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As part of the Quiet Streets Program on Woodfield Road and Monarch Park Avenue, from Sammon Avenue to Lake Shore Boulevard, the City of Toronto has:

  • installed a contra-flow bicycle lane on one-way segments to allow people cycling to travel in both directions along the Woodfield-Monarch Park corridor so they can easily connect between popular cycling routes on Danforth Avenue, Dundas Street East and Lake Shore Boulevard East
  • improved wayfinding and signage along the route
  • installed new traffic signals at Gerrard Street East, Queen Street East and Eastern Avenue to improve walking and cycling safety and connections
  • limited parking and motor vehicle impacts

This work was part of the City’s Council-approved Cycling Network Plan to connect, grow and renew infrastructure for cycling routes across the City. Consultation on this project took place in April 2021, with feedback received through two virtual public meetings, an online feedback form and the local Councillor. City Council approved the project in June 2021 (see Agenda Item #IE22.11).

August 2022: Phase 2 of Installation

For questions or concerns about the installation, contact David Dunn, Project Manager, at Dave.Dunn@toronto.ca or 416-392-8985.

Phase 2 of installation (Queen Street East to Lake Shore Boulevard Trail) is now complete:

  • Travel direction has changed to one-way northbound and the addition of southbound contra-flow bike lanes and northbound sharrows from Queen Street East to Eastern Avenue
  • Bike lanes were added in each direction from Eastern Avenue to Lake Shore Boulevard Trail
  • A new path connecting to the Lake Shore Boulevard Trail at the south end of Woodfield Road was installed
  • New traffic signals were added at Woodfield Road/Queen Street East and Woodfield Road/Eastern Avenue

December 2021: Phase 1 of Installation

Phase 1 of installation, from Fairford Avenue to north of Queen Street East, was completed:

  • Installation of sharrows (pavement markings) on Monarch Park Avenue (from Sammon Avenue to Felstead Avenue) and Woodfield Road (from the north end to Fairford Avenue)
  • Pedestrian crossover converted to traffic signal at Woodfield Road/Gerrard Street East
  • Addition of northbound bicycle signal heads at Woodfield Road/Dundas Street East
  • Updates and changes to signage
  • Changes to parking signage on Woodfield Road (from Gerrard Street East to Dundas Street East)
Car driving south on Woodfield Road at Dundas Street East, with a contra-flow bicycle lane in the opposite direction.
New northbound bicycle signal heads at Woodfield Road/Dundas Street East.
New sharrows in both directions on Monarch Park Avenue north of Walpole Avenue
New sharrows (pavement markings) on Monarch Park Avenue, just north of Walpole Avenue.

 

June 2021: Report to City Council

Motions moved by Councillor Fletcher (6:08:06); Voting on motions (Motion 3a: 6:10:10; Motion 3b: 6:10:31); Voting on amendments (6:10:55)

On June 9, 2021, following additional feedback from local residents received after IEC, City Council adopted the following amendment moved by Councillor Fletcher:

  • amend the contra-flow bicycle lane, traffic and parking regulations required to change to the direction of motor vehicle traffic on Woodfield Road from the current southbound condition to northbound between Eastern Avenue and Queen Street East, maintaining the current condition of on-street parking on the east side.

This was presented as Alternate 3 during the consultation period.

Also, as a result of overall feedback throughout the consultation process, City Council has directed the General Manager, Transportation Services to:

  • consider implementing additional safety measures to protect cyclists from heavy trucks on Woodfield Road, south of Eastern Avenue, including further consultation with Canada Post and other community stakeholders
  • consider additional measures to ensure pedestrian safety in Monarch Park
  • consider additional measures, potentially including turn restrictions or physical modifications to discourage cut-through traffic on Woodfield Road

May 2021: Report to Infrastructure and Environment Committee

Deputations (pre-recess: 2:39:23; post-recess: 4:01:31; last deputant: 4:45:30); Questions of staff (4:39:51); Speakers & motions (4:52:52); Voting on items (5:22:16)

On May 25, 2021, the Infrastructure and Environment Committee (IEC) of City Council endorsed Item IE22.11 – Cycling Network Plan – 2021 Cycling Infrastructure Installation – Second Quarter Update and Missing Link Sidewalk Program – 2021 Local Road Sidewalk Installation, which included:

  • installing a contra-flow bicycle lane on one-way segments to allow people cycling to travel two-way along the Woodfield-Monarch Park corridor
  • remove existing pedestrian crossovers at Gerrard Street East, Queen Street East and Eastern Avenue/Connaught Avenue and replace with new traffic signals at Gerrard Street East, Queen Street East and Eastern Avenue to improve walking and cycling safety and connections

Item IE22.11 was moved to the June meeting of City Council for consideration.

From March 30 to April 29, 2021, local residents and stakeholders and members of the public were invited to provide feedback on the proposed changes and bikeway options to Woodfield Road-Monarch Park Avenue, from Sammon Avenue to the Lake Shore Boulevard Trail.

Virtual Public Meetings

Two Virtual Public Meetings were held on April 14 and 15, 2021, from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The meetings were attended by 21 and 39 participants respectively.

Online Survey

Over 250 respondents provided feedback on the proposed design and bikeway options through an online survey.

Materials & Reports

Project area map showing proposed improvements on Woodfield Road and Monarch Park Avenue, from Sammon Avenue to Lake Shore Boulevard.

Selecting a Bikeway for Woodfield-Monarch Park

The City of Toronto’s draft design guidelines set 75 cars in the peak hour as the maximum for a shared lane.

Based on the speed and volume of traffic, a shared lane for people cycling and driving is appropriate. The preferred bikeway type for Woodfield Road-Monarch Park Avenue is Neighbourhood Greenway.

The peak volumes and eight-hour volumes do not exceed the thresholds of vehicle volumes, so additional traffic diversion is not recommended.

Average Counts Woodfield-Monarch Park Existing Volumes Neighbourhood Greenway Volume Thresholds
Peak Hour Motor Vehicles 30–75 vehicles 75 vehicles
Cycling
(over 8-hours)
70–120 cycling trips (20–30% of total traffic) Would like to increase volume to 40–50% of total traffic
Vehicles
(over 8-hours)
200–400 vehicles Less than 750 vehicles

Cycling Network Plan

Map of Woodfield Road-Monarch Park Avenue project area.
Map of the Woodfield Road-Monarch Park Avenue project area as part of the Near-Term Cycling Implementation Program for 2019–21.

Woodfield Road-Monarch Park Avenue was identified in the Council-adopted Cycling Network Plan as a north-south route, installed in the near term (2019–21).

The proposal included contra-flow bicycle lanes on one-way sections of Woodfield Road and installation of traffic calming elements like painted bulb-outs, wayfinding and traffic signal upgrades at key locations.

Woodfield Road-Monarch Park Ave has been identified as a “Grow” project in the Cycling Network Plan Update. This project would grow the cycling network into new parts of the city.

Quiet Streets

From May to October 2020, Woodfield Road-Monarch Park Avenue were designated as Quiet Streets. The ActiveTO Quiet Streets program created shared spaces to allow residents to maintain physical distancing while getting around on neighbourhood streets. Temporary signage and other measures were used to encourage slow, local vehicle access only so the street could be a shared space that welcomed people who walk, run or bike.

In 2021, City staff proposed that instead of reintroducing the seasonal Quiets Streets program, energy be refocused on programs that provide year-round improvements to local streets, such as this project.

A Quiet Street cement block used as a traffic barricade on The Esplanade Quiet Street featured a mural by artist Emily May Rose.
A Quiet Street cement block used as a traffic barricade on The
Esplanade Quiet Street featured a mural by artist Emily May Rose.
A group of people riding bikes on a Quiet Street in Toronto.
A group of people cycling down a Quiet Street in Toronto.

ActiveTO Quiet Streets Survey

The ActiveTO Quiet Streets Survey was conducted in the summer of 2020. There were over 700 unique responses on Woodfield Road-Monarch Park (Woodfield Avenue: 219 respondents; Monarch Park Avenue: 536 respondents).

According to those surveyed, Woodfield-Monarch Park was one of the highest-ranked routes for reducing vehicular speeds, improving physical distancing, and making people feel safer sharing the street. The feedback was very positive.

The most common feedback was concerns about non-local traffic.

Survey Question Woodfield Road
(percentage of survey respondents)
Monarch Park Avenue
(percentage of survey respondents)
Understood the intent of the program 95% 95%
Walking/jogging is main mode of travel 85% 88%
No exclusive access to outdoor space 13% 9%
Do not live/work on the Quiet Street 59% 76%
Perception of program influencing physical distancing 75% (agreed or strongly agreed) 81% (agreed or strongly agreed)
Perception of program providing safer shared street space 79% (agreed or strongly agreed) 78% (agreed or strongly agreed)

Motion Adopted at City Council

On April 7, 2021, City Council adopted the report, Active TO – Lessons Learned from 2020 and Next Steps for 2021.

Councillor Fletcher moved the motion, which requested the General Manager, Transportation Services, to implement, in consultation with the local Councillor, Quiet Streets on Monarch Park Avenue and Woodfield Road on a temporary basis until such time as cycling infrastructure is installed on those streets.

Crossing Upgrades

  • Woodfield Road/Gerrard Street East: Pedestrian crossover converted to traffic signal
  • Woodfield Road/Dundas Street East: Northbound bike signal heads added to traffic signal
  • Woodfield Road/Queen Street East: Pedestrian crossover converted to traffic signal
  • Woodfield Road/Eastern Avenue: Pedestrian crossover at Connaught Avenue (95 m spacing) relocated and new traffic signal installed

Where possible, the City installed traffic calming elements like painted curb extensions at intersections.

Monarch Park Avenue: Sammon Avenue to Felstead Avenue

Map showing on-street shared lanes connecting to the existing on-street shared lanes on Strathmore Boulevard and existing bike lanes on Danforth Avenue.
Map of Monarch Park Avenue, from Sammon Avenue to Felstead Avenue.
Cross-section showing the road configuration from east to west: sidewalk, parkig lane, sharrow, sharrow and sidewalk.
Cross-section of design looking north on Woodfield Road, from Fairford Avenue to Monarch Park.

Design Details

  • Traffic signal provides good connection to cycle track on Danforth Avenue.
  • New sharrows (pavement markings) and wayfinding signage.
  • No changes to parking.

Monarch Park: Existing Connection

Map showing the connections of how the on-street shared lanes on Felstead Avenue connects with the multi-use path through Monarch Park, and then again to the on-street bike lanes to the south of the park.
Map of connections to and through Monarch Park.

Design Details

  • Existing trail connects Monarch Park Avenue to Woodfield Road under rail corridor.
  • Pavement markings and wayfinding direct cyclists to the trail access at Gillard Avenue.

Woodfield Road: Monarch Park to Fairford Avenue

Map showing on-street shared lanes on Monarch Park Avenue, from Monarch Park to Fairfield Avenue. This connects with the multi-use path through Monarch Park to the south.
Map of on-street shared lanes on Monarch Park Avenue, from Monarch Park to Fairfield Avenue.
Cross-section showing the road configuration from east to west: sidewalk, parking lane, sharrow, bike lane and sidewalk.
Cross-section of design looking north on Woodfield Road, from Queen Street East to Fairford Avenue.

Design Details

Woodfield Road: Fairford Avenue to Queen Street East

Map showing contra-flow bike lanes on Woodfield Road, from Fairford Avenue to Queen Street East. This connects to the on-street shared lane north of Fairford Avenue and continued contra-flow bike lanes south of Queen Street East.
Map of contra-flow bike lanes and travel direction flip on Woodfield Road, from Fairford Avenue to Queen Street East.
Cross-section showing the road configuration from east to west: sidewalk, parking lane, sharrow, bike lane and sidewalk.
Cross-section of design looking north on Woodfield Road, from Queen Street East to Fairford Avenue.

Design Details

  • Northbound contra-flow bicycle lane added on the east side.
  • Wayfinding markings are in the southbound direction.
  • Parking on the west side at all times (no impact to parking spaces).
  • Permit parking hours remain unchanged.
  • No stopping permitted in contra-flow bicycle lane.

Woodfield Road: Queen Street East to Eastern Avenue

Map of switch to one-way northbound on Woodfield Road, from Queen Street East to Eastern Avenue.
Map of switch to one-way northbound on Woodfield Road, from Queen Street East to Eastern Avenue.
Cross-section showing the road configuration from east to west: sidewalk, bike lane, sharrow, parking lane and sidewalk
Cross-section of switch to one-way northbound, looking north on Woodfield Road, from Eastern Avenue to Queen Street East.

Design Details

Woodfield Road: Eastern Avenue to Lake Shore Boulevard Trail

Map showing bike lane on Woodfield Road, from Eastern Avenue to Lake Shore Boulevard Trail. This connects to the contra-flow bike lane north of Eastern Avenue and to the east-west multi-use path to the south.
Map of bike lanes on Woodfield Road, from Eastern Avenue to Lake Shore Boulevard Trail
Cross-section showing the road configuration from east to west: sidewalk, bike lane, drive lane, bike lane and sidewalk.
Cross-section of the design looking north on Woodfield Road, from Lake Shore Boulevard Trail to Eastern Avenue.

Design Details

  • Addition of minimum-width bike lanes in each direction.
  • Maintain 3.3 m lanes in each direction.
  • New path to connect to Lake Shore Boulevard Trail at south end of Woodfield Road.

Woodfield Road: Connection to Lake Shore Boulevard Trail

Map showing path at the south end of Woodfield Road that will connect to the east-west Lake Shore Boulevard Trail.
Map of the Woodfield Road connection to Lake Shore Trail. Maps Data: Google, © 2021 First Base Solutions, Maxar Technologies.

Design Details

  • About 15 m section of new path and curb cut.
  • Similar connection at Knox Avenue, on the west side of Canada Post building.

Traffic Calming

Traffic calming is a term associated with physical features like discourage through traffic, lower speed and improve comfort levels for all road users. Traffic calming can include one-way street flips, curb extensions, speed humps and other elements.

Example of a painted bulb-out.
Example of traffic calming: a painted bulb-out. Photo: Eric Fischer/Twitter.

Contra-Flow Bicycle Lanes

Contra-flow bicycle lanes are bicycle lanes designed to allow people cycling to ride in the opposite direction of motor vehicle traffic. They convert a one-way traffic street into a two-way street for people cycling: one direction for motor vehicles and bikes and the other for bikes only.

Two cyclists traveling on Denison Ave. One heading south in the shared travel lane and one heading north in the contra-flow bike lane
Example of a contra-flow bicycle lane: one cyclist heading south in the shared travel lane and one heading north in the contra-flow bicycle lane.

Bike Lanes

Designated bicycle lanes are a dedicated part of the roadway for the exclusive use of people cycling. Other road users may not lawfully drive, stand, stop or park in a designated bicycle lane.

Cyclist riding in a buffered bike lane
Example of a bike lane.

Shared Lanes

On low volume, residential streets shared lanes for people cycling and driving can be effective and can include signs, wayfinding pavement markings and other traffic calming to create comfortable cycling routes.

Three cyclists going over a speed bump, approaching an intersection on an overcast day.
Example of a shared lane.

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