Rideau Street: A Tale of Lost Opportunities

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by teej1984

It's too bad there isn't an option to completely close Waller off to traffic and make it exclusively pedestrian only. One may think UOttawa would be pushing hard for this as it would make it a more continuous campus.

There is. That's option 3 for Waller. I see it as most likely, because the other two options involve it still being bus-only.. and how many buses are going to be going through there post-LRT? Probably none.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by bradnixon

I'm not sure if this is the right thread, but the city has a new public realm plan for Rideau St. and the surrounding area.

It sounds like the conversion of Nicholas into a pedestrian plaza between Rideau and Besserer is a go.

http://ottawa.ca/en/news/plan-improv...-public-review

Awesome! I thought that was just an artistic licence when I saw that on the Rideau Centre renderings.

As for Waller's closure, are we talking about the Transitway portion or the whole street?

[1overcosc]

Transitway portion.

[TransitZilla]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

There is. That's option 3 for Waller. I see it as most likely, because the other two options involve it still being bus-only.. and how many buses are going to be going through there post-LRT? Probably none.

OC has a few routes that currently start/end at the Rideau Centre on Rideau St. I think they currently lay-by on Nicholas.

I think most OC Rideau St. Routes will move to MacKenzie King. If they are starting or ending there they need to lay-by somewhere nearby, so Waller is an obvious choice of location.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

Transitway portion.

Thanks. In that case, close it off.

As for a lay-by area for buses, wouldn't Mackenzie-King Bridge itself work?

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Thanks. In that case, close it off.

As for a lay-by area for buses, wouldn't Mackenzie-King Bridge itself work?

Originally Posted by bradnixon

OC has a few routes that currently start/end at the Rideau Centre on Rideau St. I think they currently lay-by on Nicholas.

I think most OC Rideau St. Routes will move to MacKenzie King. If they are starting or ending there they need to lay-by somewhere nearby, so Waller is an obvious choice of location.

Early morning, evening, and weekend trips of the #85 bus start and end at Mackenzie King, and they lay up on Nicholas.

As for bus distribution, I'd move STO buses to the Mackenzie King bridge while keeping the OC locals on Rideau Street.

[eternallyme]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

Early morning, evening, and weekend trips of the #85 bus start and end at Mackenzie King, and they lay up on Nicholas.

As for bus distribution, I'd move STO buses to the Mackenzie King bridge while keeping the OC locals on Rideau Street.

I'd move all buses to Mackenzie King.

From the west approach, Laurier Station could be converted into a layup area for buses from the west (2, 4 and 85, and some trips on the 1) after serving the last stop, which would be Mackenzie King. There is about 330 feet of space on each side available, which would allow for a stop and 4 articulated buses to lay up end to end. The only question mark is whether a turnaround can be built just before the east portal.

From the east approach, assuming no routes are split or realigned (the 8 will need a major realignment, for example), the 9, 12 and 18 would need to have a new layover location in the downtown core. Confederation Square and Kent/Slater are likely the most viable locations.

STO buses could either return (via Waller) to their current termini, or a new terminus facility in Sandy Hill or Lower Town could be identified.

[acottawa]

I think it looks pretty good, although I would note two concerns: 1) All of these plans have lots of trees and planters, but within a few years the trees die or they fall into disrepair and become glorified ashtrays. Unless the city is willing to spend big money on an ongoing basis to replace dead trees, stock the flower beds, etc. (as the NCC does) they should stop trying to put trees in places where they are unlikely to survive. 2) Much of the problem with the area are socioeconomic in nature and I'm not sure that wider sidewalks or planters or pubic art will do much to improve the quality of the street experience in the area (or encourage people to leave the Rideau Centre to check out the local streets).

Also, I still think the tunnel is an unfunded pipe dream, but I've already had that argument on another thread.

[JM1]

If I were reading the tea leaves, I would say that the city has earmarked Nicholas/Dalhousie as the truck tunnel route. Cut and cover under Dalhousie might be relatively inexpensive (although under King Edward would probably be cheaper still), but the connection under Rideau street from Nicholas to Dalhousie would have to go pretty deep to get under the LRT and the tall buildings in the area.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

Looks great! One issue though: pedestrian crossing times.

Why does Ottawa insist on making crossing the street a huge pain in the butt? One of my biggest gripes with Ottawa vs. Kingston is street crossing. In Ottawa, even in urban areas like Laurier, Rideau, Bank (north of Billings), etc. crossing the street legally usually means having to push a button and wait over a minute for the damn walk light. Trying to get across Rideau anywhere east of King Edward, or getting across Laurier Ave. East is a giant PITA. Whereas in Kingston, that kind of ritual is reserved for suburban arterials, on urban mainstreets the lights are all automatic (no push buttons!), and they change every 20-30 seconds which means you never have to wait more than 30 seconds to cross the street. It boggles my mind how Ottawa, in all of its plans to improve the pedestrian realm, goes on and on building new & bigger sidewalks and street trees but completely ignores ease of street crossing in all of its plans and strategies.

I've sent an official response to this plan calling out this issue. Let's see if it gets anywhere.

It won't. And the city instituted a policy of replacing walk-as-of-right signals with walk-on-request ones, AFTER adopting about 36 official plans that had lots of meaningless happytalk in them about how pedestrians take priority.

One of the worst spots is along Beechwood Avenue. Not only are all the crossings signalized, there's none east of Marier/Putman... and that one often seizes up.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by bradnixon

I think most OC Rideau St. Routes will move to MacKenzie King. If they are starting or ending there they need to lay-by somewhere nearby, so Waller is an obvious choice of location.

Yes, as part as of Vivi's Maximize the Inconvenience to People Who Actually Use Transit Plan.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by bradnixon

I'm not sure if this is the right thread, but the city has a new public realm plan for Rideau St. and the surrounding area.

It sounds like the conversion of Nicholas into a pedestrian plaza between Rideau and Besserer is a go.

http://ottawa.ca/en/news/plan-improv...-public-review

Dear City of Ottawa web gurus: Why do you have to undertake a multi-click bunny-trail to get to the documentation for this proposal? Why not link to it up front?

[teej1984]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

There is. That's option 3 for Waller. I see it as most likely, because the other two options involve it still being bus-only.. and how many buses are going to be going through there post-LRT? Probably none.

Option C still allows for vehicular traffic. I would have preferred a completely closed street. The connection from to Waller at Laurier should be sufficient to handle the traffic, similar to how it does now.

[J.OT13]

Rideau Arts Precinct plan open for public viewing, feedback

OBJ StaffPublished on January 13, 2015

The city’s plan to revitalize Rideau Street – including the development of the Rideau Arts Precinct – is now available for the public’s viewing and input.

The plan, released on the city’s website Tuesday, calls for wider sidewalks, new landscaping and street furniture, while still accommodating public transit, drivers and cyclists.

The Rideau Arts Precinct runs from Laurier Avenue north to Rideau Street and Colonel By Drive east to Waller Street. It is already home to the Arts Court, which is slated to be redeveloped and coupled with the expanded Ottawa Art Gallery.

The city said the Rideau Arts Precinct will “take its place as the arts, entertainment and shopping district of Ottawa’s downtown,” and will become a destination for tourists and residents alike.

The project will take place in conjunction with the ongoing LRT construction and Rideau Centre expansion and will include turning Nicholas Street into a pedestrian mall between Rideau Street and Besserer Street.

The deadline for public feedback is Feb. 10, after which the city planning committee will review the proposal before forwarding it to council. Funds allocated to the plan will be considered during the 2015 city budget process.

Some of the work is set to begin this year.

http://www.obj.ca/Local/City-Hall/20...%2C-feedback/1

[kwoldtimer]

From Tattoo Art Precinct to Rideau Arts Precinct. I hope they succeed.

[J.OT13]

A few comments about the PDF.

1.

Consider a re-branding of the greater area to be known as “Bytown” or another recognizable name.

We have the Byward Market. The Rideau District has nothing dating back to Bytown (but maybe the one building on the corner of Dalhousie and Rideau, though thatis arguably part of the Market).

2. Not on board with reducing Rideau to one lane at certain spots. Buses coming in and out of their spots will create havoc. I do like the idea of putting the STO and OC stops in the same spot.

3. As I've said before, I love the idea of the Nicholas plaza between Rideau and Besserer. It will give the old Ogilvy façade more prominence as well as patio space for the restaurant.

[kevinbottawa]

Interesting to see one of the diagrams includes the potential DND relocation and the Bay renovation. Both would be great for the area. I'd love to see a similar renovation to the Hudson's Bay stores at the Eaton Centre and Yorkdale. That would be a huge improvement in the downtown shopping experience.

[MoreTrains]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

Interesting to see one of the diagrams includes the potential DND relocation and the Bay renovation. Both would be great for the area. I'd love to see a similar renovation to the Hudson's Bay stores at the Eaton Centre and Yorkdale. That would be a huge improvement in the downtown shopping experience.

DND is never moving from that Spot, not until 2050 at the earliest, which is the expected life of that building.

[rocketphish]

'Chronic' Rideau St. problems beyond redesign, councillor says

By Jon Willing, Ottawa Sun
First posted: Wednesday, February 25, 2015 04:41 PM EST | Updated: Wednesday, February 25, 2015 09:21 PM EST

A councillor says it will take more than a road redesign to clean up Rideau St.

River Coun. Riley Brockington danced around the subject during a council meeting Wednesday, but later in short interview he zeroed in on his main beefs about Rideau St.

"There are ongoing chronic issues with Rideau St. with respect to panhandlers and street people," Brockington said.

Brockington described a scene that he says is "uncomfortable" for some people to walk through, although he personally doesn't feel that same discomfort when he's in the area.

"We need to admit there are elements of Rideau St. that need to be cleaned up," Brockington said.

Council gave staff the authority develop a new design for Rideau St. under a project called the Rideau/Arts Precinct Public Realm Plan. The city wants to improve the streetscape between Rideau St. and Laurier Ave., mostly around the Rideau Centre and Arts Court.

Modifications to Rideau St. are estimated at $6 million and include wider sidewalks, trees and street furniture.

Brockington is in favour of the design changes, but he said a new focus needs to be put on the "experience" of Rideau St.

"It doesn't matter what the design looks like," Brockington said, adding that some people "detract from its beauty."

However, Rideau-Vanier Coun. Mathieu Fleury, who represents the area, said improved infrastructure can make a difference and he pointed to recent improvements on Rideau St. east of Dalhousie St.

"The more welcoming the places are, the less graffiti we see, the less crime we see," Fleury said. "When we do invest, we do see improvements to the dynamics around it."

Reducing the number of panhandlers is part of "a broader discussion than just looking at Rideau St.," Fleury said, referring to the city's 10-year housing and homelessness plan.

Peggy DuCharme, executive director of the Downtown Rideau BIA, would like to see the city create new bylaws to help manage the district, plus assign OC Transpo special constables to Rideau St. when LRT opens in 2018.

"Ultimately, the more the Rideau St. roadway and sidewalks are designed to be open and accessible to all modes of travel at all hours of the day, and can accommodate high volumes of pedestrian traffic, the more likely the street will have a social environment balance," DuCharme wrote in an e-mailed response.

Brockington said Rideau St. should have street ambassadors like the ones the ByWard Market uses to monitor activity.

He doesn't want the problem to be simply accepted by the city.

"Not talking about this is wrong," Brockington said.

Twitter: @JonathanWilling

http://www.ottawasun.com/2015/02/25/...ouncillor-says

[1overcosc]

Looks like classism is alive and well in River Ward

You can't just kick out and evict street people, they need a place to go. Homeless is a social issue that requires social spending to fix, not police officers.

I just looked at old Google Street View images from 2009 ish from Rideau Street, and holy jeez, it's so much better now (I've only been familiar with the street since 2012). The old street had five lanes of traffic and little thin sidewalks... now there's four lanes and big wide sidewalks.