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PreliminaryReport:Steeles‐L’AmoreauxWalkabilityWorkshop 1

Walkability in Toronto’s Apartment Neighbourhoods

PRELIMINARYREPORTONWALKABILITYWORKSHOPFORSTEELESL’AMOREAUXWALKABILITYWORKSHOP

February,2009

PaulHessAssociateProfessor,DepartmentofGeographyandProgrammeinPlanningUniversityofTorontoPh.416‐978‐4955Email:[email protected]:faculty.geog.utoronto.ca/Hess/hess_home.html

JaneFarrowExecutiveDirector,CentreforCityEcologyandJane’sWalkPh.416‐642‐5779Email:[email protected]:Janeswalk.net


INTRODUCTION

Thisdocumentreportsona“WalkabilityWorkshop”facilitatedbyActionforNeighbourhoodChange,Steeles‐L’AmoreauxandheldattheHighlandHeightsJuniorPublicSchoolinTorontoinOctober2008.TheworkshopispartofalargerstudycalledWalkabilityinToronto’sApartmentNeighbourhoodswhichwillincorporateinformationgatheredfromapproximately10Torontoneighbourhoods.Thegoalofthestudyistoexplorethewaysresidentslivinginhigh‐riseareasgetaroundtheirneighbourhoodsand,especially,tohighlighttheimportanceofwalkingforresidentsincarryingouttheirdailylives.Itisintendedtoidentifywhatworksforpedestrians,barrierstowalking,andpossibleimprovementstothelocalwalkingenvironment.

InPartOne,thisreportfirstgivessomebackgroundontheoverallproject.InPartTwowedescribewhatweactuallydoaspartofawalkabilityworkshop,andinPartThreewesummarizesomeoftheinformationgatheredattheSteeles‐L’Amoreauxworkshop.Thereportisintendedtogivepreliminaryfeedbacktoparticipantsandothersinterestedinthewalkingenvironmentofthearea.Itislargelyastraightforwardreportingoftheinformationwegatheredanddoesnotofferanalysisorofferanysubstantialinterpretationsofwhatweheard.Furtheranalysisiscomingaswegathermoreinformationandworkwiththedata.Asanalysisproceeds,supplementreportswillbeproducethatexploreandinterprettherichinformationgatheredinthisandtheotherworkshopsinthestudy.

PARTONE:STUDYBACKGROUND

ThestudyisbeingconductedbyProfessorPaulHessoftheDepartmentofGeographyattheUniversityofTorontoinassociationwithJaneFarrow,ExecutiveDirectoroftheCentreforCityEcology,Toronto.Ourcontactinformationcanbefoundatthetopofthisdocument.Wewelcomeanyquestionsaboutthisreportortheoverallstudy.

TheauthorsrecognizetheSocialResearchCouncilofCanadaforhelpingtofundtheresearch.Wealsoareverygratefultothelocalcommunityorganizationsthathavehelpedusorganizeourworkshops.InSteeles‐L’Amoreaux,ActionforNeighbourhoodChange(ANC)helpedustoarrangespacefortheworkshop,organizedvolunteersandprovidedenormousoverallsupport.WeareespeciallygratefultoPramilaJavaheriofANCandthelocalresidentswhoparticipatedin


theworkshopandshowedsuchcommitmenttoanddeepknowledgeabouttheirneighbourhood.

TheoverallgoaloftheresearchprojectistohelpbetterunderstandthewayspeoplegetaroundToronto’shigh‐riseapartmentneighbourhoods,especiallybywalking.BuildingontheargumentsJaneJacobsespousedmorethan40yearsago,theimportanceofcreatinggoodplacesforpeopletowalkisnowincreasinglybeingrecognizedbytransportationexpertsandpublicofficials.Plannersandarchitectshavepushedtheideaof“NewUrbanism,”arguingthatnewneighbourhoodsshouldbebuiltmoreliketheAnnexorCabbagetownneighbourhoodsofdowntownToronto,withconnectedstreetsandhousesthatdirectlyfrontsidewalks.Publichealthresearchersandofficialsevensuggestthatthewayswearedesigningourcitieshascontributedtotherecentriseinphysicalinactivityandobesitybecausepeoplenolongerwalkaspartoftheirregular,dailyactivities.

Thesediscussions,however,areusuallyfocusedondowntownareasornewdevelopmentsintheoutersuburbs.ThisstudyisintendedtoputmorefocusonthemanypeoplelivinginTorontoinnersuburbs.Aspeopleinterestedinmakingbetterwalkingenvironments,webelievethatToronto’shigh‐riseneighbourhoodsareenormouslyimportant.

Theseplaceswereplannedanddevelopedinthe1960’sand1970’s.Atthattime,itwasthenassumedthatmostofthepeoplelivinginthenewapartmentswouldnothavechildren,wouldmovetohousesassoonastheycould,andwouldbeabletodrivetotheplacestheyneededtogo.Thesingle‐familysubdivisionsintheseareaswere,atleast,designedsothatchildrencouldwalktoschool,buttheapartmentsonthebigarterialstreetswerenotplacesdesignedforwalking.

Today,however,adifferentpopulationislivinginthem,oftenpeoplewithlimitedincomes,peoplewithchildrenandcomplicatedtravelneeds,andpeoplewhodonotownacarorwhoonlyhaveaccesstoacarpartofthetime.Inotherwords,neighbourhoodsthatweredesignedforcarsnowhousepeoplethatmustrelyonwalkinganttransittocarryouttheirlives.Thisstudyisintendedtobetterunderstandhowtheseresidentsgetaroundtheirneighbourhoods,especiallybywalking.Ourgoalistosharethisinformationwiththepeoplewholiveinthemsotheycanbetteradvocateforimprovements.


ThisisagoodtimeforresidentstomakeclearwhattheywantandneedbecauseofpoliciesandprogrambeingdevelopedbytheCityofToronto.TheCityisworkingwithlocalcommunityorganizationsanddevelopingpoliciesandprogramsfor13PriorityAreasthatincludemanyofthehigh‐riseapartmentareas.Itisdevelopinga“WalkingStrategy”to“makeTorontoagreatwalkingcity”thatshouldincludetheseareas.Itiscurrentlydevelopinga“TowerRenewal”programthatalsopromisestobringimprovementstoapartmentareas.Finally,theCityhasanambitioustransitplan,“TransitCity,”thatcouldbringlight‐railandothertransportationimprovementstosomeoftheseneighbourhoods.Alltheseinitiativesoffersomepotentialforchangingapartmentneighbourhoodsintobetterplacestolive.

Theauthorsdonotrepresentthecityandwedonotknowwhatwillbecomeofthesevariousinitiatives,butwestronglybelievethatbetterinformationabouthowresidentsusetheirneighbourhoodsiscruciallyimportanttomakingpositivechange.FortheseeffortstobesuccessfulandmakeTorontoabetterplaceforitsresidents,webelievethattheresidentsthemselvesmusthaveastrongvoiceandplayacentralroleindecision‐making.WearedoingthisworktoprovidebothresidentsandtheCitywithinformationtohelpfosterthisobjective.

PARTTWO:WHATHAPPENSINTHEWORKSHOPSANDHOWITSUSED

Theworkshopstakeplacewiththeassistanceoflocalneighbourhoodorcommunityorganizations.Theorganizationsrecruitlocalresidentstoparticipate,providealocationtomeet,andprovideothersupportsuchasvolunteerassistanceforsettingupandcleaningup.Westrivetoincludeawiderangeoftypesofresidentsintermsofageandbackgroundandwemakesurethatchildcareandsometranslationsupportisavailableifneeded.Allinformationgatheredintheworkshopistreatedasconfidentialandidentifyinginformationofanyparticipantisnotcollected.

WORKSHOPACTIVITIESTOGATHERINFORMATION

Afteranintroductiontotheproject,threeactivitiestakeplaceintheworkshoptoexplorehowresidentstravel:

(1)Survey

Eachparticipantfillsoutasurveyconsistingofroughly40questions.Thesurveycontainsbackgroundinformationontherespondentsuchasage,householdincome,whetherornottherearechildreninthehousehold,howlongtheresidenthaslivedinthearea,howmanycarsanddriversareintheirhouseholdifany,etc.Thisinformationisusefulinunderstandingthetransportationneedsofresidentsandinexploringdifferenttravelpatternsbydifferenttypesofpeople.Thesurveyalsoasksmoredirectlyabouttheactivitiespeopletraveltoonaregularbasisandhowtheygettothem.Forexample,peopleareaskedwheretheydotheirfoodshopping,how


manytimesaweektheyshopforfood,andiftheyusuallygoshopbywalking,transit,driving,taxi,etc.Finally,theysurveyasksaseriesofquestionsabouthowpeoplefindthewalkingenvironmentinarea,whethertheyfeelsafewalking,whethertrafficisaproblem,etc.

Asummaryofmuchofthisinformationispresentedbelow.Itwillbefurtheranalyzedandpresentedwithtablesandgraphsinsubsequentreports.

(2)Individualmaps

Participantsareaskedtocreatemapsthatshowhowandwheretheytravel.Eachparticipantisgivenasetofmapsonwhichtodrawwithcolouredpens.Usingthepenstorepresentdifferentmodes(walking,bus,auto,bicycling),theyareinstructedtotraceallthetripstheyregularlytakeduringatypicalweekwhentheweatheriswarm.Participantsareaskedtoshowtheiractualroutesandtolabeltheirdestinations.Whentheytraveloutsideoftheareaonthemap,theyareaskedtonotetheireventualdestination.ThisinformationisbeingenteredintoaGeographicalInformationSystem(GIS)thatcanbeusedtoanalyzethedistancespeopletravelbyvariousmodesfordifferentactivities,thetypesofstreetstheytendtouseandthedirectnessoftheirwalkingroutes.Thismapinformationcanalsobeconnectedtosurveysforfurtherstatisticalanalysis.

Thisanalysisisveryintensive.Itwillbeincludedinthefinalreportbutisnotreadyforthispreliminarydocument.

HypotheticalExampleofIndividualMapforWalkingandBusTrips


(3)Smallgroupexercise

Participantsareaskedtodiscusstheirneighbourhoodanditswalkingenvironmentandpublicspacesaspartofasmallgroupof5–8people.Eachgroupisseatedaroundalargedisplaymapofthearea.Amemberoftheresearchteamactsadiscussionfacilitatoraswellasusesapentorecordparticipantscommentsdirectlyonthemap.Forexample,ifaparticipantpointedoutaspecificplacethatthatitwasparticularlydangeroustocrossastreet,wantedacrosswalk,likedaparticularpark,oravoidedwalkingatnight,thiswasrecordedonthemap.Anothermemberoftheresearchstaffalsoactedasanotetakertorecordthediscussion.

Exampleofportionofannotatedmapfromgroupexercise.

Asummaryofmuchofthisinformationispresentedbelowintextform.Themapnotationsmadeintheworkshoparestillbeingcompiledintoonemapandarenotpresentedhere.Thenextsupplementtothisreportwillcontainthisanalysis.

HOWWILLTHEINFORMATIONBEUSED?

Theinformationgatheredfromtheworkshopsinthisprojectwillbeusedtoproduceseveralreportsandpapers.Theauthorshopethattheinformationwillbeusefulforneighbourhoodresidentstoadvocateforimprovementstotheirneighbourhood.


(1)Preliminaryreport

Thiscurrentdocumentisapreliminaryreport.ItisintendedtogivefeedbackfromtheSteeles‐L’Amoreauxworkshop.Similarreportswillbeproducedforeachneighbourhoodthatparticipates.Thereportsdescribetheproject,describewhoparticipatedintheworkshopandgiveafirstcutatwhattheresearchersheardfromparticipants.ThereportwillbemadeavailabletotheSteeles‐L’AmoreauxActionforNeighbourhoodChangeandacopyfordownloadcanalsobefoundattheauthor’swebsites.Seethecontactinformationatthebeginningofthisdocumentfortheaddresses.Wewillgiveupdatestothisreportaswecontinuetoanalyzethedata.Wealsowelcomeadditionsorcorrectionsbyresidents.

(2)Finalreport

Afinalreportwillbemadethatincludestheinformationgatheredfromalloftheneighbourhood’sstudies.Thisreportwillincludeafullanalysisofallthedataandmakegeneralconclusionsaboutwhatwelearned.Wewilldiscussthewalkingandtransportationissuesintheneighbourhoodsasawholeaswellascomparethemtoeachother.Likethepreliminaryreport,wewillmakethisreportavailabletothelocalorganizationsthatworkedwithusandpostitonourwebsites.WewillalsoprovidecopiestotherelevantpeopleandcommitteesattheCityofTorontoincludingtheMayor,CityCouncillors,PublicRealmOffice,TowerRenewalOffice,andPedestrianCommittee.

(3)Academicpapersandpresentations

Wealsohopetoaddtothegrowingliteratureonwalkingandwewillpublishacademicpapersinplanningjournalsandpresentatconferencesbasedonthestudy.Thegoalistohelpotherplannersandacademicsbetterunderstandpedestrianissuesinthesetypesofenvironments.

PARTTHREE:THESTEELESL’AMOREAUXWALKABILITYWORKSHOP

TheworkshopwasheldonasunnySaturdayinOctoberwithadiversegroupofenthusiasticparticipants.Thefollowingsummarizesmuchoftheinformationwegathered.Approximately30participantscompletedthemapsandsurveyandtheirwerefivegroupsthatcompletedthesmallgroupexercise.ThisincludedalargegroupofMandarinspeakersthatatranslatorguidedthroughtheexercises.

First,wepresentinformationgatheredfromthesurveytodescribewhoparticipatedandtheirgeneraltravelpatterns.Thisinformationisgiveninpercentagestohelpbetterconveytherangeofresponsesbutitshouldberememberedthatnumbersarelow.Forexample,10percentofrespondentsrepresentlessthanfourpeople.

Thefollowingsectionsthenpresentsthemorequalitativeinformationonwhatpeoplesaidabouttheirwalkingenvironment.


WHOPARTICIPATED?

Participantsintheworkshopwereadiversegroupofpeople,butshouldnotbeseenasrepresentativeoftheneighbourhoodasawhole.Thissectiondescribessocio‐demographiccharacteristicsoftheparticipantsaccordingtothesurvey.

Sexandage

Abouttwo‐thirds(65%)werefemaleandone‐third(35%)male.Theagerangewasbroadbutabouthalftheparticipants(48%)wereover65.Aboutanotherquarterofparticipants(26%)wereintheirlateteensorearly20’s.Veryfewpeopleintheirlatetwentiesorthirtiesparticipated.

Housingandhouseholdtypes

Themostcommonhousingtypeinwhichparticipantsliveisapartments(44%)closelyfollowedbytownhousesorsemi‐detachedhouses(41%).Theremainder(16%)liveinsingle‐family,detachedhousing.Aboutathird(35%)ofparticipantsreportedthattheyowntheirhousing.

Almosthalf(48%)ofparticipantsreporttheycomefromhouseholdswithchildrenand34percentfromhouseholdswheretherearechildren6yearsoldoryoungerpresent.Thirteenpercentofparticipantsreporttheycomefromsingle‐parenthouseholdsMostoftheremainder(42%)reporttheycomefrom“other”typesofhouseholds.Thisincludesmostoftheelderly,Mandarinspeakerswhoparticipatedintheworkshop.Someofthesecomefrommulti‐generationalhouseholds.Theaveragehouseholdsizereportedwas5.2,abouttwiceashighastheaveragesizeforthecityasawhole.

Incomeandeducation

Mostparticipantsdidnotprovideincomedataorreportedthattheydidn’tknowtheirhouseholdincome.Ofthosethatdidreport,mostcamefromhouseholdswithincomesof$24,000ayearorless.Educationlevelswerefairlyhighwith45%ofparticipantsreportingtheyattendedatleastsomecollegeoruniversity.

TimeinCanadaandlanguageathome

Participantswerelargelyforeignborn,withonly7percentreportingtheyhavelivedinCanadatheirentirelife.Manyarerecentimmigrantswith17percentreportingtheyhavelivedinCanadalessthanayearandanother28percentreportingtheyhavelivedinCanadaforbetween1‐5years.Together,abouthalfofparticipantshavelivedinCanadaforlonger,eitherbetween5‐10years(14%)ormorethan10years(34%).


About70%ofrespondentsreportedtheyspokealanguageotherthanEnglishathome,mostlymandarinor“Chinese.”About30percentlistedtheyonlyspokeEnglishathome.SomeparticipantsalsolistedTamilasahomelanguage.

Lengthoftimeinneighbourhoodandreasonsforresidence

Participantswereaboutevenlysplitbetweenthosethathavelivedintheneighbourhoodarelativelyshorttime,3yearsorless,andthosethatlivedintheneighbourhoodlonger.Aboutaquarter(23%)listedlivingintheareaforlessthanayear.Attheotherendofthescale,16%listedlivingintheareafor10yearsormore.

Whenaskedtheimportantreasonstheychoosetoliveintheneighbourhood“livingclosetofamilyorfriends”listedby65percentofparticipantsreceived,byfar,thestrongestresponse.Becausetheareais“affordable”alsoreceivedastrongresponseandwaslistedby35percentofparticipants.Therewaslittleresponseforreasonssuchas“neighbourhoodamenities(parks,stores),”“social/culturalfeelofthearea,”or“desirablehousingsizeand/orfeatures.”

Employment

Theemploymentstatusofparticipantswasnotclear,withonly18percentmarkingtheyhadapartorfulltimejobandanother21percentmarkingthattheywerestudents.Afull43percentmarked“other”butdidnotspecifywhatthismeant.Ontheotherhandafull70percentofrespondentsreportthatthereisatleastonewage‐earningworkerintheirhousehold.

Driver’slicenceandautoownership

Thelargemajorityofparticipants(78%)reportedthattheydonothaveadriverslicencewithabouthalf(53%)alsohavingnoplantoobtainalicense.Mostparticipants,however,doliveinhouseholdswherethereisanotherlicenseddriverandatleastonevehicle.Only13percentreportthattherearenolicenseddriversintheirhouseholdandonly20percentreportthatnooneintheirhouseholdhasamotorvehicle.However,another40percentofparticipantsreportthattheirhouseholdhasonlyonevehicle.Withlargehouseholds,thissuggeststhatmanyoftheparticipantshavelimitedaccesstoavehicle.

TRAVELBEHAVIOUR

Thesocio‐demographiccharacteristicsoftheparticipantssuggestapopulationthatisoftendependentonwalkingandtransitformeetingtheneedsoftheirhouseholds.Thiswasconfirmedinthesurveywhere13percentagreedstronglyand57percentagreedtothestatementthattheywalkbecausetheydon’thaveaccesstoacar.Thissectionplaceswalkingintoalargercontextbydescribingthegeneraltravelpatternsoftheparticipantsintermsofhowoftenthedocommonactivitieslikeshopping,


wheresomeoftheseactivitiesoccur–whetherlocallyoroutsidethearea–andthemodeoftravel–walking,bus,driving,bikingorothermodes.

Goingtoworkandschool

Oftheparticipantswhoworkoutsidethehomeorgotoschool,almosttwo‐thirds(67%)dosowithintheneighbourhood,furtheremphasizingthatlocaltravelisveryimportantformostparticipants.Mostparticipantsgettoworkorschoolbybus(55%),followedequallybyafewpeoplethattravelledbywalking(18%),asapassengerinacar(18%)andbicycling(18%).

Othermembersofparticipants’households(whowerenotattheworkshop)weremorelikelytobeemployedandmorelikelytohaveaccesstoamotorvehicle.Participantsreportedthattwo‐thirds(65%)ofthesedrivetoworkwithmostoftheremainderusingthebus(25%).

Shopping

Mostparticipants(60%)shopforfoodonceortwiceaweek.Walkingisthemostcommonwaypeopledotheirshoppingasreportedby38percentofparticipantsfollowedbydrivingasreportedby25percent.Thevastmajority(81%)reportedthattheyshopnearhome.BridletownMallandMillikenSquarewithitsChinesegrocerywerementionedastheplacesweremostpeopleshop.Seventy‐onepercentofparticipantslistedthetypeoftransportationtheyhaveavailableasthemostimportantreasonindecidingwheretheyshop.Thiswasfollowedbylengthoftimetogetthere(listedby35%),price(listedby26%),andtheavailabilityofculturallyspecificfoodorgoods(listedby23%).

Weeklyfrequenciesforgeneralshopping(otherthanfood)varied.Thelargestcategorieswererarelyornever(listedby26%ofparticipants),1‐2timesaweek(listedby30%),andmorethan4timesaweek(listedby30%).Thetransportationmodeusedforgeneralshoppingwassplitbetweendriving(27%asdrivers,13%aspassengers),andwalking(33%).

Travelforchildren

Morethanhalf(55%)ofparticipantsreportedtakingchildrentoschool,althoughonly10%reporteddoingsoeveryday.Afull95percentofpeoplewhosaidtheybroughtchildrentoschoolreportedusuallywalkingtodoso.Fortakingchildrentootherregularactivities,70percentreportedwalkingtodoso.

HOWPARTICIPANTSSEETHEIRTRAVELENVIRONMENT

Thissectionpullsinformationfromboththesurveyandthesmallgroupexercise.Participant’sevaluationsoftheirpedestrianenvironmentarefollowedbyadiscussionofpublicspace,and,finally,anevaluationofthebussystem.


Generalevaluationofpedestrianenvironment

Thesurveyhadaseriesofquestionthataskedpeopletoratetheneighbourhoodtravelenvironment.Formostofthese,participantswerepresentedwithastatementandwereaskedtomarkaresponseonafivepointscalerangingfrom“stronglyagree”to“stronglydisagree.”Thebroadeststatementgivenwas“Myneighbourhoodisagoodplaceforwalking.”Thevastmajorityofpeopleeitheragreed(32%)oragreedstrongly(44%)withthisstatement.Noonestronglydisagreedwithit.Ontheotherhand,almostthree‐quarters(74%)ofrespondentswithchildrendisagreedordisagreedstronglywiththestatement“Ifeelcomfortablelettingmychildrenwalktoplacesontheirown”althoughhowstronglyissuesofage,personalsecurity,orsafetyfromtrafficgoesintothisevaluationisnotclear(oneparticipantreportedsendingherchildrenoutwithwalkie‐talkies).Still,onlyafewpeople(16%)agreedwiththisstatementandnooneagreedstrongly.Thesegeneralassessmentsmustalsobetemperedwithmorespecificevaluations.

Sidewalkconditions

Incontrasttopeople’spositiveglobalassessmentofthewalkingenvironment,whenaskedtocheckoffalistof“majorbarriers”participantsfaceintheir“dailytravelin[the]neighbourhood,”veryfew(7%)markedthattheydonotfacemajorbarriersand44percentmarked“poorsidewalkandwalkingconditions.”

Theonlycategorythatreceivedastrongerresponsewas“nobikelanes”whichwasmarkedby54percentofparticipants.Oneparticipantwasanavidcyclist,butthesurveyshowedfewotherparticipantsusebikesasaregularmodeoftravel.Instead,anumberofpeopleinthesmallgroupdiscussionsmentionedbicyclesonsidewalksasa“bigproblem”forpedestrians.Bicyclistsonsidewalkswereidentifiedasmostlyadults.Oneparticipantsaid“Igrabmychildrenbecausethydon’tslowdown.”Thus,thedesireforbicyclelanescanprobablybebestinterpretedasadesiretoimprovewalkingconditions.

Thiswasmirroredinanotherquestionwhere30percentofparticipantsreportedthattheydonotfeelsafeinsomeareasoftheneighbourhoodbecauseofthe“pathway[is]notmaintainedor[is]unkempt(e.g.sidewalkbroken,littered,etc).”SeniorsandyouthidentifiedthelackofasidewalkononesideofBirchmountalongtheparkandbytheScarboroughGraceHospitalasaproblem.

Inthegroupdiscussionsmanypeoplemadeothercommentsonsidewalkconditions,mostlyaboutthesidewalksonFinchthatalmosteveryoneuse.Snowandiceinthewintertimewasidentifiedasaparticularproblem.Oneparticipantnotedthesidewalkshave“toomuchice…Ihavetowalkonthestreet.”Evenwithploughing,participantsnotedthesnowbanksatcornersandbusstops.Oneparticipantnotedthat“theydon’tcleanthesnow.Theyonlycareaboutthetraffic,theydon’tcareaboutus…whentheyploughtheroadstheypileitupatthecorner…wehavetoclimboverthreefeetoficeandsnow.”AnotheralsoequatedthelackofsnowremovalalongFinchwithcityneglectoftheareasaying,““theyjustdon’tplow


it,theyjustdon’tcare…Buteveniftheydo,theydon’tsaltit.”Onepersonsaidseniorssimplydon’tgooutsideinwinterbecauseitistoodangeroustowalk.

SeveralparticipantsalsoidentifiedthegeneralconditionofFinchsidewalksandfloodingasaproblem.Commentssuchasthe“sidewalkisveryunlevel,”“theyneedtofixholes,““drainageisbad”and“bothsidesarefloodedafterstorms”weretypical.

Crossingstreetsandsafetyfromtraffic

Inresponsetothestatement“Thereareenoughplacestosafelycrossthelargestreets”manyparticipantsagreed(41%)andafewstronglyagreed(15%).Manywereneutralonthisquestion(26%),andafewdisagreedorstronglydisagreed(19%).Theamountofagreementwassomewhatsurprising.AlongFinchbetweenBirchmontandWarden,averyheavilyusedpedestrianroute,thereareonlyfourprotectedcrossings,threeatlightsandoneatacrosswalk.Thisiscertainlyfarfewerthanisgenerallyconsidereddesirableinthepedestrianliterature.Peoplemaynotneedmorecrossingsbecauseactivitiesareconcentratedinonlyafewlocations,sothereislittleneedtocrossbackandforthacrossthestreet.Howeverinthesurvey,40percentofparticipantsagreedoragreedstronglythattheycrosslargestreetsevenwherethereisnolightorcrosswalkinordertomaketheirwalkshorter.Thissuggeststhat,atleastforsomepeople,theyarewillingtotaketheriskofcrossingwide,fastroadways.

Ontheotherhand,someparticipantsclearlywon’t.Inthesmallgroupexerciseseveralparticipantsmentionedtheywouldn’tcrossFinchwithoutalightbecauseofthefast,dangeroustraffic.Thiswasreflectedinthesurveywithresponsestoastatementabouttraffic.Asubstantialportionofrespondents,27percent,disagreedordisagreedstronglywiththestatement“Ifeelsafefromtrafficwhenwalkinginmyneighbourhood.”

Someintersectionswereidentifiedasparticularlydangeroustocrossinthegroupexercise.GlendowerandSilverSpringswasmentionedwithlotsoftrafficandvehiclesoftengoingthroughthelight.Aparticipantnoted,“childrencan’tgetacross.”TheintersectionofWaysideandFinchwasalsomentionedasdangerous


becausechildrencrosstherebutthereisnolight.Finally,KennedyRoadandFinchwasmentionedasdangeroustocrossbymorethanonegroup.

Lightswithcrossingtimesthataretooshortwasalsoseenasageneralproblem,especiallybytheelderly.EverymajorintersectiononFinchwasidentifiedasnotgivingpeopleenoughtimetocrosssafely.

Anotherproblemidentifiedweresignalsthattakeaverylongtimetochangebeforetheyallowpedestrianstocross.Inparticular,thelightatGlendowerandBirchmountandthelightonFinchbytheSt.AidanCatholicschoolwasidentifiedinthisregard.

Distances

Abasicproblemidentifiedbymanyparticipantswassimplythedistancesbetweentheactivitiestheyuse.Inthesurvey,21percentmarkedthestatement“[the]placesIwanttogoareveryfarapart”asamajorbarriertheyfaceintheir“dailytravelintheneighbourhood.”MostparticipantsliveneartoBirchmountandFinchandthelongwalktotheBridlewoodMallatWardenRoadwasmentionedinseveralofthegroupdiscussions.Specificcommentswerethatthelibrarywastoofaraway,thatasupermarketwasneededclosertoBirchmount(wherethereusedtobeafoodstorethatclosed)andthatthewalktoBridlewoodistoofarforseniors.Someseniorsreportedthattheapproximatelyonekilometrewalktakesthem30minutesormoreeachwaybuttheyneedtowalkeveninwintertodotheirshopping.

Shortcutsandfences

Relatedtodistances,anumberofpeople(18%)listed“placesarenotwellconnectedintheneighbourhood”asamajorbarriertotravelintheneighbourhood.Evenmoretelling,36percentofpeopleagreedand43percentstronglyagreedthatthey“oftenuseshortcuts(unpavedpaths,cuttingacrossparkinglots,etc)”togetaroundtheneighbourhood.Becauseinformalroutesandshortcutsofteninvolvepedestrianscopingwithpoorwalkingconditionssuchasmudorincreaseexposuretotrafficwhencomparedtomoreformalroutes,thiscanbeinterpretedasanindicationthatformalroutesdonotdirectconnecttheplacespeoplewanttogo.

Fencescameupasaissueinseveralgroups.AparticipantreportedthattwooutofthethreegatesbetweenSilverSpringsandFincharekeptlocked,forcingpedestrianstowalkfurther.

FencesaroundtheSt.SylvesterCatholicSchoolwereidentifiedasfallingdown,perhapsbecauseofshortcutting.Aparticipantsuggestedformalpathsshouldbeinstalledattheselocations.

FencesaroundthecondosnearBridlewoodMallwerealsoseenasmakingpeople’swalkslonger.Oneparticipantasked“theydon’tprovidesecurity,sowhydotheymakeuswalksofararound?”Anotherparticipantmentionedclimbingfencestoshortentheirwalktothemall.


AlockedgateinafencebetweenTimberbankParkandtheTimothyEatonBusinessandTechnicalInstitutewasidentifiedasaproblem.Anothercomplaintwasabridgealongthisroutethatisnotclearedofsnowinwinter.Thisisclearlyapopularshortcutbecausethealternativeroutealongstreetsismuchlonger.

Byfar,themostcomplaintswereraisedaboutthepedestrianlinkbetweenthecornerofFinchandWardenandtheBridlewoodMallentrance.ThisisaheavilyusedlinkbecausebothbususersandpedestrianscomingalongFinchfromtheeastuseit.However,thereisasteeprampbetweenthestreetlevelandtheparkinglotlevelthatmanypeoplefounddifficult,especiallytheelderly.Also,thereisnotwalkwaythroughtheparkinglotatthislocationtothemall.Whilethemallisbetterthanmanyinthatitdoesprovideformalpedestrianfacilitiesbetweensomeentrancesandsomesurroundingstreets,thereisjusttheopenparkingsurfaceatthislocation.Severalparticipantscommentedthattheyfeeluncomfortablewalkingthroughthebusyparkinglot.

Securityandlighting

Feelingsafewhenoneisoutwalkingisclearlyanimportantconcernforcreatinggoodpedestrianenvironments.Inthesurveyquestionthataskedparticipantstoidentifymajorbarriers,onlyafew(7%)markedoffthattheneighbourhood“doesn’tfeelsafe.”However,amorespecificquestion,“Ifyoufeelunsafewalkingincertainpartsofyourneighbourhood,whataresomeofthereasonswhy?”onlytwentypercentofrespondentsreportedthatthey“prettymuchfeelsafe.”Themostcommonresponseofthoselistedforthisquestionwasthatthefeelunsafein“PlaceswithfencesandnarrowspaceswhereIfeelnervous”(markedby43%ofrespondents).

InthegroupsdiscussionstheSilverSpringshousingareawasmentionedseveraltimesasaplacepeopledonotfeelsafe.Also,theBridlewoodMallareawasmentionedbyseniorsasaplacetheyavoidbecauseof“robberies,““armedpeople”and“pursesnatchers.”

Still,socialfeardoesnotseemtobeamoregeneralissueformostpeopleintermsoftheirlocaltravel.Inthesurvey,fewrespondentslistedplaceswith“toofewpeople”orplaceswith“scarypeople”asanimportantissue.Most(58%)didreport,however,thattheyavoidwalkingatnightandalmostaquarter(23%)reportthattheykeeptoareas“thathavegoodlighting.”


Placeswithgoodlightingalsocameupasapositivequalityseveraltimesinthegroupdiscussions.OnepersonmentionedtheyevenuseashortcutalongBrigadoonCreekbecausethereisgoodlightingandmanypeoplethere.Themallareaandthenorth,butnotthesouthsideofFinchwerealsoidentifiedaswelllit.

Therewerefewercommentsaboutweremorelightingwasneeded.TwoplacespeoplewantedmorelightwaswithintheSilverSpringsdevelopmentandalongthelanethroughthetownhousesbetweenGlendowerandFinch.Aparticipantreportedthatatimerforthelightsinthislanewaywas“reversed”sothatthelightscomeonduringthedayinsteadofatnight.

Publicspaces

Theneighbourhood’sstreetsandparksareimportantsocialspacesandplacesforrecreationalwalkingandexercising.Almost70%ofparticipantsreportedthattheywalkorrunrecreationallyatleast3timesaweek,andmorethanhalfofthesereportdoingsoeveryday.Neighbourhoodparksfeatureprominentlyinthisandarewellusedbyparticipants.Seventy‐fourpercentofparticipantsreportedthattheygotoaparkatleastoneaweekand42percentreportedgoingthreetimesaweekormore.Inthesmallgroupexercises,manyparticipantsmadecommentsaboutL’AmoreauxParkinparticular,whichisclearlywelllovedbythecommunity.Itshowsuponalmostallthepedestrianroutemapsandpeoplemadecommentssuchas“Iloveit,”and“It’smyfavouriteplace.”SeveraloftheMandarinspeakersmentionusingtheparktopracticeTaiChi.Thewoodlotintheparkwasalsopointedtoassomethingspecial.Oneparticipantcommented,“Iwishthereweremoreofthose.”

Theonenegativecommentmadeinseveralgroups,waswinterconditions.ThewinterconditionsfortheshortcutthroughTimberbankParkwerementionedabove.L’AmoreauxParkwasalsomentionedinthisregard.Aparticipantnotedalotofchildrencutthroughtheparktogettoschoolbutthat’sitnotsafebecause“it’snevercleared…it’salliceunderneath.”Aseniorcommentedthattheparkisanimportantsocialplaceforexercise,butthat“itshardtogettoinwinter[because]alltheroadsintheparkareicyandslippery.”

Anotherimportantpublicspaceisthemallitself.Asmentionedabove,someseniorsreportedbeingfearfulofgoingtothemall.Incommentsfromasmallgroupwith


youth,themallisclearlyadestinationalthoughsomecommentedthatitdidnothavestoresorservicesthatcatertoyouth.Amovietheatreandarcadewerementionedasactivitiestheywouldliketosee.TheMillikenSquareshoppingareawasmentionedasbeingunfriendlytoyouth.

Othercommentsonpublicspaceincludedthevariousbasketballcourtswhichparticipantssaidwereindisrepair.

Someolder,Mandarinspeakers,livinginapartmentsexpressedastrongwishforacommunitygarden.Theymentionedthatpeopleinhouseshaveaplacetogarden,buttheydon’t.

Finally,garbageandsmellswereidentifiedasaprobleminseveralpublicareas,especiallyinthecommercialareas.Garbageand“vermin”atthemallwerementionedasweregarbagesmellsintheplazaatBirchmountandGlendower.SmellsfromthecreekandravinenorthofFinchwereidentifiedasaproblemafteritrains.Oneparticipantnotedthattheyavoidwalkingthereafteritrainsbecauseit“stinks.”SmellsandgarbagewithintheSilverSpringsdevelopmentwerealsocommentedon.

Busservice

Busserviceandtransitisnotafocusofthisstudy,butthesurveydidaskparticipantstoevaluatetheoverallserviceandmanypeoplemadecommentsaspartofthesmallgroupdiscussionsaswell.Onlyafewparticipantsreportedthatthebusserviceisa“majorbarrier”totheirlocaltravel.Thismaybecause,eventhoughwalkingdistancescanbefar,fewpeopleusethebuswithintheneighbourhood.Whilemorethanhalfofparticipantsreportedusingbustransittogettoworkorschool,fewreportedusingbusesformorelocaltravelsuchasshopping.Beyondexpense,someoftheMandarinspeakersdidnottakethebusbecausetheydonotfeelconfidentenoughduetotheirEnglishskills.Mostpeoplethatdidtakethebusreportedthattheservicewasokay,butthatthewaitforthenumber43bus,inparticular,wasoftenlongwithbusescominginbunches.


SUMMARYOFTHEMES

Theinformationpresentedabovedoesnotfullydescribeallthecommentsweheard,alltheinformationcollectedinthesurvey,orincludeasystematiccompilationofthenotesmadeonthemaps.Thisworkwillcontinue.

However,eventhepreliminaryreportingofinformationfromtheworkshopbringsupsomeclearthemes.First,manyoftheparticipantscomefromhouseholdswithatleastonevehicle,buttheparticipantsarehighlydependentonwalkingandtransittocarryouttheirdailylives.Mostshopbyfootwithintheneighbourhoodandmanyalsowalkortakethebuslocallyforworkandschool.

Onaglobalquestion,mostpeopleagreedthattheneighbourhoodwasagoodplaceforwalking,butinmorespecificquestionsseveralproblemsstoodout.

Fundamentalwasthesimpledistancesbetweenwherepeoplelivedandthemajorshoppingareastheyreliedon.

Also,sidewalkandwalkingconditionsalongFinch,themainrouteusedbymostparticipants,wereseenasaproblem.Inwinter,snowremoval,ice,andsnowbanksthatpeoplemustclimbtocrossstreetsorusethebuswasclearlyidentifiedasaproblem.WithToronto’slongwinters,thisisclearlyamajorissueforpeoplewhohaveanydifficultywalkingbutmustdosotofulfilbasicneeds.Severalparticipantstookthelackofpromptsnowremovalasanindicationthat“theydon’tcareaboutus.”Evenoutsideofwinter,thesidewalksalongFinchwereidentifiedasuneven,inpoorrepair,andasoftenfloodingafterarain.Finally,peopleridingbicyclesonthesidewalkswasseenasamajorsafetyissueforpedestriansandmanyparticipantsthoughtbicyclelanesonFinchwouldhelpmovebicycliststotheroadway.

Mostparticipantsreportedthattherewereenoughplacestosafelycrosslargestreets,butmanycrossedthesestreetsevenweretherewerenolightsorcrosswalks.Manyalsodonotfeelsafefromtraffic.SeveralintersectionalongFinchwereidentifiedasparticularlydangerous,andsignalsatallthemajorintersectionsonFinchwereseenasnotgivingpeople,particularlytheelderly,adequatetimetocrosssafely.

Shortcuttingisclearlycommonandsomerouteswereseenaproblematicbecausetheyareicyinwinter.ManyparticipantsalsoidentifiedthelinkbetweenthecornierofFinchandWardenandthemallasproblematicforpedestriansbecauseofthesteeprampandwalkthroughtheparkinglot.

Somepeopleclearlydidnotfeelsafemovingabouttheneighbourhoodduetosecurityissues,andmanypeopledonotwalkatnight,butoverall,personalsecuritywasnotflaggedasamajorissue.

Finally,peopleclearlyvalueandregularlyuseL’AmoreauxPark.TheMallistheothermajorpublicorsocialspace,althoughsomeseniorsavoidthemallbecausetheydonotfeelsafeandsomeyouthdonotfeellikethereismuchtodothere.

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