["Deal with transportation and land use (or you might as well stop now)" is the first principle of planning for energy uncertainty set out in Post Carbon Cities. Number five (of five) is "Build a sense of community." While this article, about alternate road designs for new development, doesn't mention energy as a concern, both principles are in play. - Ed.]

In a first, Cherry St. to get separate streetcar right-of-way on east side

by Tess Kalinowski

It is being hailed as a success in neighbourhood-building where, as yet, no neighbourhood exists.

The plan for Cherry St. in the West Don Lands development area achieves two firsts, according to local politicians and residents:

It puts the needs of transit riders, pedestrians and cyclists ahead of motorists.

The interests of nearby residents seeking a vibrant, intimate neighbourhood have been built into the plan.

"As a result of this we are building a better neighbourhood," says Councillor Pam McConnell (Ward 28, Toronto Centre-Rosedale). "On how to mix the various modes of transportation, this will be a model."

Unlike Toronto's other streetcar routes, which traditionally run in mixed traffic and board passengers from platforms in the middle of the road, the Cherry St. plan calls for putting all the transit on the east side of the street, running in two directions, with a tree-lined platform separating it from other traffic.

Parking, two single vehicle lanes running in opposite directions, and bike lanes all would be relegated to the west side.

Five-metre sidewalks on each side leave plenty of room for pedestrians and outdoor cafes.

The plan is the fruit of much consultation, McConnell said. Transit planners might normally attend four community meetings on a project like this, but they've met with residents dozens of times.

The Cherry St. streetcar right-of-way, which would link to the King car at its northern end, is in phase one of the 32-hectare West Don Lands development being overseen by Waterfront Toronto. Construction is set to begin in 2009, and streetcars would start running in the fall of 2010, serving 4 million passengers a year once the project is finished in 2018.

The design presented to TTC commissioners last week could be approved by City Council next month. Then there's a 30-day period in which the plan must be posted for public comment before it legally can proceed, according to Bill Dawson, the TTC's superintendent of route planning, who has worked with city planners and residents on the project.

Opportunities to build a neighbourhood oriented to transit are rare, he says.

But the Cherry St. configuration isn't likely to replace the traditional centre-road streetcar pattern. For one thing, it requires building truck access in behind the buildings on the transit side of the street, something that couldn't be retrofitted into most existing neighbourhoods.

There's also the challenge of right turn signals. The transitway envisioned for this section of Cherry would be only 800 to 900 metres long, or about three stops. To build it any longer would slow down streetcars because they would have to constantly pause to make way for turning motorists, Dawson said.

"This represented a sort of hammered-out compromise. Some people were very much wanting this to be a small local neighbourhood, and it's a bit of a challenge putting a 30-metre streetcar on a small local street," he said.

Overall, it's a good compromise, said lawyer Cynthia Wilkey, chair of the West Don Lands Committee, which is made up mostly of residents in the Corktown and Distillery neighbourhoods.

Residents were concerned about the 38-metre width of the street in the original plan.

"We looked at (it) and said this is not good urban design. It bisects this new community we're trying to create," she said.

To narrow the street to 34.5 metres, two lanes of traffic were taken out.