Baseline BRT EA

[lrt's friend]

I have been wondering what is happening with the Baseline BRT plan. My Google search revealed that the last public meeting took place in June 2014 with the next step to completed in 2015. But I can't find anything.

I thought this was supposed to be part of our 'affordable rapid transit' plan. It seems to me that this is the critical missing link between the Billings Bridge and Baseline Stations.

Anybody know what is happening?

[TransitZilla]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

I have been wondering what is happening with the Baseline BRT plan. My Google search revealed that the last public meeting took place in June 2014 with the next step to completed in 2015. But I can't find anything.

I thought this was supposed to be part of our 'affordable rapid transit' plan. It seems to me that this is the critical missing link between the Billings Bridge and Baseline Stations.

Anybody know what is happening?

The Nepean Trail page mentions that the Baseline EA is underway (there is some overlap for the section of Baseline between Merivale and Farlane).
http://ottawa.ca/en/city-hall/public...n/nepean-trail

[Beedok]

I'm quite curious how it's supposed to work between Merivale and Prine of Wales. Are they adding lanes? I mean it's a 4 lane road that has serious congestion issues.

[zzptichka]

Originally Posted by Beedok

I'm quite curious how it's supposed to work between Merivale and Prine of Wales. Are they adding lanes? I mean it's a 4 lane road that has serious congestion issues.

The plan is to start adding bus lanes between POW and Clyde in 1st phase starting in 2019. And do the remaining Baseline 5-10 years later

[1overcosc]

I wonder how the implementation is going to work. Staged implementation is messy because the Baseline BRT plan is for the bus lanes to be in the median (like an LRT) instead of curbside, like typical bus lanes.

[SF Thomas]

I was at one of the consultations in 2014 for the Baseline BRT. The consultants and city staff that I asked said they probably wouldn't be starting work on it until 2018 or 2019 because there wasn't money in the budget to implement it sooner (2019 is the estimated date in the preliminary plan outline).

I'm not sure how much of that is due to most of the transit funding going to Phase 1 of the Confed line and how much of it was just them needing a valid reason to explain why it wasn't being done sooner though. Its believable enough, but the price tag probably isn't so high that it couldn't be done sooner.

-----------

I am wondering the same thing as 1overcosc, how they are going to implement it since the preferred plan calls for median bus lanes. In particular I am curious about how it will work since all of the current buses in Ottawa only have doors that open on the right (the normal curb side).

I see three potential options:

1. Buy a set of buses with doors on both sides exclusively for the Baseline route, though this makes it harder to ensure there are enough buses for the route in the event of mechanical failures or if there is a need for a service frequency increase.

2. Have the median bus lanes run side by side and two individual island platforms at each stop by the traffic lights. The problem here is that the platforms may end up being very thin, which could either limit the number of people that can be at a bus stop or end up being a bit of a safety hazard for people.

3. Less likely than the other two; have buses go the opposite direction from traditional traffic flow. Theoretically should not be a problem if the bus lanes are segregated but would probably require a physical barrier to prevent collisions with cars. This may be awkward for bus drivers to get used to and might be a minor issue at traffic lights since people wouldn't be used to checking for buses going the "wrong way".

[lrt's friend]

The big question is how they will transition from curb side lanes east of Prince of Wales to median lanes west of there.

The 2014 report said that the Environmental assessment was to be completed by mid 2015. Obviously, this is taking much longer.

[silvergate]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

The big question is how they will transition from curb side lanes east of Prince of Wales to median lanes west of there.

The 2014 report said that the Environmental assessment was to be completed by mid 2015. Obviously, this is taking much longer.

Seems like it should only be a repaint job. Turn the left lane into a bus lane, right lane into a driving lane.

[waterloowarrior]

July 2014
http://app05.ottawa.ca/sirepub/item.aspx?itemid=318330
REPORT RECOMMENDATION
That the Transportation Committee approve the Addendum to the Statement of Work for Baseline Road Rapid Transit (Bayshore Station– Prince of Wales Drive) Planning and Environmental Assessment Study to extend the study area limits from Prince of Wales Drive to the Southeast Transitway.

DISCUSSION
The results of the technical analysis and evaluation conducted to date as part of the Baseline Road Rapid Transit EA Study indicate that median bus lanes offer significant transit travel time savings. Hence a median bus lane design option is being considered as an ultimate solution for the Baseline Road BRT corridor.

In 2012, as part of Transit Priority measures, curb-side bus lanes were implemented on both sides of Heron Road (east of Prince of Wales Drive) between the Rideau Canal and Data Centre Road through a reallocation of existing traffic lanes.

As the proposed and existing design solutions west and east of Prince of Wales Drive differ (median and curb-side bus lanes, respectively), there are two ways to address this situation:

• Introduce a transition (from median to curb) near the Prince of Wales intersection, or
• Investigate a bus lane design solution further east of Prince of Wales.

Understanding the implications east of Prince of Wales Drive, and the potential impacts on the intersection, will allow the City to make an informed decision on how the BRT facility along Baseline Road and Heron Road will be implemented.

It is, therefore, recommended that study area limits be extended easterly to investigate a bus lane design option between Prince of Wales Drive and the Southeast Transitway as part of the ongoing Baseline Road Rapid Transit Planning and EA Study.

The analysis will also address following issues:

1. Additional transit priority and/or turn lanes at Prince of Wales to accommodate other OC Transpo bus routes, which turn at this intersection;
2. Traffic and transit operational issues at the Riverside Drive/Heron Road and Heron Road/Data Centre Road intersections;
3. Station/stop locations which integrate with existing and future development in the federal Confederation Heights employment node, and link with potential improvements to pathway connectivity, including potential re-use of existing underground passages that connect to bus stops in the vicinity of the Heron Road/Riverside Drive intersection;
4. Review of existing structures (overpasses and underpasses) between Prince of Wales Drive and Data Centre Road to inform the development of design alternatives and solutions;
5. Provision of improved pedestrian and cycling infrastructure (i.e. segregated cycle track);
6. Improved connectivity with the Confederation O-Train Station; and
7. The ability to provide an improved connection to the Southeast Transitway.

Expanding the study area will address previous comments raised by the study’s Consultation Group (CG) members and the public regarding the need to extend the Rapid Transit corridor to provide a connection to the O-Train line and Southeast Transitway at Confederation and Heron Stations, respectively.

The above extension will also require an additional Public Open House likely in Q1 of 2015. The last round of CG meetings was completed on May 27, 2014 followed by an Open House on June 2, 2014 in which stakeholders were notified of the potential study scope change, subject to Transportation Committee approval.

The expanded scope will be added to the current study assignment, with an overall study completion date still late 2015.

[eternallyme]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

The big question is how they will transition from curb side lanes east of Prince of Wales to median lanes west of there.

The 2014 report said that the Environmental assessment was to be completed by mid 2015. Obviously, this is taking much longer.

Easiest solution is a specialized signal at the intersection, which has buses green while all other vehicles are red, allowing buses to travel through the intersection.

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by eternallyme

Easiest solution is a specialized signal at the intersection, which has buses green while all other vehicles are red, allowing buses to travel through the intersection.

No need to make it red in all directions if the buses are going straight. Cars traveling parallel to the buses could also have a green light to go straight or turn right, just as long as left turns are prohibited when a bus is there, all is good.

If the bus could turn left, you would want oncoming traffic to have a red light.

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by SF Thomas

I am wondering the same thing as 1overcosc, how they are going to implement it since the preferred plan calls for median bus lanes. In particular I am curious about how it will work since all of the current buses in Ottawa only have doors that open on the right (the normal curb side).

I see three potential options:

1. Buy a set of buses with doors on both sides exclusively for the Baseline route, though this makes it harder to ensure there are enough buses for the route in the event of mechanical failures or if there is a need for a service frequency increase.

If the buses have doors on both sides, you would loose a lot of seats. It would also make it harder for buses from other routes to use the busway. Given those limitations, you would be just as well off going with LRT.

2. Have the median bus lanes run side by side and two individual island platforms at each stop by the traffic lights. The problem here is that the platforms may end up being very thin, which could either limit the number of people that can be at a bus stop or end up being a bit of a safety hazard for people.

You can see an image of how they are planning on handling this in Montreal at TVA Nouvelles. The platforms are staggered, so each platform can be full width. The buses need to swerve a bit, but being near a station, they will be traveling slowly.

3. Less likely than the other two; have buses go the opposite direction from traditional traffic flow. Theoretically should not be a problem if the bus lanes are segregated but would probably require a physical barrier to prevent collisions with cars. This may be awkward for bus drivers to get used to and might be a minor issue at traffic lights since people wouldn't be used to checking for buses going the "wrong way".

A possibility, but it would cause confusion. I think option 2 with staggered stations is most likely.

[TransitZilla]

Originally Posted by SF Thomas

I am wondering the same thing as 1overcosc, how they are going to implement it since the preferred plan calls for median bus lanes. In particular I am curious about how it will work since all of the current buses in Ottawa only have doors that open on the right (the normal curb side).

We already have median bus lanes in Ottawa and the station looks like this:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@45.27181...2!8i6656?hl=en

[SF Thomas]

Originally Posted by bradnixon

We already have median bus lanes in Ottawa and the station looks like this:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@45.27181...2!8i6656?hl=en

I'm aware we already have a few median lanes in Barrhaven. What I'm thinking about is if there will be enough space for platforms that large along Baseline once the bus lanes are put in. The median is fairly wide at Fisher and Prince of Wales but might still only big enough for the bus lanes without the island platforms as is.

You can probably just reshuffle the transit priority lanes a bit at the Prince of Wales intersection but at Fisher they may have to add some additional road width at the shoulders. I don't know offhand what the exact property line between the city and NCC is at the Experimental Farm or if there are any regulations that might require a certain amount of space between the Farm of other properties.

The median is gone by the time you hit Merivale, so they'll either need to widen the road again or eliminate the turn lanes.

These aren't huge issues or obstacle, more just technical details. I'm sure the city would come up with some way to get around the problems. Just curious how they would go about doing it.

[SF Thomas]

Originally Posted by roger1818

No need to make it red in all directions if the buses are going straight. Cars traveling parallel to the buses could also have a green light to go straight or turn right, just as long as left turns are prohibited when a bus is there, all is good.

If the bus could turn left, you would want oncoming traffic to have a red light.

Roger1818 Thanks for the feedback on my initial thoughts.

You would need need traffic from all directions stopped at the Prince of Wales intersection as it is now if they implemented median bus lanes from PoW to Navajo. The buses would need to curve and make the equivalent of two lane changes in the intersection here to change from the median bus lanes to the shoulder ones. That's not safe if other cars are going straight at the same time.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by roger1818

You can see an image of how they are planning on handling this in Montreal at TVA Nouvelles. The platforms are staggered, so each platform can be full width. The buses need to swerve a bit, but being near a station, they will be traveling slowly.

I think some of the Rapibus stations in Hull and Gatineau are similarly staggered, no?

[Catenary]

Originally Posted by SF Thomas

Roger1818 Thanks for the feedback on my initial thoughts.

You would need need traffic from all directions stopped at the Prince of Wales intersection as it is now if they implemented median bus lanes from PoW to Navajo. The buses would need to curve and make the equivalent of two lane changes in the intersection here to change from the median bus lanes to the shoulder ones. That's not safe if other cars are going straight at the same time.

There was discussion of this early on, which is why the existing stretch from PoW to Data Centre was added to the study. This area will be converted so the entire stretch is centre running.

[Beedok]

The middle island is only one lane wide, so they'll have to make the whole road wider won't they?

[Buggys]

Originally Posted by Beedok

The middle island is only one lane wide, so they'll have to make the whole road wider won't they?

Yes. Plan is for expropriation of a big chunk of front yard in some places.

http://ottawa.ca/en/city-hall/public...illings-bridge

[Richard Eade]

The links on the City's Webpage that Buggys provided the link to do not provide any information for me. Does anyone else get anything?