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- Thread starter Spoonman
- Start date
arvelomcquaig
Active Member
Why can’t they just finally reduce the lanes of University/Queen’s Park Crescent/Avenue? The whole thing is an obnoxious giant highway and undermines the vibrancy and pedestrian experience of all the neighbourhoods it runs through. It should be reduced to two lanes each way, like a proper downtown street, or at least three each way and one dedicated to cyclists.
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
Good luck getting the current administration to cut any lanes serving his electoral base.
AoD
arvelomcquaig
Active Member
Of course it’s implausible, but it shouldn't be. It would have one of the biggest positive impacts on downtown (and where Avenue continues north) and seems so obvious, and yet it’s not even something that’s ever discussed. Yet another reason to be depressed about the domination of right-wing, car-centric discourse in our municipal politics.
Also, judging by Tory’s appointments, he seems to be more concerned with pleasing the Fords’ electoral base than his own.
Torontovibe
Senior Member
John Tory's base is Ford Nation. Without Ford in the next mayoralty race, many lefties/centralists will not continue to support Tory. They will move back to the middle/left. I think Tory realizes this, so he is playing to right-wingers, including Ford Nation, which has now become Tory Nation. (by default)
condovo
Senior Member
What planet do you live on? John Tory's base is most certainly not Ford Nation. A 5-second Google search would surely explain that to you.
Dan416
Senior Member
I don't know why you guys are bashing the guy for having the opinion that Queen's Park is noisy due to the traffic--it is!
I definitely agree we need to do something to mitigate that make QP more of a park. Does Queen's Park Crescent really need so many lanes of traffic? Do car's really need to speed through this section of the city? I think of all places, we could put in more pedestrian crossings where you press the button, and eventually you get the walk signal to cross. When I went to U of T there was tons of jay-walking across the park.
Personally, I am a driver, but I've never driven through Queen's Park Crescent, and it just doesn't strike me as that important an artery that cars need to speed through it.
I definitely agree we need to do something to mitigate that make QP more of a park. Does Queen's Park Crescent really need so many lanes of traffic? Do car's really need to speed through this section of the city? I think of all places, we could put in more pedestrian crossings where you press the button, and eventually you get the walk signal to cross. When I went to U of T there was tons of jay-walking across the park.
Personally, I am a driver, but I've never driven through Queen's Park Crescent, and it just doesn't strike me as that important an artery that cars need to speed through it.
condovo
Senior Member
Umm...it's a major artery. You'd know that immediately had you chosen to drive there.
ksun
Senior Member
yeah, that explains everything! Those who drive on it would probably prefer it is six lanes each way.
To have a major artery cutting through a university and a public park is just stupid.
maestro
Senior Member
The planning behind the creation of Queens Park Circle is beside the point. It is a major thoroughfare that you simply can't convert to a localized street without first directing traffic elsewhere. Closing lanes is not much of a solution.
College Park
Active Member
QPC and University Avenue were expanded in an era when cars were all the rage - we are lucky that the City didn't tear down more to expand this road.
While it's far more expensive and political, and definitely counts as scope-creep in this project, reducing the width of the road, reducing speed (which cuts noise), and creating clear promenades for people to walk from College into the Parliament and QP lands are good ideas.
Regarding shrubs or hedges: creating concealed areas reduces safety at night. While I was at Queen's they stripped out a lot of shrubs to create clear sight lines. I hated the loss, but I have to admit, it makes sense.
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
I'd rather see the effort and expense directed to the implementation of actual park improvements - and not let the inevitable political debate over cutting lanes scuttle this project.
AoD
maestro
Senior Member
Measures to reduce speed possibly through lane width reductions is quite different from reducing capacity through lane reduction. Ultimately, at some point in time, one would hope decking over section of Queens Park Circle would become a serious consideration.
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The U of T several years ago was floating the idea of getting rid of the bridge at Wellesley and diverting QP Cres southbound along the alignment of the Wellesley off and on-ramps to give the U of T space to reestablish the Taddle Creek Pond just in front of Hart House. A new light at Wellesley would provide another safe crossing point across the road. Telling that there's no mention of that plan at all as part of this study?
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UrbanFervour
Active Member
Traffic should be two-way and only go up and down the East side of the Park. The West side should be ripped up south of Hoskin and the park should be blended into the U of T campus.
Whenever traffic islands have been made into peninsulas in the UK, it has been a huge success. Everyone freaks out about removing lanes of traffic before it happens, but afterwards everyone can't believe they didn't do it earlier.
Whenever traffic islands have been made into peninsulas in the UK, it has been a huge success. Everyone freaks out about removing lanes of traffic before it happens, but afterwards everyone can't believe they didn't do it earlier.