2022-04-07 Summary

HUB North Shore Committee regular meeting was held online using Zoom, Thursday April 7th, at 6:30pm - 7:45pm.

Attendees: Paul S, Don, Fiona, Nadia, Jasper, Paul J, Erika, Anthony, Lei

General

• Agenda additions
• Introductions

• North Shore MLAs
  • set up meeting with MLAs - Don in April

Public Input/Consultations

• Public input is critical when Council and Staff make trade-offs and decisions. Please make sure your voice is heard!!
  • The Shipyards Strategy
    • https://letstalk.cnv.org/theshipyards
    • Survey is now open until August 31st 4pm (it’s quick ~ 5 minutes. 1 open ended, rest are multiple choice/checkboxes).
    • ‘What could we do better?’. A few cycling related responses:
      • More bike parking,
      • Bike Valet - needs to be be prominently advertised before people drive to shipyards
      • Better/clearer bike routes (wayfinding signage with destinations, pavement markings)
      • Separation of walking & cycling
      • Slower car speeds in the surrounding areas
      • Bike valet at events

Goals & Objectives

• 2021 Goals Setting
• 2022
  • Implementation of 3 top priority Bikeways
  • Establish communications with community stakeholders re Bikeways.
  • Recruit more committee members
    • Survey form (Draft Google Form) to groups.io & members - Nadia & Don
      • Will send out in the next couple of weeks
    • Rides
      • Discussed that and group thought we should try to do some:
      • Needs ride leader + sweep and route planning.

Events

• Outdoor Safety and Emergency Preparedness - May 7th, 11-2pm, Argyle
• Go By Bike Week - May 30 - June 3, 2022

City of North Vancouver - Nadia

CNV Key Contacts & Staff Meetings

• HUB’s primary contact: Brandon Green
• Next meeting with staff: April 27. Do you have any questions for the CNV? Seeking updates on the following:
  • Carson Graham School Area Active Transportation Improvements
  • Forbes & 3rd
  • Bike storage designs (came up during Mobility Strategy discussion)
  • Community Wellbeing Strategy
  • E-bike share program
  • E-scooter pilot program

CNV Mobility Strategy

• Final Mobility Strategy will be presented to Council on Monday April 11th for endorsement. Pg 159 https://www.cnv.org/Your-Government/Council-Meetings
• Working on a letter to voice HUB North Shore's support for the strategy, addressed to Mayor and Council.
• HUB NS provided feedback to staff on Feb 2. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lp3rMTwRwLgSE7rpXIEt0zNLRp8SGWsSFaDQpHIWB_0/edit?usp=sharing

E-scooter Pilot

• After a brief delay as the City awaited official MoTI approval of the e-scooter bylaws, they received final adoption at Council in early March. Pilot runs until April 2024.
• The pilot allows privately-owned e-scooters for personal use on local streets, paved multi-use pathways, and in mobility lanes. E-scooter share programs will not be permitted at this time.
• More info here: https://www.cnv.org/city-services/streets-and-transportation/sustainable-transportation/travel-options/cycling/e-scooters

The Shipyards Strategy

• https://letstalk.cnv.org/theshipyards
  • see Public consultations above

District of North Vancouver - Fred/Don

• Upper Lynn Valley Rd
  • At Mar 7th council meeting:
  • Council approved building Mtn. Hwy to Peters Road this summer
    • painted bikelanes on both sides, much of the parking removed. Protection at start of each block
  • Council approved for public consultations for Peters to Dempsey this spring

• Detour at Orwell & Oxford
  • DNV & Construction straighten, widened and improved this temporary detour
  • Currently a passable temporal detour
  • will be replaced by a new one in a couple months when Phibbs exchange work starts.

• 2022 Construction plans:
  • Don to Follow up in April meeting with staff

• Meeting with staff: later in April?
  • Spirit Trail planning (Concepts & plan for approval this summer, build over next 10 years)
  • Wayfinding priorities (Requested area around 2nd narrows, Lower cap road, Pemberton height (23rd to Paisley and McKay))
  • Slow Streets: Safe Streets workshop planned for Mar 28th
  • Repaving Riverside Drive - asked for design and if bikelanes included.

District of West Vancouver - Paul/Peter/Mike

9 March Liaison Meeting on Westmount Road

• Paul and Mike met with DWV Engineering staff on-site to review HUB concerns over proposed improvements planned for a 1.6km stretch of route between Marine Drive and Hwy 1/Westmount Dr Interchange. The stretch includes Westmount Drive, Thompson Cst, Mathers Ave and 31st St. HUB has raised concerns over inconsistent bike lane/shared lane arrangements planned along this steep OCP-designated bike route, as well as urging suitable traffic calming and speed control measures. An application for TransLink funding of the improvements was reportedly rejected on the grounds of low design standard.
• The current Westmount roadway is a two-lane configuration incorporating traffic calming measures installed at the request of residents concerned at excessive traffic speeds. The proposed improvements were planned some years ago (prior to the publication of the BC Active Transportation Design Guidelines) as part of road reinstatement following the installation of a major storm sewer along this route in 2020 to serve the Five Creeks development area above the Highway. The storm sewer is not yet in service pending delayed completion of its Hwy 1 crossing, and we were informed that a sanitary sewer may also be installed along this route which would require space in the adjoining landscaped boulevard. At that time, it may be possible given an increased width of roadway, to adopt a buffered bike lane consistently throughout for uphill travel. However, the budget allocation for the storm sewer reinstatement is firmly scheduled to be used before end-2022.
• The currently lightly used Westmount/31st route is not a high priority for HUB although it can be seen as a logical extension towards Horseshoe Bay of the HUB priority Marine-to-Main bike arterial. While HUB would urge DWV to adopt a high standard bike facility along this route when road space can be made available, the present proposals (with several minor changes) could be acceptable as a temporary arrangement in view of the current funding limitation. HUB has not yet been informed of any decision by DWV.

Bike Signage on the Welch Street Bridge

• There are 10 new sharrows on the bridge and they are a good size, very visible, properly located near the centre of the traffic lanes and they conform to the BC Active Transportation Design Guide. Unfortunately, they seem to be misunderstood by some as indicating that people on bicycles should ride in the traffic lanes rather than on the new widened path.
• There are shared pathway signs at each end of the bridge like those in the BC Active Transportation Design Guide, but they are so small that you have to be right up close to them to see the bicycle and pedestrian symbols. The one at the approach to the west end of the bridge has been installed in an appropriate location beside the new widened path, but the one at the approach to the east end of the bridge is nowhere near the new path.
• The following photo at: https://wiki.bikehub.ca/sites/northshore/index.php?title=File:Welch_St_Bridge_east-end_approach_zoomed_2022-04-01_IMG_3820.jpg shows how difficult it is to see the very small "SHARED PATHWAY" sign at the approach to the east end of the bridge. It is located on the north side of the westbound traffic lane by the pedestrian stairway leading to the RV park.
• To make it clear to cyclists that they can ride on the new widened path, these "SHARED PATHWAY" signs need to be much larger, with the bicycle and pedestrian symbols being about the same size as those same two symbols on the orange and black sign mounted to the post with the flashing lights at the north side of the raised crossing. It is suggested that an appropriate location for the one at the approach to the east end of the bridge would be on the post with the flashing lights at the south side of the raised crossing.

Deadly hazard at 13th and Bellevue intersection

• A senior was struck by a driver around 1:25 p.m. Wednesday (Jan. 19) in the crosswalk where 13th Street and Bellevue Avenue meet.
• At the time, police said the driver, a 56-year-old West Vancouver man, was turning his Ford Raptor onto 13th when he struck a 71-year-old North Vancouver woman in the crosswalk who did not survive the crash.
• This tragic incident and the deadly one at 17th and Bellevue caused Neil Winkelmann to suggest making 14th Street from Marine Drive to the railway tracks a pedestrian zone to prevent rat-running by motorists.

7 April meeting with the Mayor and TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn

• Peter was invited and is attending this West Van Chamber of Commerce annual meeting with the mayor where transportation will be a major topic discussed.

MOTI - Don/Jonathan

• Lower Lynn Interchanges
  • Keith/MSP interchange
    • shared concerns with the blind merge created by the sound barrier at the SW end of the overpass where the Orwell MUP

connects.

• • • No response yet - don to follow up

• Hwy 1 North Shore Corridor Study: Lynn Valley to Horseshoe Bay
  • Don to request what the next steps are.
• Cycling Gaps project
  • Next phase will be prioritization, no dates yet.

Schools -

• Several folks have expressed interest in working on Bike Educations and encouraging kids to ride to school
• Paul is investigating options and how be to progress them
  • Link to Active School Transportation BC Trial Program [1]
  • Upcoming Webinar Encouraging safe and healthy active school travel sponsored by HUB later this month:

RCMP -

• Ask them about slow streets? - don