Peterborough To Test New Traffic Light Sound Sensor Signals

[UPDATE: Honk honk. Happy April Fools' Day!!]

The Ontario Traffic Light Association (OTLA) is pleased to announce that Peterborough has been selected as a national test zone for a new technology designed to ease congestion and improve traffic flow.

According to a OTLA press release, during the test phase electronic traffic signals at select Peterborough intersections will be outfitted with new “sound sensor” receptors that when triggered will automatically prompt the lights to change from red to green. To trigger the “sound sensor” receptor and change the light, simply honk your horn twice.

Marilyn Phibbs, Executive Chair of the OTLA, says, “We are constantly inundated with complaints from drivers who find themselves sitting at a red light with no oncoming traffic for an unreasonable period of time. In some cases, drivers have experienced road rage during lengthy waits at a red light. We are confident sound sensor signals will resolve this problem and improve traffic flow. We appreciate the opportunity to test it in Peterborough.”

From midnight through noon today (Tuesday, April 1st), the following intersections are designated test zones: Lansdowne Street West and Monaghan Road, Sherbrooke Street and Clonsilla Avenue, Parkhill Road East and Armour Road, and King and George Street, Downtown.

Data will be collected and evaluated by the OTLA to determine the effectiveness of the system as well as any adjustments required to the sensitivity of the sensors. Drivers are reminded that the “sound sensor” traffic light system is in a preliminary test-phase only and are warned not to proceed through a red light should the signal not change to green right away. Please honk twice and wait.

Pending any unanticipated delays, the OTLA says the new technology will be introduced in communities across the province beginning this summer at an expected cost of $150 million dollars. Funds to make the technological transition will be passed along to Ontario drivers through a minimal increase in annual Vehicle License Renewal Stickers.

The Ontario Traffic Light Association (OTLA) was founded April 1st by a public citizen’s group aimed at addressing issues affecting drivers at controlled intersections. This Ontario-based organization is privately funded by the Global LED Traffic Light Manufacturers with its Head Office located at 0401 Simpleton Lane, Toronto, Ontario. Follow its Executive Chair Marilyn Phibbs on Twitter @OTLA0401.

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UPDATE: Our Scott Arnold tested it out this morning...

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Watch: Take A Flight In The Kawarthas

From takeoff to landing, join in on this flight from Peterborough to Bancroft to Papineau Lake. It's pretty cool.

[Vimeo]

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Here's A Timelapse Video Of A Guy Driving From Peterborough To Ottawa In 37 Seconds

If only it were this quick...

[video by Todd Steenburgh]

—Scott Arnold

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Watch: Here Is Peterborough At Warp Speed

Someone tested out their my homemade electromagnet GoPro mount, and the result is pretty darn cool. Check this out...

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Historic Flight: A Boeing 737 Will Take Off From Peterborough Airport

[UPDATE March 5th: Due to overwhelming response, Carlson Wagonlit Stewart Travel has added a second departure for their weekend of celebration October 2th to 5th, 2014 in New York City. The second departure will travel same dates as the first charter. The Boeing 737 aircraft will depart on October 2nd with the first group of 136 passengers, land in Newark, disembark and fly back to Peterborough to transport the second group.]
 

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ORIGINAL POST:

Peterborough Airport's expansion and upgrades is such that a Boeing 737—yes, a Boeing 737—can now land and take off from there.

Local travel company Carlson Wagonlit Stewart Travel will prove that as part of their 40th anniversary celebrations, as they've secured a Boeing 737 aircraft for a weekend flight to New York which will mark the first time a large passenger aircraft will take off from the newly renovated Peterborough Airport.

The historic flight to Newark Airport will take place this fall—October 2nd to 5th—and the cost for the weekend trip package to New York is about $1,400. More than half of the seats have already been sold.

Yes, the future of travel may be right here in Peterborough, with no more commutes to Pearson, short wait times, free parking and clearing customs right in your own backyard.

Sweet.

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Local Gift Under $25 For The Cyclist

Stumped as to what to buy this year? Here are two local gifts under $25 for the Cyclist. Stop in at Wild Rock (located at 169 Charlotte Street) and pick up the Torch Bright Flex LED Light, which is easy to attach to the front and back of your bike to make sure others around you are aware of your presence. Be sure to pick up a container of Sports Balm, which will make for a much more comfortable ride for those that spend a fair bit of time in the saddle.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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Here's Pictures Of A Turkey Waiting For The Bus On Armour Road

[UPDATE: Huffington Post picks up the story.]

There have been reports of wild turkeys stopping traffic on Armour Road lately, but maybe now they've learned to just wait for the bus instead? Exhibit A: These pictures captured by Jessie James at a bus stop on Armour Rd. Sunday (December 15th). 

[photos via @jnjames75 on Twitter]

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Winter Parking Restrictions Are In Full Effect Starting This Weekend

This Sunday (December 1st) marks the beginning of winter parking restrictions in Peterborough. Here's what you need to know:

• From December 1- April 1, parking is prohibited on all City streets from 2:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. This allows better snow clearing of city streets and at a lower cost because equipment will not have to return to clear areas where vehicles were parked. The fine for a violation is $15.
• During a snowstorm, when snow-clearing operations are underway, no stopping of a vehicle is permitted on any city street. Snow-clearing operations typically take place between midnight and 8 a.m. The fine is $80 (up from $50 last year) for this violation and your vehicle will be towed. All vehicles North of Parkhill Road will be towed to Milroy Park (located at 242 Milroy Drive), with all other vehicles being towed to Morrow Park (located at 171 Lansdowne Street West). After 24 hours, all unclaimed vehicles will be towed to an impound yard at the owner's expense.

Where does that leave you to park? Well, free overnight parking is allowed at all Municipal parking lots such as the King Street Parkade and Simcoe Parking Garage. Vehicles parked overnight at either parking garage can obtain a gate arm ticket upon entry to the garage to be used for a free transit trip home.

So remember the rule of thumb... no parking any time of the year on city streets for longer than 3 hours, except where a sign indicates otherwise. If you still have questions, call Parking at 705-742-7777 ext. 2802.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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A Look At Upcoming Parkway Meetings This Month

November looks to be a busy month for Parkway news...

On November 13th at 6:30 p.m., a special Committee of Whole meeting will be held at the Evinrude Centre (911 Monaghan Road) for a presentation of the Parkway Corridor Class Environmental Assessment.

The meeting is open to the public, however due to a Peterborough Procedure By-law the public is not allowed to speak.

But you will have your chance on November 20, 2013 at 6:30 p.m. when a special public City Council meeting will be held at the Evinrude Centre.

Parks Not Parkways: A Concert for Greenspace is on November 17th at Market Hall and features The Three Martinis, Rick Fines, Kirsten Addis and Al Black and the Tonemasters. It is a benefit concert for the Peterborough Greenspace Coalition, who are devoted to the protection of green spaces in our city. Tickets are $20.

There are two Change.org surveys that you can take part in to vote FOR or AGAINST the parkway.

More here in this video of Jackson Park. 

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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PTBOCanada Pics & Coverage: Peterborough Cycling Summit 2013

The Third Annual Peterborough Cycling Summit was held on Friday (October 25th) at the Holiday Inn and featured afternoon workshops to do with cycling both here in Peterborough and the Kawarthas, and stretching throughout the province. Although we couldn't attend all of the workshops, here is a look into a few of them...

Cycle Touring: The Kawarthas and Beyond

This workshop had three speakers...

Kieran Andrews:  “Cycle touring is way more than riding bikes. It’s about quiet roads, unique experiences and beautiful places. That’s what we’re all after.” While Kieran is quite content with just heading down an unknown road to see where it leads, it may not be your ideal decision when trying to plan a route with a limited time span. His main suggestion during his talk was to use MapMyRide.com as both a planning tool and a progress meter. Through the website, you can pick prospective cycling destinations (or find ones in your own area that others have recorded) to see both via map and elevation how challenging it may be, the road type (gravel, paved, etc.) and how much traffic it may see. 

Louisa Mursell: Projects Director with Transportations Options, which is a non-profit organization that has been around for 20 years that helps to further develop sustainable transportation. Lately they have been working on tourism initiatives including cycling. Amongst their programs are Bike Train (to increase bike options for cyclists in Ontario), and Park Bus (bus transit to Ontario Parks locations).

Through the Welcome Cyclists network, they have discovered that cyclists were not fully satisfied with lodgings in areas. You can visit the Welcome Cyclists website to help plan trips, and find accommodations that are bicycle friendly and provide secure bicycle lock-up area. The accommodation must have local cycling maps or websites to help with this information, as well as access to repair tools or be in close vicinity to a bicycle shop. Healthy food and free access to water is also key as well. Prospective businesses that would like to join just have to sign up online (for free) and attend a Welcome Cyclists seminar. There are currently 65 businesses in the Kawartha-Northumberland-Peterborough area (most are in Northumberland County). 

Susan Sauvé: Talked about touring through France by bicycle. She found the hospitality very good along with growing places that have public laundry and Wi-fi (although because of the differences in power outlets, sometimes it was tricky to charge your devices). Sue was pleasantly surprised to find so many bicycle trails and bicycle sharing programs throughout Paris. The three then fielded questions from the audience about cycling touring.

Selwyn Township: Our Trail moving forward, connecting you to better health

John McMullen let us know that that because of healthy lifestyles, and the effort to reduce greenhouse gasses, trails have become a major part of the Selywn township masterplan. The four main trails are the Lakefield Trail, the Bridgenorth Trail, the Ennismore Heritage Trail and the Trans-Canada Trail, but there are also many additional popular hiking trails. They have already had public consultations—through surveys and open houses—from which they learned that Bicycle lanes were one of the higher ranked things, followed by linking the areas together.

Displayed around the room were maps of each of the hamlets of Selwyn township. John asked everyone to put a sticker on the area in each hamlet where they would like to prioritize improvement. 

Peterborough: Setting the Course

Tegan Moss from the P-BAC (Peterborough Bicycle Advisory Committee) and Peter from Green-Up are trying to create a cycling culture here in Peterborough by providing input into both infrastructure and advocacy projects.

This workshop's focus was on "Complete Streets" which is the design infrastructure and maintenance necessary for all road users to enjoy using the road safely. Each table tackled projects that are slated for construction in Peterborough during the next five years that currently do not have a design. Using cardboard placeholders, the idea was to design the layout of streets such as Chemong, Ashburnham, George and Water to incorporate access for both vehicles, bicycles and parking alike. Each game board had markers to indicate scale so each street layout had to comply with real-world dimensions. Afterwards, photos were taken and the layouts will be submitted as possible designs.

Tour of Downtown

Attendees were welcomed to join a tour lead by Susan Sauvé and Urban Design Planner Brian Buchardt. They were treated to a short walk downtown to showcase elements of the current and future design downtown, such as our new footpath beside the train bridge.

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The evening's events were opened by Donald Fraser who thanked such a passionate and growing number of attendees for coming. A message from Jeff Leal (who was unable to attend) was read that mentioned that the Ontario government is aiming for a 2031 date to both recognize cycling as a core mode of transportation and a goal to make Ontario the Number one province for cycling in Canada. The Ontario Cycling Strategy which was just recently released promotes a healthy and active lifestyle, tourism strategy and health benefits. This strategy will roll out through action plans throughout the coming years, with the first kicking off next Spring.

Eleanor McMahon from Share the Road read a letter on behalf of Glen Murray, the Ontario Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure who gave a nod to P-BAC, The Peterborough-County City Health Unit and the Ontario Professional Planners Institute-Lakelands District for their hard work. He also echoed the hopes to make Ontario a lead cycling destination.

City Councillor Lesley Parnell spoke on behalf of the Mayor and Peterborough City Council. They are pleased to support cycling culture in Peterborough and proud to promote all the health benefits that cycling brings. Mayor Bennett is a believer in the “A bike friendly city is a livable city, and a liveable city is a bike friendly city.”

Sue Suavé: The City passed a new updated Compressive Transportation Plan in 2012 which has 183 KM of bikeways in the City alone. They have $500,000 a year to spend on capital to make projects happen such as on multi-use trails and on-road bike facilities. Right now we have 55 km of the network built (30%). Sue showed how over the years our cycling network has expanded. In addition to the trails, we also now have 156 new bike parking spaces within areas such as downtown and East City which brings the total to 629 downtown.

For a sneak peek into future projects, Sue let us know about such things as…

• Ashburnham drive, which is being reconstructed in 2015 and the City is looking to add what is known as a cycling track (a slightly elevated bike lane)
• The Parkway trail, which currently ends at the railroad tracks, will continue to Crawford drive next year
• They will complete the Trans-Canada Trail; this will continue on the South side of Maria street as a three meter paved trail
• George Street improvement project will include bike lanes in both directions
• Otonabee River Trail is currently under an environmental assessment, and hopes to be extended from Del-Crary Park right around to the Little Lake Cemetery (and one day will extend all around Little Lake)
• The bike lanes on Water and George street will be upgraded in 2014

Mayor Mary Smith from Selwyn Township and Chris Bradley from Director of Public Works for Peterborough County. Mary pointed out how many County Councillors were in attendance as they are committed to building trails and do the appropriate planning.

Chris Bradley: The Transportation Masterplan was recently completed which contained updated walking and cycling processes (which are different between the County and the City). Some of the improvements to come are shared road-lanes (which are already being constructed in Smith Township), paved shoulders, designated striped bike lanes, separated buffered bike off-road multi use trails, and a lot of active transportation planning still to come. Chris shared a sidenote: that when the Public Works Department Building on Armour Road was redesigned for use, showers were added for when people cycled or ran to work. Chris mentioned that they are trying to link the communities and are always trying to consider the needs and the potential for bike lanes (and walkability of the roads). Cycling lanes are suggested for the Gifford Causeway (which runs between Bridgenorth and Ennismore) and reconstruction on Ward Street which is slated to be widened. Input from last year's cycling summit has already gone into the new masterplan. One important area that Chris highlighted was Airport Road. They are just completing the final design now for reconnecting it and the project is moving forward.

 The keynote speaker was Dr. Karen Lee whose topic was "The Role of Design and Infrastructure in Addressing Cycling and Health". She talked about how history repeats itself with the infectious diseases of the 19th century and the chronic diseases of the 21st century. Through infrastructure changes, there was a decrease in infectious diseases, however something needs to be done for our current issues. Dr. Lee displayed a disheartening animation of Diabetes trends among U.S. adults from 1994 to 2009 which also equates to higher medical costs. This trend also applies to Canadians as we aren't getting enough exercise. It was suggested that we could again correct this through infrastructure changes to encourage active transportation and greater access to physical activity. Side benefits included a reduction of infrastructure costs and job creation. Our favourite slide had some Peterborough statistics that compared 1947 to now. While our  65+ population has slightly risen, Peterborough has less people per acre, has more employment in the Service Sector, and the percentage of City's Non-Food Retail Space in Downtown has actually dropped considerably. Be sure to view Dr. Karen Lee's presentation and also take note of New York's Fit-City initiative that has promoted healthy living through design.

You can view each presentation on the P-BAC website. 

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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