Making Streets for People Program

To help residents physically distance and mitigate the risk of COVID-19 to our communities and support economic recovery, we are making temporary changes to how we use our streets and public spaces as part of the Making Streets for People program:

Approving temporary patios so people can dine out and businesses can continue to serve customers
Creating pop-up plazas so people can gather outside
Calming traffic to make ‘slow streets’ more comfortable for people walking, rolling, and cycling
Making more room to line up and board buses at some key stops
Repurposing street space for more walking, rolling, and cycling along Beach Ave and supporting connections into and throughout Stanley Park
Making more room for walking and queuing along busy streets

These measures also support our ongoing effort to create safer streets, limit the effects of climate change, and increase social connection between residents.

We are monitoring the impacts of these initiatives and getting feedback from the public to understand what could become longer term.

Review the feedback we've collected about these projects

Arbutus Street temporary bike path

We are temporarily upgrading a portion of an existing cycling route on Arbutus Street.
In late August, a temporary bike path will be installed on Arbutus Street, between McNicoll Avenue and Kitsilano Beach Park’s southern parking lot (adjacent to Cornwall Avenue).

The proposed design retains motor vehicle traffic along Arbutus Street (north of Cornwall Avenue to McNicoll Avenue), maintaining access for neighbourhood residents, and visitors.

Access to the FLO electric vehicle charging station will be maintained across the bike lane.

The changes to Arbutus Street
- A two-way bike path on the west side of Arbutus Street, from the parking lot north of Cornwall Avenue to McNicoll Avenue
- Between the parking lot and Creelman Avenue:
  - One-way vehicle traffic with on-street residential permit parking retained
  - Concrete barriers, or a painted buffer to separate vehicle and bicycle lanes
  - Review Figure 1 (434 KB) for a cross-section view of Arbutus Street, south of Creelman Avenue
- Between Creelman Avenue and McNicoll Avenue:
  - Two-way vehicle traffic with minimal parking changes
  - Concrete barriers separating vehicle and bicycle traffic
  - Review Figure 2 (417 KB) for a cross-section view of Arbutus Street, north of Creelman Avenue
- Additional road signage for better wayfinding
- Relocating the Mobi Public Bike Share at Arbutus Street and McNicoll Avenue
Construction of temporary bike lane

During the construction period (approximately two-days), segments of Arbutus Street will be closed to allow for the unloading of construction materials. There will be temporary parking restrictions along Arbutus Street to enable construction of the bike lanes.

The Arbutus Street temporary bike path upgrade will complement and support the Kitsilano Beach Park Seaside Greenway improvements project.

Kitsilano Beach Park Seaside Greenway

The Kitsilano Beach Park Seaside Greenway project will help establish a separate bike path that connects Balsam Street to Ogden Avenue and improve entryways into the park. The Park Board will be launching Phase 1 of their public engagement process in August.

Learn more about the Kitsilano Beach Park Seaside Greenway project

We want to hear from you

Share your feedback about the Arbutus Street temporary path:
- Email roomtomove@vancouver.ca
- Use the VanConnect app
Beach Avenue interim design

We are making interim safety and design upgrades to Beach Avenue.
Starting in December 2020, we will begin work on new features along Beach Avenue to improve access for people walking, taking transit, and driving while maintaining the two-way protected bike path and increased walking space.

The upgrades include:
- Improved pedestrian crossings at key locations, which may include:
  - Painting crosswalks to better prioritize pedestrians crossing the street
  - Adding median islands to shorten the crossing distance for people walking
  - Incorporating accessible design features like tactile walking surface indicators, level bus boarding islands, and modified traffic signals
- Eastbound travel restored for vehicles and transit between Denman St and Jervis St. following completion of other project elements
- Replacing traffic cones with sturdier and harder-to-move concrete barriers
- Working with the Park Board to provide accessible parking in the waterfront parking lot near Bute St.
- Retention of the two-way protected bike path
These interim changes are based on public feedback from more than 2,500 residents gathered in a fall survey. Review survey results

View the notification letter (987 KB)

Staff will continue to monitor and adjust the interim design. Additional opportunities to share feedback about the longer-term vision for these spaces and whether to make these changes permanent will be available through the West End Waterfront Master Plan engagement and design process that will start in 2021.
Room to Load

Providing short-term loading zones near businesses.
Granville Street patio and transit priority pilot

Temporary changes on Granville St to create more room for people to move and support local businesses.
In early July, we:
- Removed parking from the sidewalk between Drake St and Nelson St
- Worked with local businesses to expand patios
- Modified traffic operations by:
  - Lowering speed limit to 30km/hr
  - Changing the curb lane from a travel lane to a loading zone, with space for bus stops
  - Relocating the northbound vehicle restriction ( Do No Enter Except for Authorized Vehicles) from Smithe St to Nelson St
  - Restricting left turns for northbound vehicles at Davie St
- Improved transit reliability by testing Davie St as the first/last bus stops north of the bridge (This will suspend service to bus stops at Drake St.)
We are monitoring this pilot initiative and you may see additional changes as conditions evolve.

For questions or concerns, email roomtomove@vancouver.ca
Robson St sidewalk and plaza pilot

Temporary changes on Robson St between Jervis St and Burrard St to create more room for people to move, wait for transit, and access local businesses.
Changes we're making include:
- Expanding sidewalks in busy areas by:
  - Re-purposing road space beside the curb for walking or queuing
  - Extending parklets to provide additional space for walking and sitting
- Working with local businesses to support temporary patios
- Partnering with the Robson Street Business Association to activate the spaces with art
- Improving transit reliability by restricting some turning movements at Burrard St and Thurlow St
This pilot will widen sidewalks at bus stop locations to support queuing and provide additional space/seating for waiting. Buses will continue to stop along Robson St westbound at Burrard St and Bute St and eastbound at Bute St. Bus stops at Jervis St and Thurlow St will be temporarily suspended.

View notification letter (208 KB)
Stanley Park

Traffic pattern changes effective July 30, 2021
- One lane of Stanley Park Drive is open to vehicle traffic and one lane is dedicated to cycling traffic
- Northbound traffic only on Park Drive between South Lagoon Drive and North Lagoon Drive. Park traffic to exit via North Lagoon Drive to Georgia St
- Southbound traffic only on Park Drive between South Lagoon Drive and Park Lane. Northbound access from the West End to Second Beach via South Lagoon Drive
- Access to the causeway will remain open
All parking lots in Stanley Park are open including access to Prospect Point, Teahouse, Third Beach, and Second Beach Pool.
Transportation trends during COVID-19

People's transportation choices and changes during COVID-19.
As part of mobility recovery planning, we are tracking how people’s transportation choices have changed as a result of COVID-19. This information helps us plan recovery efforts to both move people around safely and efficiently.

Some of the mobility challenges we need to address:
- Transit capacity will be reduced for foreseeable future
- Private vehicle mode-share could surpass pre-pandemic levels
- An uneven distribution of sustainable mobility infrastructure means fewer mobility options in much of south and east Vancouver
Changes to mobility patterns within Vancouver
- As of late June, trips are still below pre-pandemic levels with the exception of cycling on recreational routes
- Transit ridership is not rebounding as quickly as other modes
- 19% of former transit commuters are now driving vehicles ¹
- 21% of former transit commuters are now using active modes of transportation ¹
- According to a recent survey from the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade,
  - 36% of residents plan to increase use of their car or car ownership because of COVID-19 ²
  - 43% of residents said they would like to use active modes of transportation more ²
Get more information on current mobility patterns: Community Impacts Metrics

^1.Source: Public Transit and COVID-19 Survey: Results from the City of Vancouver; University of Toronto: May 2020

^2.Source: Greater Vancouver Board of Trade Transportation Survey; Mustel Group: May 2020
Connecting current actions with other City initiatives

How the reallocation of road space aligns with our long-term goals and changes.
We are taking action to address our communities needs during COVID-19. Many of these actions are considered temporary; however, reallocation of road space aligns with our long-term goals and changes to limit global warming and support cleaner air, make our streets safer for walking, and increase social connection and healthier living.
- Climate emergency has a target of shifting 2/3 of trips to active transportation and transit by 2030
- In May, Council directed staff to reallocate 11% of road space to people-focused public space throughout the city and consider changes that could become longer term or possibly permanent
We are monitoring and learning from these initiatives over the summer and will report to Council on recovery initiatives and longer-term road reallocation in fall 2020.