Wolseley to Downtown Walk Bike Project

Route 10 St. Boniface-Wolseley underwent a route change in April, 2021. The change, which was approved by the Standing Policy Committee on Infrastructure and Public Works on January 14, 2021, aligns with the Draft Winnipeg Transit Master Plan. The new route will see the bus operate on Broadway, Sherbrook and Maryland Streets and Wolseley Avenue, and all residents impacted by this change will be within a 400-metres' walk to a bus stop.

The change was made ahead of others in the Transit Master Plan to coincide with construction on the Wolseley to Downtown Walk Bike Project; the route was not changed solely because of the project.

Signal timing at Westminster Ave and Sherbrook St / Maryland St will be monitored and adjusted to provide the safest possible environment for both cyclists and cars.

While this will impact how intersections operate for cars, this is viewed as an acceptable compromise to ensure cyclists of all ages and abilities are safely accommodated.

The design includes the creation of six new parking and loading bays to both preserve as much on-street parking as possible and ensure loading space is available for all buildings along the corridor.

There are approximately 458 on-street parking spaces within a five-minute walk (400m radius from) the intersection of Maryland Street and Westminster Avenue.

The design for the area west of Chestnut (the west segment) was not included in the design that is proceeding to construction in 2021. The west segment design that was presented for engagement in January 2020 is no longer being considered.

Before we move forward on Phase 3, we need to conduct traffic modeling that will inform further discussions and decisions about the west side of the project area. Because traffic modeling data must be based on typical traffic patterns, we are unable to gather the data while the pandemic is affecting traffic volumes. Further public engagement and design work in the West Segment will not proceed until traffic modeling and analysis is complete.

Traffic volumes and speeds along this corridor require cyclists to be separated from vehicle traffic. The design will accommodate safe and efficient flow of both motor vehicles and bikes, striking a balance for all road users. The construction on Westminster Ave includes protected bike lanes and is between Walnut Ave and Young St and will maintain two-way vehicular traffic.

The City conducted a robust public engagement program that included stringent reporting back to the community.

Notification for phase 1 of the project is listed in the phase 1 public engagement summary.
Notification for phase 2 is listed in the Phase 2 public engagement summary.
Notification for phase 3 is listed in the Phase 3 public engagement summary.

Following posting of the Recommended Design on the webpage, a notification email was distributed on June 23, 2020 to all project subscribers (741 recipients) which included information on the recommended design and the anticipated construction timeline.

 On June 23, 2020, notification about the East Segment design was sent to:

• Adjacent residents by hand delivery
• Adjacent businesses by hand delivery
• Those who attended an east segment stakeholder meeting in January 2020 by email

An advanced construction notice has been delivered to residents and businesses fronting the project area. This notice is now online and has been emailed to the project stakeholder list. Another notice will be delivered approximately one week before construction begins. 

The Open Streets program was independent of the Wolseley to Downtown Walk Bike project. The construction work on Westminster Ave will maintain two-way vehicular traffic for the majority of the construction. If road closures are required these will only be short term directional closures. This may result short, periodic increases in traffic volumes on the most easterly block of Wolseley Ave while the Enhanced Summer Cycling Route is in operation. Also, upon completion of the bike lanes on Westminster Ave users will be able to connect to the Enhanced Summer Cycling Route on Wolseley Ave via Walnut St.

Feedback on the Wolseley to Downtown Walk Bike project can be found on the project website under the documents tab. Those who identified as living on an Open Street were categorized and compared with the actual number of residents on the street. Respondents who identified as living on the Open Street were asked to provide their street address, and these addresses were confirmed to provide the results for on-street residents.

Multiple responses were accepted from a single address, to respect the different experiences of separate occupants. Some respondents identified as living on an Open Street but provided an address outside of the Open Street limits. In these cases, their responses were grouped with the adjacent residents’ responses. In calculating the residential street response rate, multiple submissions from a single address only counted towards that address as one household.

The feedback received through the Open Streets program was independent of the Wolseley to Downtown Walk Bike project. Feedback on the Wolseley to Downtown Walk Bike project can be found on the project website under the documents tab.

The Open Streets survey resulted in a different total then the number of survey respondents because respondents were given the chance to 'select all that apply' and provide feedback on more than one street.

Throughout the Wolseley to Downtown Walk Bike project, the team sought public feedback to move from understanding values to informing concepts and ultimately to finalizing design. A summary of feedback and how it was considered at each stage is available in the documents tab of the webpage.

Community concerns have been important to refining the project's direction while still balancing the needs of all road users and the direction from Council to proceed with a walk bike project to connect Wolseley to Downtown for people of all ages and abilities.

In Phase 3 (January 6 – February 9, 2020), we asked for feedback to help refine the project design and identify barriers to the way Winnipeggers currently use the neighbourhood. We heard from a wide range of citizens through over 1,100 online surveys, several neighbourhood and stakeholder discussions, and the in-person open house. The Phase 3 public engagement summary is available here.

In Phase 3, we heard the community felt some parts of the design balance safety and needs, and that others were concerning – particularly one-way streets and their potential to increase traffic along some residential streets.

In response to Phase 3 feedback, the East Segment design was updated to maintain two-way vehicle traffic with a singular protected bidirectional bike lane on the east side of Balmoral Street and Young Street (from Granite Way to Westminster Avenue).

Further design refinements were made outside Westminster United Church to resolve access and loading concerns for the Church and its user groups. Based on meetings and the detailed information on event loading needs, changes were made to the design and were shared with the Church in late May 2020. These changes include:

• Parking/loading stalls retained adjacent to the Church, large enough to accommodate large delivery vehicles or school buses .
• Accessible loading zones adjacent to the building entrance, those with mobility concerns who require drop-off near the church will actually have closer access to the building.
• Raised bike lanes to accommodate passengers exiting vehicles and buses, (to remove tripping hazard).
• Removal of the barrier between the bike lane and road to allow the continued loading of deliveries off of Westminster.

The West Segment project design remains on hold until traffic patterns normalize (post COVID-19) and advanced traffic modeling can be conducted.

While some cyclists choose to ride on the road now, the intent of the project is to improve travel choices, accessibility and connectivity for people of all ages and abilities. To achieve this, the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) recommends separating bicycles from vehicles with a protected bike lane or path on streets with motor vehicle speeds between 30 km/h and 50 km/h and over 4,000 vehicles per day. This project is implementing the appropriate bicycle facility for these streets.

Beyond that, participants in Phase 1 engagement identified safety as the number one issue in the project area. This is summarized in the below images.

The Wolseley to Downtown connection was identified as an important part of the network and will provide connections to the Omand's Creek pathway, the protected bike lane on Assiniboine Avenue and Sherbrook Street, the bike lane on Maryland Street, and the planned neighbourhood greenway on Ruby and Banning Streets.

The study area runs east-west through Wolseley Avenue/Westminster Avenue, Balmoral Street, and Granite Way. The recommended design proposes various adjustments to a number of streets throughout the study area, these streets include: Wolseley Avenue, Westminster Avenue, Portage Avenue, Clifton Street, Dominion Street, Palmerston Avenue, Preston Avenue, Ethelbert Street, Chestnut Street, Walnut Street, Young Street, Balmoral Street, and Granite Way.

The recommended design for phase 1 of implementation (Chesnut Street to Osborne Street) proposes a bi-directional protected bike lane on Granite Waye and Balmoral Avenue and uni-directional protected bike lanes on Westminster Avenue.

The recommended design does not include any adjustments to the Sunday/holiday bicycle route on Wolseley Avenue from Raglan Road to Maryland Street.

The first phase of implementation will include construction of the East and Central Segments; the West Segment will be delayed until traffic modelling is complete. The functional design contract for Phase 1 will be issued in late 2020 with construction anticipated to begin in 2021.

The City's Pedestrian and Cycling Strategies commits to providing and maintaining safe walking and cycling facilities year-round.

Separating pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles is the safest way to accommodate each mode of transportation. Key ingredients of the recommend design concepts include:

• School safety – Improving safety around schools throughout the study area will encourage walking and cycling to school. Adding new parking and loading spaces will balance the needs of those who drive to school with those who want to feel safe walking and cycling.
• Reduced traffic speed – Traffic calming features will reduce vehicle speeds.
• Pedestrian safety improvements – New curb extensions and crosswalks, as well as improvements at intersections, will improve pedestrian safety.
• Reduce short-cutting traffic – Implementing traffic calming measures and restricting vehicle access at key locations will reduce short-cutting while minimizing local traffic impacts. 
• Preserve boulevard trees and neighbourhood character – Opportunity for landscaping within Parklet areas
• Placemaking opportunities - Closing strategic streets to reduce short-cutting traffic will result in additional space that can be used to create dynamic public spaces for community members to meet.
• All ages and abilities cycling facilities – The east-west connection to downtown will provide a comfortable and safe experience for people of all ages and abilities.
• Minimize parking impacts - Minimizing parking and loading impacts near businesses and adding new spaces where possible will ensure easy access and address stakeholder needs.

This project was scoped with the intention of moving forward with construction upon its completion. The approved 2020 Capital budget includes funding for construction in both 2020 and 2021.

The Pedestrian and Cycling Strategies (PCS) were approved by City Council in 2015 and provide the long-term vision for providing accessible, convenient and safe walking and cycling facilities for people of all ages and abilities. The PCS also assist in the prioritization of active transportation infrastructure projects throughout the city.