Appendix H: North Corridor Alternatives Through Western University - July 2017
1 Overview The North corridor to Masonville Place from Downtown was examined with respect to three possible routings: 1. Utilizing Richmond Street from downtown direct to Masonville Place, bypassing Western University 2. Utilizing Wharncliffe Road and Western Road to Masonville Place 3. Utilizing Richmond Street from downtown through the University of Western Ontario s campus and then up Western Road to Masonville Place The analysis concluded that the third option of going through the University was the preferred for the following reasons: Serves the most amount of potential trips generators; Has the highest potential ridership; Avoids congested areas along Wharncliffe and Western Roads; and, Serves the most population. Therefore an analysis of alternative routings through the Western University campus was undertaken. This Appendix presents the long list of alternatives considered through Western University Campus, the evaluation of those alternatives, and the resulting short list of alternatives. H.2
2 Long List of Western Alternatives Eight different alternatives were developed between the intersection of Richmond Street and Huron Street and the intersection of Western Road and Windermere Road: 1. Access using University Drive and going along Middlesex Drive to Western Road 2. Access using University Drive and going along Lambton Drive to Western Road 3. Access Richmond Street, Windermere Road, and Western Road 4. Access through a new bridge along the Huron Street corridor connecting to Lambton Drive going up Perth Drive to Windermere Road and Western Road 5. Access through a new bridge along the Huron Street corridor connecting to Lambton Drive going along Middlesex Drive to Western Road 6. Access using University Drive and going up Perth to Windermere Road and Western Road 7. New Northern Bridge connecting from the Western Centre for Public Health and Family Medicine Driveway and going up Perth Drive to Windermere and Western Roads 8. Access through a new bridge along the Huron Street corridor connecting to Philip Aziz Avenue and then north along Western Road. These eight alternatives are mapped on Exhibit H.1. H.3
Exhibit H.1: Western University Route Alternatives It should be noted each of these eight alternatives are compatible with the University of Western Campus Master Plan 2015. Each of these alternatives was examined using an advantages/inconveniences analysis. This analysis is presented in the table below. H.4
Exhibit H.2: Western University Route Screening GAINS PAINS 1. Access using University Drive and going along Middlesex Drive to Western Road + Good access to major campus trip - Potential impacts to University Dr. generators bridge if widening to 4 lanes is required + Good coverage of future expansion areas of campus along Western Rd + Serves residences on University Dr. + Less impact to Thames River with only a potential bridge widening and no new crossing + Excellent opportunity for siting a station in front of Natural Science Bldg. + Direct route for transit to campus + No impact to Huron St + Excellent service to Hospital with stop at Western & Windermere 2. Access using University Drive and going along Lambton Drive to Western Road + Better access to major campus trip - Less direct access to campus centre generators than Middlesex option + Excellent coverage of future expansion - Potential impacts to University Dr. areas of campus along Western Rd bridge if widening to 4 lanes is required + Serves residences on University Dr. - Impact to Alumni Circle, prominent + Less impact to Thames River with only campus feature a potential bridge widening and no new crossing + Excellent opportunity for siting a station at or near Alumni Circle + No impact to Huron St + Excellent service to Hospital with stop at Western & Windermere 3. Access Richmond Street, Windermere Road, and Western Road + Excellent service to Hospital with stop at Perth & Windermere + No impact to University Drive or bridge + No impact to Huron St + No Impact to internal Campus roads - Long distance from other major trip destinations in the centre of campus - No service to planned campus expansion areas along Western Rd - Potential need to widen the Richmond Street bridge over the Thames River H.5
GAINS PAINS 4. Access through a new bridge along the Huron St corridor connecting to Lambton Dr. going up Perth Dr. to Windermere Rd and Western Rd + Excellent service to Hospital with stop - Impact to residential areas along Huron at Perth & Windermere - Significant impacts along the Thames + No impact to University Drive or bridge River with new watercourse crossing - No coverage of residences on University Dr. - Perth Dr. is heavily traveled - Difficulty siting a station on Perth at the Hospital main entrance due to its expansion plans - Poor coverage of campus expansion areas along Western Rd 5. Access through a new bridge along the Huron Street corridor connecting to Lambton Drive going along Middlesex Drive to Western Road + Better access to major campus trip - Longer route and travel times compared generators to other alternatives + Better serves future expansion areas of - Impact to residential areas along Huron campus along Western Rd - Significant impacts along the Thames + No impact to University Dr. River with new watercourse crossing + Excellent opportunity for siting a station - No coverage of residences on in front of Natural Science Bldg. University Dr. + Access to Alumni Circle, major trip - Impact to Alumni Circle, prominent destination campus feature + Excellent service to Hospital with stop at Western & Windermere 6. Access using University Dr. and going up Perth to Windermere Rd and Western Rd + Excellent service to Hospital with stop - Perth Dr. is heavily traveled at Perth & Windermere - Difficulty siting a station on Perth at the + Less impact to Thames River with only Hospital main entrance due to its a potential bridge widening and no new expansion plans crossing - Poor coverage of campus expansion + No impact to Huron St areas along Western Rd - Transit + Serves residences on University Dr. alignment contains numerous turns which will make travel times less competitive - Potential impacts to University Dr. bridge if widening to 4 lanes is required H.6
GAINS PAINS 7. New Northern Bridge connecting from the Western Centre for Public Health and Family Medicine Driveway and going up Perth Drive to Windermere and Western Roads + Excellent service to Hospital with stop at Perth & Windermere + No impact to University Drive or bridge + No impact to Huron St + Minimal impact to internal Campus roads - Long distance from other major trip destinations in the centre of campus - No service to planned campus expansion areas along Western Rd - Potential need to widen the Richmond Street bridge over the Thames River - Significant impacts along the Thames River with new watercourse crossing - No coverage of residences on University Dr. - Perth Dr. is heavily traveled - Difficulty siting a station on Perth at the Hospital main entrance due to its expansion plans - Intersection of new rapid transit corridor and Perth Dr. very problematic with numerous planned and existing parking and drop-off areas, may pose safety issues 8. Access through a new bridge along the Huron Street corridor connecting to Philip Aziz Avenue and then north along Western Road. + No impact to University Drive or bridge - Longest route and travel times + Excellent coverage of campus compared to other alternatives expansion areas along Western Rd - Impact to residential area along Huron + Excellent service to Hospital with stop - Significant impacts to the natural at Western & Windermere environment along the Thames River, with longer crossing than all options - No coverage of residences on University Dr. - Longer distance from Hospital Based on this screening, Alternatives 1, 2 and 3 are carried forward for further evaluation as they have the fewest pains with the most gains: 1. Access using University Drive and going along Middlesex Drive to Western Road (2.3km) 2. Access using University Drive and going along Lambton Drive to Western Road (2.8km) 3. Access Richmond Street, Windermere Road, and Western Road (1.9km) H.7
3 Short List of Western Alternatives The three alternatives carried forward from the long list were analyzed further to understand the following technical attributes: Number of Stations The number of proposed rapid transit stations along the alternative within the assessment boundary. Route Length Based on the length of the alternative from the intersection of Huron Street and Richmond Street to the intersection of Windermere Road and Western Road. Existing Boardings The sum of existing peak transit boardings within 400 m of the stations along the route. These attributes are illustrated in Exhibit H.3, Exhibit H.4, and Exhibit H.5. The evaluation of these options is presented in Chapter 3 of the Rapid Transit Master Plan. H.8
Exhibit H.3: Alternative 1 University Drive / Middlesex Drive / Western Road H.9
Exhibit H.4: Alternative 2 - University Drive / Lambton Drive / Western Road H.10
Exhibit H.5: Alternative 3 Richmond Street / Windermere / Western Road H.11