into a more comprehensive and thorough process. In my Urban Planning class today, we had guest lecturer who just happened to be the chief city planner of Toronto. The speaker shared many fascinating stories about the history of Toronto and how planning has become much more sophisticated. As a Torontonian, I have witnessed several changes over the years including the development of condominiums, the expansion of the TTC, and a city that is becoming more culturally diverse every single day. With a population of 2.4 million that is always on the run, the city of Toronto's planning division has kept really busy.
What's changing according to the chief city planner? Environmental planning for one. The city is ostensibly exploring light rail transit . Light rail transit would be found across the city but especially in high traffic areas including Sheppard Avenue and Bathurst street. Light rail transit is expensive but the city is going to slowly start introducing it accompanied with more bike lanes. Don't forget, subway extension lines are exorbitantly pricey. An extension to the Toronto airport (which is ludicrous by the way) would cost 2.4 billion according to the chief planner. Ravines and green areas like the Humber river and Don Valley are going to be cleaned up as the city begins to work more closely with conservation authorities.
Even sidewalks are becoming more complex. Picture a sidewalk that is 15 feet in width that lies between the road and a store. The first 3 feet from the road would be designated as a waiting area for buses, taxis etc. The next 5 feet would be designated for furniture, lamp posts, bus shelter waiting areas, benches etc. The next 4 feet is the walking area for pedestrians. And finally the last 2-4 feet is for market store or commercial place. Meaning that the store has 2-3 feet and can use it for whatever they would like. This kind of planning is occurring, but mainly in downtown and in high traffic areas.
Surface parking lots are going to become more popular with gardens filled with good quality soil. This would help in reducing the urban heat island effect, minimize flooding and embellish the space. Public art is going to be legislatively a part of new development. In other words, any new development structure would have to have some component of public art so citizens can learn to appreciate the aesthetics of urban environments. For instance, integrating new buildings with older structures is not desirable by all, but adding some public art and other embellishing infrastructure can help.
Lastly, a green roof by-law. In short, the city would require green roofs on certain types of new buildings. This would establish a standard for green roof design and construction in Toronto helping with increased local vegetation, absorbing more precipitation and of course adding some aesthetic value.
Key message: These new sorts of innovative planning are going to make Toronto a more livable city. Having lots of high-rise buildings (second most in North America after NYC), is never a bad thing. New development is critical, but designing buildings with green standards like energy efficiency and green design will certainly help. Transportation is also becoming an integral part of planning cities, thankfully Toronto is realizing this.
With more and more people/businesses moving to the region the need for increasing the rapid transit service is obvious. VivaNext is the plan that will build subway extensions and transit-only lanes. More people = more gridlock, but hopefully these new plans will alleviate some of that gridlock to get you to the places you need to be faster. Of course, I'm also looking forward to this plan helping our environment as more people living north of the city can leave their cars at home. Check out there blog (vivanext.com/blog) and vote for the subway.
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