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Consultations, feedback, and events

• TRANSPORTATION CAMP: Sunday July 30 in Toronto
• ION FIX-IT LIST: What details need correcting?
• KITCHENER:
  • Urban Forest
  • Volunteers needed for BikeCheck valet
• CAMBRIDGE: Transportation Master Plan
• TRANSIT: New Directions 2017-2021 Grand River Transit plan
• REGION: Trade-offs in transportation
• PROVINCE: Bill 139, Building Better Communities and Conserving Watersheds Act, comments due August 14

Parking

Parking demand is falling, and will eventually evaporate in urban areas. So why are our cities still requiring it everywhere?

In their draft zoning bylaws, both Kitchener and Waterloo make some modest parking requirement reductions around transit stations, but still would require copious amounts of parking elsewhere. The drafts also don’t seem to acknowledge the fact that the Ontario government has pledged to eliminate parking minimums as part of its climate change action plan.

• The beginning of the end for parking minimums? [Parksify]
• If Americans paid for the parking we consume, we’d drive 500 billion fewer miles [Streetsblog]
• Pay to park longer in Uptown with a smartphone app [CBC]

Transit

The King Street underpass opens!

• Grandlinq says 99.5% of the work is done to get ION running (pls send trains) [570 News]
• King Street reopening – Route 7, 200 detours changing Sept 4 [GRT]

Transit’s next challenges

• Uber, Lyft prompt Philly to consider bus system overhaul [NextCity]
• Automated buses are here, now we have to decide how they will reshape our cities [FastCompany]
• First mile-last mile, intermodalism, and making transit more attractive [Planetizen]
• Stranded in our own communities: transit deserts make it hard for people to find jobs and stay healthy [The Conversation]

Intercity travel

• Time to derail studies and improve train service now [The Star]
• Pearson airport operators seeking bidders for regional transit mega hub [Mississauga.com]

Vision Zero

• Vision Zero Canada director to speak on vital government role in pedestrian, cyclist safety, August 3 [Eventbrite]
• Study suggests investment pays off in safety for walkers, bikers [Phys.org]
• How ‘distracted walking’ hype puts pedestrians at risk [Streetsblog]
• NTSB: Speed kills, and we’re not doing enough to stop it [Streetsblog]
• The Halifax Department of Silly Walks [Sean Marshall]
• Getting an Ontario driver’s license should be harder [Metro News]

Cycling

The hard work to ensure comfortable, separated cycling infrastructure along Uptown King Street will soon pay off – construction is underway to build the first protected intersection at Erb and King.

• Canada Post promises to follow bike lane laws, but only in Toronto [Ottawa Citizen]
• Towards a slower, simpler, more civilized bicycle culture [Modacity]
• Let’s talk about laneways [Dandyhorse]

Land use

• Region sees more than $2 billion invested along LRT corridor [Waterloo Chronicle]
• If streets could talk: Northdale [Community Edition]
• Holding the line [The Record]

Road ahead

• 5 ways to seriously battle traffic [CityLab]
• Do driverless cars need their own roads? (No) [CityLab]
• Self-driving cars should accommodate people, not the other way around [Streetsblog]