNext!

Reminder: All YRT\Viva rides are free on New Year’s Eve after 7 p.m.

Categories
Announcements Press Rapidways

Rapidway construction begins in York Region on Enterprise Drive!

Today, an on-site ceremony was held on Enterprise Drive in Markham to commemorate the start of 70 kilometres of vivaNext rapidway construction in York Region.

VivaNext – York Region’s plan for the next generation of rapid transit – includes a network of several rapidways across the Region. They are the east-west Highway 7 rapidway from Highway 50 in Vaughan to Reesor Road in Markham, the north-south Yonge Street rapidway from the Richmond Hill Centre Terminal in Richmond Hill to Green Lane in Newmarket, and the east-west Davis Drive rapidway from Yonge Street to the Southlake Regional Health Centre in Newmarket.

The rapidways will take Viva vehicles out of mixed traffic and into their own dedicated lanes, where they will safely speed past congestion, no matter what time of day.

The 800 metres of rapidways being built on Enterprise Drive, between Warden Avenue and Birchmount Road, are part of the Highway 7 rapidway project.

“This construction phase is truly significant, as it marks the beginning of a new stage of rapid transit in York Region,” said York Region Chairman and CEO Bill Fisch. “Together with the Government of Ontario, we are building a modern transit system to ensure we keep pace with the planned growth in York Region and preserve the quality of life our residents have come to expect.”

Rapidway construction on Enterprise Drive, which will be completed by the end of 2010, will involve the installation of concrete platform foundations, curbs, and the placement of station canopies. No road closures will be required; only short-term temporary lane closures.

“This is great news for the people of York Region and the GTA,” said Markham-Unionville MPP Michael Chan. “The project signals the start of a faster, more convenient rapid transit network that will enable people to get around more easily, improve the ability of our businesses to grow and succeed and help improve the environment.”

As construction of the rapidways gets underway, we encourage you to add vivanext.com to your list of favourite websites for quick and easy access to the latest information and construction updates. While there, you can also sign up to receive our quarterly e-newsletter in your Inbox, along with customized email updates about vivaNext projects of particular interest to you.

Categories
Live-work-play Urban Planning

Montreal tops list of “9 Great Streets Around The World”!

Crowds pack Boulevard Saint Laurent during a street festival. Photo courtesy of Djof.
Crowds pack Boulevard Saint Laurent during a street festival. Photo courtesy of Djof.

Project for Public Spaces (PPS), an internationally-recognized non-profit organization that helps communities get the most out of their streets, both as transportation links for all modes of commuters and as vital places for people to enjoy, recently compiled its list of “9 Great Streets Around The World”.

Affectionately known as “The Main”, Montreal’s Boulevard Saint Laurent tops PPS’s list for a number of reasons including its Access & Linkages, Comfort & Image, Uses & Activities, and Sociability.

With vivaNext, this kind of placemaking will also take place along York Region’s busiest corridors as people come to live, work, shop and play in close proximity to great transit service. In addition to great access, vivaNext will bring attractive boulevards, planted medians and an enhanced pedestrian experience including continuous, wide sidewalks.

We wouldn’t be at all surprised if Highway 7, Yonge Street and Davis Drive top the PPS list of great streets in years to come!

Categories
General

The best way to holiday shop will get even better with vivaNext!

If you’re like most York Region residents, your holiday shopping list is long and involves trips to multiple retail locations.

Leaving your car at home and taking transit instead is the best way to avoid traffic jams and parking problems. It’s also a lot less expensive since you don’t have to pay for things like gas, valets, tickets, and even towing.

With a YRT\Viva ticket, you can travel on any YRT or Viva vehicle in any direction for a two-hour period with just one fare. How convenient and inexpensive is that?! Simply remember to hang onto your ticket or transfer as proof-of-payment so you can hop on and hop off vehicles.

As great as transit already is for holiday shopping, it will get even better with vivaNext. The subway extensions, rapidways, and proposed light rail transit lines will make it even faster and easier to get around York Region’s busiest corridors and beyond.

In fact, we wouldn’t be at all surprised to see a certain somebody in a red and white suit using our transit system to do his holiday shopping in future!

Categories
General Rapidways

Get assistance from your Community Liaison!

Our goal is to ensure that you can quickly and easily find answers to all your vivaNext questions on our comprehensive and constantly updated website. However, we also recognize that there may be times when you need to speak directly to someone about a specific related matter.

That’s why we have a vivaNext Community Liaison, Andrea Witty. Whether you’re a property owner, business operator, tenant, or any other community member directly affected by vivaNext construction, Andrea is readily available to assist you with any question regarding rapidway planning and construction.

Here’s how to reach her:

Andrea Witty
Community Liaison
Telephone: 905-886-6767  Ext. 1022
1-877-464-9675
Cellphone: 416-554-1890
Email: andrea.witty@york.ca

Throughout vivaNext construction, you will also find Andrea out in the community providing York Region residents and businesses with ongoing project information.

If you met Andrea, what would you ask her?