Tag: Highway 7

Categories
Construction

Our pledge to you

Click here to see the Pledge campaign poster

You probably can guess that I’m very proud to be involved in our vivaNext rapidway construction project underway on Highway 7. I believe – as does everyone who works here – that this project is going to be great for York Region.

We thought people in York Region might find it interesting and reassuring to meet some of the professionals who are part of the vivaNext Highway 7 East rapidway project, and to hear what those individuals personally hope to achieve through their own work. This is the thinking behind our “Pledge” campaign, which you may have seen in posters or video.

The pledge campaign is our commitment to the community – that our design will reflect state-of-the-art technology and transit planning and that it will incorporate detailed urban design elements for beautiful and welcoming streetscapes.

Our construction project will be carefully planned and implemented to minimize disruption as much as possible, and to time the noise and delays for the least inconvenience for commuters, businesses and residents.

We are committed to being careful stewards of the natural environment while we work, to ensure we cause no harm to vegetation, fish or wildlife through the construction project.

And last but not least, we will be transparent and open in providing all the information people need while construction is underway. We will be available to anyone who has a question, comment or concern, through our Community Liaison, Nimisha Raja.

All of us working on vivaNext, whether we’re named in the campaign or not, are personally and professionally proud to be a part of building this state-of-the-art rapid transit system. And we want everyone in York Region to know you have our word on it.

Categories
General Press Rapidways

Transit ridership is way up: great news for everyone

Viva passengers getting on and off the bus at Warden Station in Markham

If you’re reading this blog, you have likely already seen the news release on our vivaNext.com website, describing the steady increase in transit ridership in York Region. But just to restate, on June 14 we announced that Viva ridership has increased 26% since this service was launched in September 2005. Overall ridership for both York Region Transit (YRT) and Viva Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has increased by 10.5% from January to April 2011, compared to the same period in 2010.

This increase is great news for a number of reasons, whether or not you’re a transit rider.

First, the more people take transit, the more successful our services will be – more riders means more revenue, which in turn can be put back into our route planning and frequency, making services even better for riders.

Second, more people leaving their car keys at home and boarding YRT\Viva means less air pollution for everyone. We all know how important air quality is to our health – especially during hot summer months.

Third, every loaded bus is equal to 70 cars. So even if you’re personally not a transit rider, every time you drive alongside a bus loaded with passengers, that’s 70 cars that aren’t in front of you. The result is less congestion and easier driving for people who need to get around by car.

The fourth, and in some ways the most important reason, is that increased ridership suggests a culture shift – a really important one for the future of this region, and how we manage growth.

There’s no doubt that the culture in York Region, in the past, was quite car-based. That’s not at all unusual in an area that expanded quickly as part of the GTA suburban growth; where new subdivisions were designed for people who travelled by car, and where it was convenient to drive to most places.

But that kind of urban design can only happen when there’s lots of room – room for big wide roads, room for huge parking lots, and room for all the homes and driveways. Not to mention room for all of the cars. With the growth coming to York Region, that design just isn’t sustainable – we don’t have enough room to accommodate everyone without making some adjustments. So going forward, our new growth will be managed with urban, higher density developments, clustered along major roads. These new developments are being planned to make it very convenient for people to live, work and play without needing to get in a car. Our vision is that people will be able to travel between their job, shopping and recreation while using transit.

The fact that our transit ridership is going up shows that our long-term plan is working, and that people are finding it easy to get around by hopping on board YRT\Viva.

With our rapidways and the Spadina Subway extension already under construction, and efforts being made to get funding for the Yonge Subway extension, transit is only going to get better and better, which is great news for all of us.

Categories
General Rapidways

Our partners: building on strength

Blog photo: Our partners - building on strength

Last week, I described how our partnership with the private sector is helping us to build our rapid transit system on schedule, and on budget. This week, here’s a primer on who our partners are, in particular our construction lead.

York Consortium 2002, our partner for the design components of the project, includes some of the worlds’ most experienced engineering, design and construction firms. Members of this joint venture include:

  • > AECOM Enterprises – based in the United States, one of the largest transportation firms in the world;
  • > IBI Group – Toronto-based, with offices around the world;
  • > Delcan Corporation – a Toronto-based international company that has developed rail transit in Los Angeles and Tel Aviv;
  • > Peter Kiewit Infrastructure Co. – a leading heavy civil contractor with offices across Canada; and,
  • > EllisDon Corporation – a Canadian-based international construction company that has worked on numerous major transit and transportation projects.

Under the terms of our agreement with York Consortium, they were offered the first right to bid on the construction project to build the Highway 7 East rapidway, with their bid competing in a bid process where we’ve gathered a cost estimate from an independent source.

Following this process, last year a partnership between Kiewit and Ellis-Don (Kiewit-EllisDon or KED) led the successful bid to become the construction contractor for the Highway 7 East rapidway.

Having KED is a tremendous benefit for this project, as our rapidways require a broad range of expertise in building roads, bridges, rapidways and transit stations. Kiewit has built some of the most challenging road and highway projects all across North America, including the Sea to Sky Highway in British Columbia. And EllisDon is one of the best known construction firms in Canada, with a wealth of knowledge and experience in our region.

It’s worth repeating that this is a huge project, with many challenges and months of work ahead. But we’re confident that our construction project on Highway 7 is in experienced and capable hands, and so far we’re off to a great start.

Categories
General Rapidways

Highway rapidways: shifting into the next phase

Illustration of shifted lanes: Traffic is shifted from one side to another along the roadway, to keep traffic lanes open

If you’ve been along Highway 7 East during the last few weeks, you’ll know that our work crews have been busily removing the raised concrete median that runs down the centre of the road. With that first phase of work almost complete and on schedule, here’s a primer on what we’ll be doing next, and how it will affect you.

As I described in last week’s note about construction staging, the reason we did that first phase of work was to free up some extra room so we could build the rapidway with a minimum impact on travel lanes. But that was just the warm-up act. Now that the median is gone, we’re about to shift into the heavy construction of the rapidway. To keep lanes open during peak hours we’ll be shifting traffic right and then eventually shifting traffic left – a little like a giant square dance without the fiddle music and funny clothes.

Swinging traffic right
May 11 and 12, starting at 7pm, we’re going to temporarily close all the centre lanes in both directions between Chalmers Road and Highway 404 (we’ll keep one lane open in each direction). Working over the two nights between 7pm and 7am, we’ll repaint the lanes as shown on the diagram above (we’ll reopen all lanes during the day). By Saturday, six travel lanes will be shifted to their temporary new positions. Then starting next week, our crews will begin working in the original curb lanes to widen the roadway and build the new boulevards. We expect this phase of work will take us until later this summer.

The diagram shows which lanes will be open for traffic, and where our crews will be working, starting at the west and east ends of this section of rapidway and working toward the middle at Pond Drive.

Swinging traffic left
Once the crews meet at Pond Drive, we’ll temporarily close the middle lanes again. This time we’ll repaint the lines to shift the lanes to the opposite side of the road. Then our crews will repeat the same steps, all along the second side.

We’re doing whatever we can to minimize the disruption for drivers and pedestrians. But you’ll definitely notice some changes while the lanes are in their temporary positions:

  • > There will still be left turn lanes and advance greens, but the lanes will be narrower and shorter.
  • > There will be no separate right turn lanes where construction is curbside.
  • > We’ll maintain access for businesses and intersections, although if temporary detours are needed we’ll be sure to point this out with clear signs.
  • > YRT\Viva stops will remain open, although some of them may be repositioned temporarily to allow for construction.
  • > If sidewalks have to be closed off, we’ll provide temporary sidewalks.

Although the temporary lanes will be clearly marked, they’ll be curved and slightly narrower than usual.

So please, drive carefully, watch for signs alerting you to construction zones and lane shifts, and be excited that our rapid transit future here in York Region is well and truly underway!

Categories
Rapidways Uncategorized

Staging rapidway construction to minimize the inconvenience

Staging construction in phases helps keep traffic lanes open

Today’s blog is about building our rapidways. But to kick things off, here’s a question for those of you who’ve ever had to paint a room, or lay down a new floor. What’s easier: working in your kitchen that has to be used every day and is filled with stuff, or in an empty room in the basement that no one goes into? That may seem like a pretty silly question, with a really obvious answer. But I’m asking it to give you a sense of the biggest challenge our rapidway construction contractors are up against as construction gets going: how to work in a confined, busy space that’s open for business 24/7 – meaning our roadways.

Modern roadway building is a well understood process, following clearly defined steps, and using modern technology, equipment and materials. And in York Region, where we are fortunate to have access to some of the best, most experienced construction contractors anywhere, people really know what they’re doing. So building a rapidway is – in some ways – a very straightforward project. Straightforward, that is, until you realize that the rapidways are being built down the middle of some of the most congested stretches of road in the GTA. And that it’s critical to minimize wherever possible the impact on people using the roadway, including keeping travel lanes open during construction. And that there’s no extra room down the outside of the road to widen the working space. That’s when things get more challenging. This is where the concept of “construction staging” comes in, meaning doing the work in specific phases or steps to manage within the available space.

The first step in rebuilding a road in an existing roadway (as we’re doing when we build a rapidway) is to create some extra room to put our construction crews. For the safety of both the public and our construction crews, construction needs to happen in its own separate space; excavators need to swing their buckets, we need a place to bring in concrete, and trucks need room to back up. So finding that room is the first challenge. Our approach is to take out the median, narrow each of the lanes and shift them over by repainting the lines. We will then work in the extra space that’s been freed up, constructing all along one stretch before we move to the next.

Once one side of the road is done, we’ll then repaint the lanes to shift the lanes back, then begin work on the other side, working in stages along the entire segment. Think of our kitchen example; it’s like putting down a new floor in your kitchen – you do one side, then move your fridge and stove over to the completed side so you can do the other half.

There’s no doubt that road building would be a lot easier and a lot faster if we could just block it off and do the full width all at once. Working around traffic means work progresses more slowly; we have to use smaller equipment, construction trucks get caught in traffic, and every stage takes longer. For example, paving requires only a few hours, but new pavement can’t have traffic on it right away, so we need to time the paving work carefully so it isn’t done during the most congested times of the day.

And sometimes you may get the feeling that we’ve returned to an area even though it seemed like we were finished. In fact, what you’re seeing is that we are coming back to complete additional steps which have to be done in a certain order. As much as possible, we like to get all the work done in one segment before we move on to the next. This is all part of staging, where work is done in small, careful steps.

And just as you wouldn’t be able to live without your kitchen while you renovate, we will keep our roads open during the project, relying on staging to minimize the impact of our work while we get it done as quickly as possible.

Categories
General

Highway 7 East Rapidway Week One Update

A backhoe scoops up pieces of the Highway 7 median near Leslie Street
A backhoe scoops up pieces of the Highway 7 median near Leslie Street

After all the planning and prepping, rapidway construction is well underway for our Highway 7 East rapidway. And so far so good – work is going according to schedule, the weather’s cooperating, and we hope to have this first stage of work done by late May.

Here’s an update on what’s happening, and what to expect over the next while.

Before we can get going on the heavy construction, we need to create some room to work. The way we do that is to remove and pave over the centre median all the way from Chalmers in the west end, to Highway 404 in the east. Using those extra feet of roadway, we will then repaint the lanes, shifting them away from the current edge of the road to give our crews room to work safely, while keeping all travel lanes open.

At that point, heavy construction will start to actually widen the future roadway. Starting at both the west and east ends (Chalmers and the 404) and working toward the middle at Pond Drive, work crews will get going on widening the road on one side, and putting in wide new boulevards. Once they have that first side done, they’ll switch sides.

Most of the widening and boulevard work west of 404 should be done by the end of this year. Once the work on the sides is finished, we’ll have to stop construction for the winter. In the spring of 2012 we’ll get going again, this time working down the middle to build the rapidway and stations.

Similar staging will be used for the eastern section, from the 404 to Town Centre then south to Enterprise, with most of the work to be done there in 2012 and 2013. The whole segment along Highway 7 East will be up and running in 2014.

The median removals require temporary lane closures during off-peak hours, and we know that is creating a bit of congestion. Fortunately, once this first short stage of work is over, our construction contractor, Kiewit-EllisDon (one of the largest construction companies in North America) will be able to minimize disruption as much as possible. They’ve planned the construction so that most of the time, all lanes will be kept open. If lanes are required to be closed, it generally won’t be during rush hour. Even though it’s a huge project, we’re counting on them to get it completed on schedule, and cause as little disruption as possible.

One of our priorities is to make sure it’s easy for drivers to drive through the construction zone, and ensure constant access to businesses and addresses along Highway 7. We’ll be installing construction signs, including electronic message signs, which will warn drivers if the road is congested up ahead, so you’ll know if you need to take an alternate route.

We will be keeping you updated on all the developments as they unfold, but there’s no doubt this is a major infrastructure project, and it’s going to take about three years to complete from one end to the other. So please, drive carefully, watch for signs showing where work is happening, and check your inbox for e-updates on what’s happening out there. If you haven’t signed up yet, now’s the time to register at vivaNext.com.

Categories
General

Construction season is here

Construction season is here – vivaNext newsletter and construction bulletin, tweets and Facebook page

For months now we’ve been talking about the construction you’ll be seeing on Davis Drive in Newmarket, and on Highway 7 East in Markham and Richmond Hill. Now that spring is here, several construction projects are happening on York Region’s roads, including vivaNext rapidway construction.

Construction can include temporary lane closures, occasional bus stop closures or relocations and sidewalk detours. We know how frustrating these disruptions can be for drivers, transit users and pedestrians. That’s why we’re preparing you with information about why construction is happening, and where and when.

Why is construction happening? The practical reason is to build a rapid transit system that’s not delayed by congested traffic. Provincial and Regional planning policies outline the big-picture reasons, including two of our goals: to connect Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area communities, and to set the stage for pedestrian friendly and transit-oriented urban corridors.

We also want you to know where and when construction is happening and this can be a challenge, because as with any construction project, not everything goes according to plan. We receive updates directly from construction site managers, and our team works quickly to pass this information to you. We let you know about new information by putting up electronic signs on-site, sending tweets to those who follow us on Twitter and advising radio traffic reporters. When we know about work more than a day in advance we email construction bulletins to everyone who signed up for updates, and we post bulletins on our website and Facebook page. We also give general updates on our projects in our newsletters, weekly blogs and website content.

If you have a suggestion or a question, you don’t have to wait for our updates to find out the answer. We welcome the questions and suggestions we receive when we host public meetings and attend community events, and our Community Liaisons, Andrea and Nimisha, talk to people every day about our projects. We also respond to comments through this blog, via Twitter or Facebook, and our online contact forms. We want to hear from you!

We can’t prevent the lane closures that are required to complete construction, but we hope that knowing the long-term benefits and being prepared for where and when work is scheduled will be a big step in helping you get around.

Categories
Community Events

Join our public meeting in Markham!

Exciting new changes coming to Highway 7 - Invitation to Public Meeting, Wednesday March 23, 2-8pm at the Delta Markham Hotel, Truffle Ballroom, at 50 East Valhalla Drive, Markham

There are exciting new changes coming to Highway 7 in Markham! We’re preparing to widen Highway 7 East between Bayview and Warden to create dedicated lanes in the centre of the road for rapid transit. We’ve scheduled heavy road construction along Highway 7 East in 2012, but you’ll see our preparation for this work starting in about two weeks. We have utilities to move, temporary traffic lights to install, and centre medians to remove, and we’re doing most of it between now and November.

This project is moving full steam ahead, and we want you to come talk about it with us at our open house this Wednesday. This is your chance to talk to us, look at information boards and maps, and if you’re there at 7 p.m. you can see our presentation. Learn what you can expect during the construction season ahead and about how a rapidway works and the benefits it will bring to our community.

We hope to see you at the meeting, but if you can’t make it, be sure to sign up to receive construction updates, and go to the Past Meetings page on our website after March 23, where you’ll find all the materials from the meeting.

You’re invited
Date: Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Time: Drop in from 2 to 8 p.m. (presentation is at 7 p.m.)
Location: Delta Markham Hotel, Truffle Ballroom
50 East Valhalla Drive, Markham

Categories
General Rapidways Stations Uncategorized

New vehicle + new rapidway + new station = Training

New Nova bus being used for training at Warden Station in Markham
New Nova bus being used for training at Warden Station in Markham

It wasn’t that long ago that vivaNext was listing required specs for new Viva vehicles and testing design ideas for a rapid transit station. It feels like just yesterday that we were deciding station platform widths, highlighting accessibility requirements both on and off Viva and modelling the streetscape of the rapidways.

Now, some of the new vehicles have already arrived, the first new rapid transit station has been built in York Region and the first stretch of rapidway has been completed.

The new vehicles (made by Nova Bus) have great features – larger windows, a wider centre aisle, great lighting, and an accessibility ramp at the front door instead of at the middle. They’re powered by advanced clean diesel propulsion systems that produce fewer emissions, and we’re proud to say they’re manufactured in Canada. For drivers though, it also has new, unfamiliar on-board systems and controls.

The new vivastation is completely different from a typical transit shelter. It’s a rapid transit station, complete with heated waiting area, messaging boards and safety and accessibility features. It will serve our community for generations to come. However, with the platform being much higher than a street curb, Viva drivers must practise pulling into the station and review procedures related to its operations.

The rapidways allow Viva vehicles to bypass congested traffic as they operate in their own lane. Something drivers are also becoming more familiar with, now that the first stretch of rapidway is completed at Warden Ave. and Enterprise Blvd. in Markham.

Yes, training is a key focal point right now to ensure opening day goes without any unexpected inconvenience to our customers. Driver training on all of these elements has been underway for a while, and the Nova Buses are gradually being introduced into service. In just a matter of days now, we’ll see customers using the new Warden Station, boarding a new Viva vehicle and travelling down the new rapidway.

If you’re in the Warden Avenue and Enterprise Boulevard area, join us on opening day and bring your camera! Stay tuned for the official announcement and we’ll see you on the new platform on opening day with something special.

We love to hear from you, so if you’ve seen a Nova Bus or the new Warden Station, tell us what you think by replying to this blog, or by posting a comment on Facebook or Twitter. If you have a photo of yourself or your friends on the Nova Bus, we’d love to see those too!

Categories
General Urban Planning

Locating utility lines – not always easy

Colour Code for Marking Underground Utility LinesHave you ever seen colourful markings along the side of the road, little coloured flags in a fun mix of colours stuck in the ground, or official-looking painted symbols on pavement, curbs and sidewalks and wondered what they mean?

It turns out that these markers aren’t just decorative – they mean something. In North America there is an established colour code for the markers, so that construction and utility workers everywhere will know where they should, and shouldn’t, dig.

Before the utility markers are put in place, we have to get “as-built drawings” from utility companies or from municipal records. As-built drawings are detailed treasure maps leading to utility lines, and although modern drawings are computer files, pre-1980s versions are hand-drawn. Some utility lines, such as water mains, can last up to 80 years. In most towns, each utility line was installed or replaced as needed over time, with separate record-keeping for each installation. This can make for a wide variety in age and design of drawings.

Once we have the as-built drawings, we mark the locations so that workers with utility location equipment will know where to dig – this is when the coloured flags and paint markings enter the picture. The markers are especially used where the utilities aren’t in a straight line, and may also point out other utility lines near the one we’re searching for.

Now that we have a general idea of where a utility line is located, our workers bring out a hydrovac – a large, truck-mounted vacuum – to liquefy and vacuum bore a hole about a foot in diameter, downward into the soil. If we only want a small hole a few inches in diameter, test-pitting equipment is used instead. Both of these techniques are done carefully, and as we near the utility we dig cautiously by hand.

Relocating utility lines involves investigating a proposed location with digging equipment, and following local government utility planning guidelines. Utility lines are upgraded before being moved to their new location, and new as-built drawings showing the location, depth and width of each utility are created for future reference.

People locate utility lines before they start all kinds of projects – everything from digging a hole for a sprinkler system in your yard to excavating for a big project. Our rapidway projects include widening roads so they definitely classify as big projects, and all of them will include moving some utility lines farther back from the road.

We’re relocating utilities along Highway 7 in Markham right now. If you’re interested in seeing where our projects will be in your neighbourhood, check out our system map, or sign up for construction updates if you’re interested in knowing what’s happening every step of the way.