10-15-2020, 08:01 AM
It would be interesting to try to consider what changes could be made to make plazas like that more comfortable and attractive to pedestrians and cyclists. It's one thing to build something new from scratch, but how can we adjust existing spaces to be more friendly?
Looking at Stanley Park Zehrs, which is near me:
- tighten the turn radius for the car entrance and exits in order to narrow the space pedestrians have to cross.
- close the extra entrance off River Rd.
- put a walkway from Ottawa along the back fence so that pedestrians aren't repeatedly crossing car traffic with restricted visibility
- have walkways with curbs separating them from parking from the mall entrances to the street/rear sidewalk so that the main walking routes are better protected from drivers (the only one now is painted and is not a primary route for pedestrians)
There are a whole lot more drastic things that could be done, but the turn radius one, speaking from personal experience, would probably be the best improvement that could be done relatively cheaply.
Looking at Stanley Park Zehrs, which is near me:
- tighten the turn radius for the car entrance and exits in order to narrow the space pedestrians have to cross.
- close the extra entrance off River Rd.
- put a walkway from Ottawa along the back fence so that pedestrians aren't repeatedly crossing car traffic with restricted visibility
- have walkways with curbs separating them from parking from the mall entrances to the street/rear sidewalk so that the main walking routes are better protected from drivers (the only one now is painted and is not a primary route for pedestrians)
There are a whole lot more drastic things that could be done, but the turn radius one, speaking from personal experience, would probably be the best improvement that could be done relatively cheaply.