By Splash Pad Sod Turning
Thank you to all who attended this event on Wednesday, September 8, 2010. Splash pad construction will be commencing this fall and the construction will be done in time for next years splash pad season.
I would also like to say a special thank you to the volunteers who distributed flyers to advertise for this event. The evening would not have been such a success without your efforts and dedication.
Neighbourhood Watch Information Session
Thank you to the residents of Central Park who attended this information session on September 8, 2010. Anyone who would like more information on this initiative may call my office at 613-580-2486.
A special thank you to the volunteers who dedicated their time to handing out flyers for this information session.
Laurentian Place
SmartCentres has recently updated me with respect to construction, pedestrian access and new tenants at Laurentian Place. The construction of the Wal-Mart is on schedule and is set to open at the end of January 2011. They are currently working on a plan to reopen the pedestrian connection to Scout Street during the same time period.
SmartCentres has also confirmed that the construction of the two buildings bordering Baseline Road will begin in October 2010. The tenants of these buildings have been identified as a dentist’s office, a Chinese restaurant, and a Mucho Burrito restaurant.
For those residents who have inquired, more information regarding upcoming job fairs will follow.
Council Approves Cycling-Friendly Initiatives
The City of Ottawa will explore a cost-sharing partnership with the National Capital Commission (NCC) for five proposed new off-road pathway projects for use by cyclists, pedestrians and nonmotorized vehicles.
Expansion of the pathways supports the City’s objective of strengthening existing communities and developing new environmentally sustainable smart growth communities. The Ottawa Cycling Plan, approved by Council in 2008, identifies the need to improve existing off-road multi-use pathways and on-road cycling facilities and to complete missing links in the City’s cycling network.
Residents and visitors alike in Ottawa will benefit from sustainable transportation options that create positive social impacts, improve our health and reduce emissions.
The City and the NCC are working to increase access to respective pathway and cycling networks and to develop the system in a collaborative way. Several projects to that end are planned for 2011. The proposed pathway and corridor projects, which will be included in the 2011 draft capital budget, are:
- Champagne/O-Train Corridor Pathway (parallels the O-Train corridor between the Ottawa River and Dow’s Lake
- Rideau River Western Pathway (Belmont Street to Ottawa University’s Lees Campus)
- Sawmill Creek/LRT Corridor Pathway (Brookfield Pathway to Walkley Road)
- Hampton Park Pathway (Sebring Avenue to Island Park/Merivale intersection)
- Aviation Parkway (Innes Road to Prescott-Russell Pathway)
On August 25, 2010, I introduced a motion at City Council that was unanimously approved by my colleagues directing staff to develop a comprehensive cycling detour plan to be put into effect during road and pathway construction or maintenance to provide a safe and direct as possible alternate route for cyclists. Construction activity can dramatically affect cycling routes. Detour opportunities often exist but are not clearly signed.
Ottawa is a cycling-friendly community and by creating a cycling detour plan, the City is putting the needs of cyclists alongside those of motorists. This will create a safe alternative for cyclists and motorists and reduce disruption and confusion.
Rideau Canoe Club Grand Opening
I was pleased to attend the grand opening of the Rideau Canoe Club on Friday, September 3, 2010 to celebrate their newly renovated and expanded facilities.
This project was funded by all three levels of government through the Recreational Infrastructure Canada Program in Ontario and Ontario Recreation Program RInC/Ontario REC).
Thank you to everyone who attended.
Riverside Drive and Heron Road Intersection Modifications
Riverside Drive will be modified to three continuous traffic lanes plus cycling lanes in each direction from Heron Road to south of Brookfield Road/Hog’s Back Road. Some lane closures will occur during off-peak time periods. Construction has begun and is scheduled to be completed by the end of November 2010, barring any unforeseen circumstances. The final layer of asphalt is to be applied in the spring of 2011.
Improvements include changes to the right turn channels to improve safety for motorists and pedestrians, the creation of double left-turn lanes from Heron Road westbound to Riverside Drive southbound, and the extension of the right turn lane from Riverside Drive southbound to Heron Road westbound. Reserved lanes for transit and cycling will be provided from Data Centre Road to the bridges over the Rideau Canal/River and ultimately to Prince of Wales Drive. Heron Road will be widened in the eastbound direction from the back of the Sir Charles Tupper Building to Riverside Drive to achieve these modifications.
Roadway modifications on Heron Road will begin in 2011.
Riverside Drive Road Improvements
The north and southbound lanes on Riverside Drive will be repaved from Hog’s Back Road to Bank Street. This is yet another great investment in our community. The initial set-up of signs and safety devices took place on Monday August 16, 2010 and construction began on Wednesday, August 18, 2010.
In order to perform this work, it is necessary to close one lane in each direction. Lane closures began on August 18, 2010 and will continue until the end of October 2010. The road closures will affect one direction at any given time and will be done section by section between 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. during the week and on weekends.
The O-Train is Back on Track
Thank you for your understanding while O-Train construction was underway. The O-Train is back on track after major improvements to the track infrastructure, the signal system, trains and the Rideau River Bridge during the summer months.
The closure was necessary to ensure continued safety and service reliability. Passengers will now benefit from a quieter and smoother ride. The work that was completed will mean lower operating and maintenance costs and reduced wear and tear on the trains. It will also extend the trains’ life expectancy and improve performance at the same time. Lifecycle maintenance work on the Rideau River and Beech Street Bridges, the Walkley and Riverside overpasses and the Dow’s Lake tunnel was also conducted during the O-Train upgrades.
During the rehabilitation period, O-Train ticket vending machines were upgraded with new solarpowered machines that allow passengers to pay using their credit card as well as cash. The new machines are fully accessible for people with disabilities.
The Brookfield pedestrian crossing is now open again to cyclists and pedestrians. The National Capital Commission Riverside Pathway from Bank Street to Hog’s Back Road will remain closed until October for maintenance upgrades.
Next Stop Announcement system
OC Transpo customers will soon have stops and route destinations announced and displayed automatically as the transit service rolls out its new Next Stop Announcement system (NSAS).
The information will be provided in fully bilingual formats accessible to persons who are visually impaired, those who are deaf and hard of hearing, and to all OC Transpo customers. This state-ofthe-art technology will make it easier for customers to keep track of where they are on their trip and where to get off.
The next bus stop information will also be displayed on an interior electronic sign which will also provide the route number, destination and the current time. The first road trials took place during the first week of September on 10 buses. The system will be fully operational on half of the fleet (approximately 450 buses) by the end of September. The full roll-out of the NSAS should be completed by February 2011.
Fall Cleaning the Capital
I was pleased to join my colleagues Councillors Jan Harder and Steve Desroches on August 31, 2010 to launch the City’s Annual Fall Cleaning the Capital Campaign. Residents of all ages are invited to join the City’s annual Cleaning the Capital Fall Campaign that runs from September 15 to October 15, 2010. Cleaning the Capital is a great opportunity for high school students to add to their Community Involvement Program volunteer hours and for families and friends to work together on community cleanup projects that help make Ottawa clean, green, graffiti-free, and
litter-free.
It’s easy to get involved. Pick a cleanup location; for the fall, cleanup efforts are encouraged in areas where litter has accumulated such as a park, woodlot, ravine, shoreline, bus stop, pathway, schoolyard or any public property requiring tidying up.
Suggested spots to target include along fence lines, in open spaces with tall grass, along trails, and around drainage ditches and catch basins. While cleaning up open areas that are maintained and mowed by the City such as in our parks, please don’t pick up the leaves, as they will be mulched by City staff to return their nutrients to the soil.
Register your cleanup project on or before September 14, 2010 to be eligible to win early bird prizes. Registration continues until October 15, 2010. Cleaning the Capital volunteers who submit their online Cleanup Reports by October 31, 2010 are also eligible to win one of many prizes donated by our generous sponsors.
While registering, participants may request a cleanup starter kit. Kits are available upon request and can include disposable vinyl gloves, garbage bags, leaf-and-yard waste bags, campaign posters, magnets or stickers, and safety tips to assist your cleanup project. Kits may also include graffiti removal supplies if requested. Check the collection calendar for when to put out garbage, recycling and leaf-and-yard waste resulting from fall cleanup projects.
Entire communities including schools, neighbourhood organizations and associations, businesses, families, friends and individuals take up the Cleaning the Capital challenge each year. A record 87,400 participants made Cleaning the Capital 2009 the most successful campaign to date! With your help, Cleaning the Capital can be bigger and better in 2010!
For more information and to register, please visit ottawa.ca/clean or call 3-1-1
Integrated Road Safety Program (IRSP)
August Results
The Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) laid 24 pedestrian safety-related charges to both motorists and pedestrians, with additional 337 tickets issued to motorists for running red lights.
For the pedestrian safety initiative, STEP charged nine pedestrians with offences such as failing to use crosswalks, and the remaining 15 charges went to motorists who failed to yield the right-ofway to pedestrians.
This initiative also had a large education component. Hundreds of information pamphlets were handed to both pedestrians and motorists providing important data on Ottawa’s pedestrian collision and traffic injury history and vital tips on how to increase pedestrian safety.
September Initiative
Ottawa Police are focusing on school bus and school zone safety, as well as tailgaters, for September.
In 2009, tailgating caused 4,973 rear-end collisions – the most frequent type of collision accounting for one-third of Ottawa’s total collisions. These collisions resulted in one death and 1,373 injuries – 17 of them life-threatening.
School zone and school bus safety are also serious issues. Over the past five years, 39 collisions occurred on Ottawa roads involving school bus traffic control violations, resulting in 15 injuries – one of which involved a school-age child exiting the school bus.
The penalties for a driver passing a stopped school bus with its upper red lights flashing include fines ranging from $400 to $2,000 and six demerit points for a first offence. A second offence yields the driver a fine between $1,000 and $4,000, six demerit points and a possible jail sentence of up to six months.
Penalties may not be limited to the driver. The vehicle owner may also be charged for school bus traffic control violations, with fines ranging from $400 to $2,000.
Police officers are not required to witness the vehicle passing a stopped school bus with its upper red lights flashing in order to lay charges against the vehicle owner. Citizens who witness such occurrences can contact the police and provide the make, model, colour of vehicle; license number; location, date and time of the incident; and, if possible, a description of the driver.