The detailed concept plan for the largest section of the Yellowhead Trail Freeway Conversion is currently open for feedback until March 8, 2021.
There are significant safety issues with the current plan, highlighted in the images below.
Slip lanes throughout the design, including those at St Albert Trail, and in particular the double slip lanes on the northwest corner of 127 St and Yellowhead Trail, encourage high turning speeds. Slip lanes are recognized dangers to pedestrians and people on bikes, and the design of these lanes violates Vision Zero principles.
Edmonton’s Safe Mobility Strategy states:
"People of all ages and abilities, using all modes of transportation, and in all seasons, deserve to be able to travel safely along Edmonton’s streets and pathways. During planning, design, activation, and maintenance, we will proactively reduce exposure to risk and harm."
The intersection of 126 Ave and 127 St, just north of the Yellowhead, includes a wide radius turn on the southwest corner, which encourages drivers to encroach onto the crosswalk to turn, while also allowing for higher speed turns. Meanwhile, the shared-use path directs bikes into the middle the intersection, rather than towards either crosswalk, which puts people in conflict with traffic flow regardless of the state of the crossing lights.
The crossing at 124 Ave and 107 St requires signal lights as traffic leaving Yellowhead Trail will not have any cues to slow down.
Action request for you:
Please share this feedback with the City, as well as any of your own, through the online survey before the end of March 8.
View the full concept plan here.
You can register to attend public learning sessions (and submit questions to info@twenty-20.ca):
Unfortunately, though this project has a budget of $1 billion, there are very few details relating to active transportation in this engagement. The City has an information video about this portion of the project. You can view the original 8.5 minute video here, or watch the below video, which we have shortened to 1 minute to highlight the portions that mention active transportation.
