Yonge Street Revitalization (Downtown Yonge BIA/City of Toronto)

[ssiguy2]

YongeTOmmorrow is about as half-assed as you can get. It was designed by and for cars with box checked for sidewalks.

Yonge should be completely pedestrianized from Bloor to King with 6AM to 10AM allowed for delivery trucks and none on the weekends. Every other city on the planet manages to have pedestrian only streets but in Toronto, the cars must come first. This is why Toronto will never have the public sphere that Montreal enjoys. Even supposed "car-loving" Calgary has a 5 block 24/7 pedestrian only zone right downtown and is the most successful in the whole country.

 

[abovegrade]

YongeTOmmorrow is about as half-assed as you can get. It was designed by and for cars with box checked for sidewalks.

Yonge should be completely pedestrianized from Bloor to King with 6AM to 10AM allowed for delivery trucks and none on the weekends. Every other city on the planet manages to have pedestrian only streets but in Toronto, the cars must come first. This is why Toronto will never have the public sphere that Montreal enjoys. Even supposed "car-loving" Calgary has a 5 block 24/7 pedestrian only zone right downtown and is the most successful in the whole country.

Never say never. You must not know about the Downsview redevelopment and that's happening in the inner suburbs.

 

[ssiguy2]

Downsview is in the suburbs, we are talking about the city's most important and prominent street.

 

[Northern Light]

YongeTOmmorrow is about as half-assed as you can get. It was designed by and for cars with box checked for sidewalks.

This statement is a gross exaggeration, and I'm being charitable.

Yonge should be completely pedestrianized from Bloor to King with 6AM to 10AM allowed for delivery trucks and none on the weekends.

Says who?

I'm all for pedestrian streets, and Toronto will get more of them, including some small sections of Yonge....... That aside did you just forget that there's a night bus on Yonge that needs to be accommodated, and many other issues....

Every other city on the planet manages to have pedestrian only streets

Really, every city?

but in Toronto, the cars must come first.

Toronto has slashed car lanes downtown on arterials roads by over 30% in the last 10 years.

That will work its way up to 45% in the next 5 or so............

This is why Toronto will never have the public sphere that Montreal enjoys.

No, Toronto will not enjoy as much of what Montreal has in this respect, in the near-term anyway, because Montreal has a public utility commission that buried its wires, because Montreal spends more on horticulture (flowers) and streetscapes, per lane km, and because Montreal has a huge head start.

But the gap will close.

Even supposed "car-loving" Calgary has a 5 block 24/7 pedestrian only zone right downtown and is the most successful in the whole country.

I'm laughing..........you clearly haven't been there.

 

[abovegrade]

Downsview is in the suburbs, we are talking about the city's most important and prominent street.

What makes that southern stretch of Yonge from where you've described the most important and prominent? When one transformation happens, it often creates a chain reaction across the city, so I think you're missing the point.

 

[goodcitywhenfinished]

I don’t have a good feeling with Parsons leading the design here.

Their Landscape portfolio is mostly tacky UAE, Saudi, and Kuwait auto-dominated public realm. Literally pavers in a wavy pattern with a few palm trees and call it a day.

They seem to have zero experience with major streets in dense urban centres.

Unless they are using an external consultant for LA

 

[rdaner]

^Or consultants from Atlanta!

 

[goodcitywhenfinished]

Any idea how the Province's temper tantrum is going to effect the viability of this project going forward @Northern Light ?

Are we looking at this project potentially being stalled once again?

 

[Northern Light]

Any idea how the Province's temper tantrum is going to effect the viability of this project going forward @Northern Light ?

Are we looking at this project potentially being stalled once again?

There are no bike lanes proposed between Queen and Gerrard, so unless the legislation more broadly regulates all traffic lane removals, the answer would likely be 'no'; though cycle tracks are proposed in the Gerrard to Carlton segment.

This plan is already passed, but I don't recall if the associated by-law changes have been made. If not, there is always a risk.

We really need to see what the draft legislation says..........

We also have to see if the government is really committed to passing it.

 

[TheGrimSweeper]

Change the wording in the proposal of "cycle tracks" to "multi use path".