Abstract Manager

As municipalities across Canada develop cycling and walking infrastructure and look to grow their active transportation networks, highway interchanges often pose significant barriers to connectivity. Highway interchanges are typically high-speed environments with many turning movements and lane changes, high traffic volumes, heavy vehicles, large radius free-flow ramps, and other elements which can contribute to an inhospitable and uncomfortable environment for people walking and biking. Particularly in urban settings, this car-focused atmosphere poses a challenge for jurisdictions that are looking to build safe active transportation facilities for all ages and abilities in an effort to increase modal shift toward biking and walking.

The presentation will discuss the challenges associated with accommodating safe active transportation facilities within interchanges and will investigate how various municipalities across Canada and elsewhere in the world are approaching their design. It will review relevant guidelines and best practices developed to date and present options to improve the safety and comfort of these facilities. This may include a combination of yield controlled painted crossings, raised crosswalks, reduced turn radii with concrete truck aprons, ramp alignment improvements, signalization, and grade separation. The benefits and drawbacks of these design features as well as the optimal context for their application will be discussed.

Interchanges where active transportation connections are desired often staddle the boundaries between provincial and municipal jurisdictions where large provincial freeways cross through urban municipalities. The province and municipality may have competing priorities and differing guidelines when it comes to the design of interchanges. This presentation will review potential conflicts that may be encountered and discuss strategies to promote a collaborative approach to these types of projects.