Marine-Main B-Line presentation

Marine-Main B-Line Briefing: District of West Vancouver Council December 10, 2018 and January 7, 2019

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1. BACKGROUND 2

Congestion is a huge issue on the North Shore Multi level government report (INSTPP) identified Marine-Main B-Line with transit priority as key part of regional transportation plan TransLink and West Vancouver identified Marine-Main as key transit corridor • North Shore Area Transit Plan (2012) • Mayors’ 10-Year Vision (2014) • Marine-Main Transit Corridor Study (2017)

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Background: INSTPP B-Line recommendations (2018) •

2.2 Local governments partner and address funding necessary to implement transit priority measures, where feasible, including bus lanes, queue jumpers and signal coordination, and ensure these measures are in place before the launch of the Marine- Main B-Line in 2019.

•

3.2 The Intergovernmental Steering Committee collaboratively develop and allocate resources, including partnerships, to implement and advance investments in frequent transit services and supporting infrastructure to improve reliability, speed and attractiveness

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4.1 The North Shore local governments commit to collaborative action on land use and transportation planning that promotes access and mobility without increasing demand for driving, aligning with regional plans and creating conditions that can support growth in transit use toward higher capacity transit investments, including actions that make walking, cycling and transit more competitive, focusing within and between town centres, and protecting rights-of-way.

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5.0 Action plan – Launch the Marine-Main B-Line in 2019 and collaborate on transit priority measures for the Marine-Main corridor, including signal prioritization, queue jumping and dedicated bus lanes where feasible.

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2012 North Shore Area Transit Plan (2040 Vision)

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Metro Vancouver Marine-Main Corridor Study

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Mayors’ 10-Year Vision calls for expansion of B-Line network across region in 3 Phases •

Marine-Main part of 4 New Phase One B-Lines (2019)

•

2 more funded for Phase Two (2021)

•

5 more planned for Phase Three, including routes on both North Shore crossings 7

TransLink’s data and analysis sources Metrics

What data do we draw on?

• Ridership (boardings & alightings)

• Automated Passenger Counters (APC) & Compass

• Trip origins & destinations • Vehicle loads (crowding) • Travel demand (existing & forecast)

• Bus speed • Bus travel time reliability • Traffic impacts (volumes, speeds, congestion)

• Regional Trip Diary • Automated Vehicle Location (AVL) • Customer Feedback Report • Google Traffic API What modelling tools do we use?

• Regional Travel Models • Traffic Simulations • Custom models

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2. RIDERSHIP DEMAND 9

West Vancouver has healthy, growing transit ridership

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Thousands of people ride buses on the Marine Drive corridor in West Vancouver every day 12000

10000

8000

6000

4000

2000

0 MARINE DR AT 24 MARINE DR AT 21 MARINE DR AT 17 MARINE DR AT 14 MARINE DR AT ST ST ST ST PARK ROYAL

Automatic Passenger Count Data: Average daily Leave/Arrive Load (M-F), Sept to Dec 2018 11

A large portion of those passengers start & end trips on the corridor 8,000+ daily boardings & alightings

WV hubs have more boardings+alightings than some SkyTrain stations 14000

11,000+ daily boardings & alightings

12000 10000 8000 6000 4000

Dundarave

2000 0

Ambleside Park Royal

Automatic Passenger Count Data: Daily boardings and alightings (M-F), Sept to Dec 2018

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On some WV routes, demand already exceeds capacity Average 250 Bus Loads Eastbound during PM Peak (3pm – 6pm) Overcrowded

100% 90%

Crowded

Bus Capacity (%)

80% 70%

Standing room only

60%

50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE MARINE DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT DR AT 25 ST 24 ST 23 ST 22 ST 21 ST 20 ST 19 ST 18 ST 17 ST 15 ST 14 ST 11 ST MAIN ST Automatic Passenger Count Data: Average load per scheduled trip (M-F), Sept to Dec 2018

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West Vancouver has the fastest transit ridership growth on the North Shore 12.0%

• Daily boardings have increased 9.8% between 2017 and 2018 – ~800 more boardings per day

9.8%

10.0% 8.5% 8.0%

6.0%

5.8%

4.0%

2.0%

0.0%

North Vancouver - City

North Vancouver District

West Vancouver 14

Why are better North Shore transit connections needed?

Transit key to bringing people to West Vancouver Limited east-west transit connection across North Shore today

78% of employees of library, parks & rec, fire & rescue, police, etc. commute from other municipalities

22% 38%

40%

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North Vancouver City and District are popular destinations for transit trips originating in West Vancouver Within West Vancouver (13%)

• In spite of limited transit connections - ¼ of transit trips starting or ending in West Vancouver are to/from North Vancouver • ½ of trips between West Vancouver and North Vancouver continue West of Park Royal

City/Dist. North Vancouver (22%)

Vancouver (49%)

Other (16%)

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But: People are more likely to choose driving for trips on the North Shore than to/from Vancouver

• Improved transit across North Shore has potential for mode shift from driving to transit for these trips

Share of trips by transit to trips by all modes to/from West Vancouver 18% 16%

Share of trips by transit (%)

• Currently only one route provides direct East-West service between Ambleside and North Vancouver (255)

14% 12% 10% 8% 6% 4% 2% 0%

West Vancouver

North Vancouver

Other

Vancouver 17

The B-Line will make transit more attractive for East-West travel 25% of North Shore residents

40% of North Shore jobs

35% of planned North Shore growth

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B-Line brings frequent, all day reliable service in West Van

More transit service • • • •

Frequent, all day every day 8 min in peak, 10-15 other times 6am to 1am +25,000 service hours (~$3.1m/yr)

New amenities • Stops have Next Bus digital signage • Accessibility features such as tactile pads and audio announcements

Improved speed and reliability • All-door boarding • Streets redesigned to improve travel time

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Transit travel times from Ambleside – Current

Travel Time from Ambleside Before B-Line and Transit Priority

Downtown Vancouver

~25 min

Lions Gate Hospital

~35 min

Lonsdale Quay

~40 min

Capilano University

~60 min

Lions Gate Hospital

Lonsdale Quay

Capilano University Transit Travel Time Within 15 minutes Within 30 minutes Within 45 minutes Within 60 minutes

Granville Station 20

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Transit travel times from Ambleside – With B-Line & Transit Priority

Travel Time from Ambleside Before B-Line and Transit Priority

After B-Line and Transit Priority

Downtown Vancouver

~25 min

~20 min

Lions Gate Hospital

~35 min

~30 min

Lonsdale Quay

~40 min

~25 min

Capilano University

~60 min

~45 min

Lions Gate Hospital

Lonsdale Quay

Capilano University Transit Travel Time Within 15 minutes Within 30 minutes Within 45 minutes Within 60 minutes

Granville Station 21

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B-Line + Transit Priority = Better access to employees & customers

Travel Time from Ambleside

Up to 15 minutes

Additional People

Additional Jobs

1,200

900

16 - 30 minutes

35,500

62,500

31 - 45 minutes

81,700

52,500

46 - 60 minutes

104,500

50,900

Transit Travel Time Within 15 minutes Within 30 minutes Within 45 minutes Within 60 minutes 22

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B-Lines attract ridership • 99 is one of busiest bus routes in North America with over 56,000 daily boardings – the equivalent of 3 Rogers Arenas of people per day • 96 B-Line daily ridership has increased by 106% since its introduction in 2013 • 95 B-Line daily ridership increased by 18% since its introduction in 2017

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Marine-Main B-Line ridership forecast is robust

2019 • Daily: 6,600–7,300 • Annual: 2.1–2.3m

2035 • Daily: 9,000–12,800 • Annual: 2.9–4m 24

3. BUS PASSENGER DELAY 25

Old news: Traffic is congested on Marine Drive in West Van • Congestion during can double travel time between Dundarave and Park Royal for general purpose traffic Average travel time range on Marine Drive between Dundarave and Park Royal Westbound 14

12

12

10

10

8 6

Minutes

Minutes

Eastbound 14

8 6

4

4

2

2

0

0

Avg Low Avg High

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Congestion delays West Van buses by > 5 min/trip

• Weekend patterns are very similar to weekdays • Commercial street = all-day draw

Park Royal to 25th Street 18.0

Average Travel Time( Minutes)

• Marine Drive is congested all day, not just during AM/PM peaks

Average Bus Runtimes 16.0 14.0

Traffic delays up to 8 min/trip

12.0 10.0 8.0 6.0 4.0 2.0

0.0 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 AM AM AM AM AM AM AM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM Weekday EAST

Weekday WEST

Weekend EAST

Weekend WEST 27

More people on transit = Less congestion on the road On Marine Drive in West Vancouver, in the PM peak:

Buses now move 1/3 of travellers‌

‌in 4% of vehicles

Cars Transit 28

But: Congestion means bus travel can be slow and inconsistent Delays throughout West Vancouver segment

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Congestion on Marine Drive means the same bus trip may take dramatically different amounts of time Travel time variability between 25th Street and Park Royal on Marine Drive 70

Minutes of travel time

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Normally takes 13 min on bus from Park Royal to Dundarave in PM peak.

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25% of the time it takes 30min 40

100th Percentile

75th Percentile 50th Percentile

Some trips can even take ~1 hr 30

25th Percentile

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Average

10 -

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Solution: Transit priority would improve travel time and reliability for all bus routes on Marine Drive 10 West Van bus routes will travel on Marine Drive between Park Royal and Dundarave (including BLine) Nearly 900 buses per day Up to 75 buses per hour during PM Peak +21,000 existing passengers will experience improved speed and reliability B-Line add capacity for up to 25,000+ more passengers per day • • •

7.5 min faster to Lions Gate Hospital 5 min faster to downtown Vancouver And more reliable

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How many buses will benefit from priority?

14th Street: 23 local buses +8 B-Line buses per hour

21st Street: 15 local buses +8 B-Line Buses per hour

Park Royal 32 local buses +8 B-Line Buses per hour

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Regional trips, regional benefits Majority of DWV residents’ trips are to destinations outside DWV

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Transit priority on Georgia St benefits travelers from inside and outside Vancouver

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Transit priority on Marine Drive benefits travelers from inside and outside West Vancouver

Destination outside West Vancouver Destination within West Vancouver

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4. TRANSIT PRIORITY 34

B-Line success requires street changes to ensure reliability • TransLink working with all North Shore municipalities and Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure to develop changes on Marine-Main corridor that will better organize traffic, and improve efficiency for all road users

• This solution designed specifically for WV, tailored to corridor characteristics

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Planned Transit Priority Measures

BAT lane = Business Access & Transit lane 36

Aren’t you closing a lane and creating “carmageddon”?

B-Line related street changes organize traffic on Marine Drive

• • •

More efficient Safer More reliable transit

• •

Better for cars Maintains parking and business access 37

Current street design: Causes delays for buses AND general traffic

These obstacles cause other drivers to weave through traffic, increasing risk of collisions 38

Planned redesign: Reduces obstacles for through traffic AND buses

Through traffic flows more easily 39

How do we model impacts to general-purpose traffic?

• TransLink contracts traffic models from firms that specialize in transportation engineering • Models use actual observed traffic volumes to compare traffic flows with existing streets and post-B Line • Industry-standard microsimulation software for traffic impact assessment: – Synchro: creates a model of the corridor, estimates delay and level of service based on traffic flow characteristics – SimTraffic: models individual vehicles and driver behaviour

Marine Drive at 14th Street (Veh/hr, 2017)

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How do we know what will happen to traffic?

• Ambleside traffic modelled in industry standard Synchro software • Analysis performed by WSP, a global engineering firm with longstanding expertise in traffic modelling

Results: •

• •

Level of Service (LOS) of all intersections unchanged – A’s and B’s All traffic clears with each green, and queues do not back up past intersections In PM peak, westbound cars save 20s of travel time

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Traffic Modelling Detailed Results (AM Peak hour) Intersection

Existing LOS

B Line LOS

Existing 95th percentile queues

B Line 95th percentile Queues

13th Street

B

B

37m eastbound 48m westbound

74m eastbound 59m westbound

14th Street

A

A

13m eastbound 33m westbound

91m eastbound 55m westbound

15th Street

B

B

44m eastbound 46m westbound

31m eastbound 70m westbound

16th Street

A

A

32m eastbound 15m westbound

26m eastbound 28m westbound

17th Street

A

A

28m eastbound 43m westbound

36m eastbound 66m westbound

Links range from 90m to 170m. Queues do not back up to the next intersection

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Traffic Modelling Detailed Results (PM Peak hour) Intersection

Existing LOS

B Line LOS

Existing 95th percentile queues

B Line 95th percentile Queues

13th Street

B

B

64m eastbound 39m westbound

85m eastbound 75m westbound

14th Street

B

B

45m eastbound 47m westbound

32m eastbound 73m westbound

15th Street

B

B

59m eastbound 50m westbound

72m eastbound 68m westbound

16th Street

A

A

39m eastbound 19m westbound

23m eastbound 28m westbound

17th Street

B

B

43m eastbound 50m westbound

51m eastbound 93m westbound

Links range from 90m to 170m. Queues do not back up to the next intersection

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Are there alternatives to reduce impact on general-purpose traffic?

• Our traffic models show BAT lanes as planned have a neutral or positive impact to GP traffic travel time

Change in travel time on Marine Drive between 13th and 17th Streets (after B-Line Implementation)

– Greatest impact is 5 seconds of delay over 5 intersections (westbound, AM peak) – this is within margin of error – Recommendation: No mitigation needed – Alternatives were explored nonetheless

Change in travel time (seconds)

10

AM

Midday

PM

5 0 -5 -10 -15 -20 -25

-30 -35 -40 General Traffic Westbound

General Traffic Eastbound

Bus Traffic Westbound

Bus Traffic Eastbound

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Are there alternatives to reduce impact on general-purpose traffic?

• We explored three possible alternative approaches: – Geometry • Can we reduce negative impacts by designating a different lane for buses?

– Time of day • Could BAT lanes be in effect only part of the day?

– Extent • Could BAT lanes NOT be implemented in the most contested areas?

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Can impacts to traffic be reduced? – Geometry • Can we reduce negative impacts by designating a different lane for buses?

Curb-side lanes

Rejected: • Requires total removal of parking and pedestrian bulb-outs

Centre-running lanes

Rejected: • Buses would have to weave from curbside stops to centre lane, worsening delay and congestion, and increasing collision risk.

• Cars still delayed by parallel parking • Creates challenges for left-turning cars 46

Can impacts to traffic be reduced? – Time of day

Park Royal to 25th Street 18.0

Average Travel Time( Minutes)

• Marine Drive is congested all day, not just during AM/PM peaks • Weekend patterns are very similar to weekdays • Commercial street = all-day draw

Average Bus Runtimes 16.0 14.0 12.0 10.0 8.0 6.0 4.0 2.0

0.0 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 AM AM AM AM AM AM AM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM Weekday EAST

Weekday WEST

Weekend EAST

Weekend WEST 47

Time of day restrictions compared

BAT lane time

% of total available bus travel time savings

Tradeoffs • No confusion about when lanes are in effect • Allows lane to be painted – better for compliance

24 Hour/ 7 days per week

100%

Daytime/ 7 days per week (6 am – 7 pm)

95%

• Captures most of the travel time savings • Potential for confusion about when lanes are in effect – risks lower compliance (lane not painted, required close reading of signs) • Allows cars to use BAT lane some of the time – but limited value, as the BAT lane is open to them at times when the road is least congested

Midday–PM Peak Weekdays Only (10 am – 7 pm)

60%

• As above, but less benefit to transit and GP traffic • Not recommended

AM & PM Peaks Weekdays Only (6-10 am, 4-7 pm)

40%

• Insufficient benefit to transit at times when it is most needed • Not recommended 48

15th

17th

21st

• Approach: – Don’t implement BAT lanes in areas of concern (Ambleside, Park Royal) • But: – These are precisely the congested areas where transit priority is needed • Therefore: – No “partial implementation” option is being considered

25th

Can impacts to traffic be reduced? – Extent

Ambleside Park Royal

Darker red = Higher person-delay on transit

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Aren’t you taking away critical parking & business access?

Parking & business access maintained • Maintaining parking and business access key driver of design • Loss of parking on Marine, but alternative spots available – – – –

15-30 of 766 existing parking spots removed for left turns & bus stops in Ambleside Loss of parking primarily around 15th St. No changes in Dundarave 45 free parking spaces currently available at 14th St. in Grosvenor Building (Phase 1)

• 60 new parking spots coming online in Ambleside – 49 new free parking spaces available in Phase 2 of the Grosvenor Building – 11 on street parking spots become available when Grosvenor construction finishes

• Delineating Marine Dr. parking spots will increase efficiency 50

Are there alternatives to minimize impact on parking?

• We explored two possible approaches: – Geometry • Can we redesign to create new parking spaces?

– Timing • Can we delay until new 3rd party parking is available?

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Are there alternatives to minimize impact on parking? – Geometry Option: Consolidate local bus stops & convert to curbside parking • Currently: Local bus stops are very close together – Translink guidelines suggest 250-800 m bus stop spacing – Average stop spacing between 13th St and 22nd St is 140 m

• Criteria for selecting stops that could be consolidated: – Maintain minimum TransLink stop spacing (or better) – Avoid closing stops near destinations used by less mobile customers (community and health facilities, etc.)

•

Result: – Two local bus stops are potential candidates for consolidation 52

Local bus stops: Candidates for consolidation • 13th St.

– Nearest alternative stops are 130 metres away, at 14th St. – Average 560 boardings/alightings per weekday – Gain approx. 4 parking spots • 18th St. – Nearest alternative stops are 150 metres away, at 19th St. or 17th St.

– Average 290 boardings/alightings per weekday – Gain approx. 6 parking spots 53

Design options – Summary 1.

Business Access & Transit (BAT) lane timing a) 24/7 b) 6 am–7 pm, every day

2.

Consolidate some local bus stops to create additional parking? a) NO: Net loss of 15-30 parking spaces until Grosvenor Bldg parking opens b) YES: Net loss of 5-20 spaces until Grosvenor Bldg parking opens

3.

Delay launch until Grosvenor Bldg parking opens in 2020? a) NO: Net parking loss (as above) between 2019 launch and 2020 b) YES: No net parking loss 54

5. NEXT STEPS 55

West Vancouver B-Line approval & launch timing • Marine-Main B-Line Launch – maintained for fall 2019: – at minimum Phibbs Exchange to Park Royal – Park Royal-Dundarave segment pending WV decision • WV Council direction: Late February/March 2019 • Precise launch dates TBC once construction bids & schedule finalized through tender process, and pending WV direction

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What if West Vancouver does not wish to proceed?

• TransLink is responsible for regional transportation investment

Key cost items of Marine-Main B-Line

• The investment in Marine-Main B-Line comes from funding earmarked for BLines specifically

Stop & transit priority infrastructure (capital)

$8m

Fleet (capital)

$24m

• If the proposed investment in West Vancouver is declined, it will be redirected to the next regional B-Line priority

Service (operating)

$8m/year

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Thank You

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