The Toronto Urban Renewal Network (TURN) has been working hard to help ensure that the South Kingsway - Queensway interchange becomes friendlier to cyclists and pedestrians in the upcoming scheduled refurbishment of the intersection.

They need your help to ensure planners and politicians know that lots of Torontonians want less emphasis on auto-centric planning and more attention to cyclist and pedestrian infrastructure.

Here is a recent email from TURN that lays out the information for you:

The City of Toronto has close to a million bucks to spend on a substantial redesign of this 1950s style expressway interchange. The original 'link road' plan, which included eliminating three of four ramps, would have created a safer, more accessible and human scale environment for 2,000 new residents moving into the area.

Unfortunately, a powerful local ratepayers association (Swansea Area Ratepayers Association - SARA) wants to maintain the status quo and has decided to support a fairly feeble band-aid solution that the city has just come up with (see attached). TURN is supporting the city's original 'link road' plan or, at the very least, request that city staff go back to the drawing board to come up with a better proposal with the help of a community design charrette. This would ensure that city policies (OP, bike plan, transit city plan, pedestrian strategy, climate change plan) and future Metrolinx directions are met. In other words, TURN wants transportation-related policy to be implemented when it literally 'hits the road'!

Things are coming to a head on Monday, July 7th @ 2:00PM when the new city report goes to Etobicoke-York Community Council (EYCC) where it will be debated and deputations will be heard. SARA is pulling out all the stops to get their members and other 1950s thinkers out to this meeting -- they've brought out over 90 people to previous meetings. TURN must do the same. Would you be willing to make a deputation and/or write a letter supporting TURN's position? Here are a few reasons to do so:

1) Poor consultation process (e.g. new residents not informed, summer timing of report, outdated project info on city website, Saundercook neglect -- and comparison to far-superior transport consultations like Jarvis Street and Bloor-Dundas West)

2) Poor traffic operation/design solution (many safety, accessibility issues for all modes not resolved)

3) Inconsistency with policies (e.g. OP, bike plan, pedestrian plan, climate change, health, Metrolinx)

4) Legal issues (e.g. Planning Act, City of Toronto Act- Road Classification project

report 'routing' policies)

5) Financial/Economic Implications (e.g. city has $ to spend NOW to do it right, gas prices).

6) Inconsistency with other projects and studies (e.g. Queensway Bike Lanes, Western Waterfront Study, 6 Points, Gardiner EA)

For more SKQI project history, see http://www.torenewal.ca/?q=node/3. To register to make a deputation, see http://www.torenewal.ca/?q=node/10. If you cannot be there in person, a letter template can be found at http://www.torenewal.ca/?q=node/6 -- feel free to customize this letter and send to clerk ASAP - by July 3rd is best but up until July 6th latest.

Thanks very much for considering this request. Please let us know if you can attend the July 7th EYCC meeting or if you have any questions.

Toronto Urban Renewal Network

www.torenewal.ca

toronto_turn@hotmail.com

Labels: infrastructure, news