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Plans Make Way for Rapid Transit Mississauga/Brampton Corridor Slated for Intensification
November, 2008
By Maria Koukopoulos
The Cities of Brampton and Mississauga have teamed up for a planning study project along the Hurontario/Main Street corridor. "By working together, we can better integrate the transit service in this shared corridor," explains Dave Roberts, AcceleRide Project Leader with the City of Brampton.
The Hurontario/Main Street study, primarily funded by the province of Ontario through Metrolinx, the transit planning body for the Greater Toronto Area/Hamilton, will determine the feasibility for rapid transit from Mississauga's Port Credit to Brampton's downtown core. The study's focus will be on integration of land use, urban design and transportation.
"This study extends beyond transportation and transit issues," says Matthew Williams, Project Leader for the City of Mississauga. "We are making every effort to integrate these components with supportive land use and urban design throughout the study. Only by looking at the complete picture can we hope to define a successful vision for this key corridor."
In June of 2008, an interactive public workshop took place in each City to assess the challenges and opportunities along the corridor. Residents liked the accessibility to connecting highways and GO stations, as well as visiting, relaxing and walking in Port Credit and downtown Brampton.
Residents disliked the lack of pedestrian safety, traffic congestion, poor transportation options, missing sense of identity (i.e. sense of place) and lack of community cohesion. In the study's 21st century vision for the corridor, residents hope to see architecture and public art improved, better connectivity to paths, trails, bikeways and parks, more trees, landscaping, street-front activity and entertainment options.
This fall, a series of community workshops targeting different locations for transit station stops along the corridor took place in order to better understand the local issues and concerns. "The participation has been good," Williams says. "But, we would love to generate even greater interest with this showcase project. However, we also recognize how difficult it can be to motivate input on projects which are seen to have a longer implementation horizon."
The end of the first study phase is nearing with a symposium specifically targeted to community leaders, developers and property managers. At the symposium, the project vision will be confirmed by evaluating alternative transit options along the corridor.
Bus Rapid Transit and Light Rail Transit are the options being assessed due to their more affordable costs, ability to operate in mixed traffic and their ability to easily integrate with other planned transportation systems in both Cities. The results of the first phase and the next steps will be defined in the Directions report, which is expected to be approved by both municipalities later this year.
The second phase of the study will begin in early 2009 and further public information centres are scheduled in both Cities. The final study phase will detail the master plan for the Hurontario/Main Street corridor along with a business case, interim plan, supporting policies and an outline of the implementation process. A final public information centre detailing the plan and next steps will take place in the summer of 2009.
Maria Koukopoulos is a freelance writer based in Toronto.
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