Pacific Boulevard Redesign

Via Pricetags: construction work is underway on phase one of the Pacific Boulevard re-design.

(Click photo for a larger version).

Stretching from the Burrard Street Bridge to the Cambie Street Bridge, the entire project aims to turn the busy thoroughfare into one of Vancouver's 'great streets', which planners expect will transform it into a 'preeminent pedestrian promenade.'

They hope to accomplish this through the addition of a tree-lined median down the centre of the boulevard, along with a narrower side-street running parrell to the primary four-lane road. The side-street will be used by local traffic and for parking.

 

Besides adding more greenery to the boulevard, new bike lanes will also be built, plus space will be set aside for the eventual extension of the Vancouver streetcar.

The quieter atmosphere of the secondary roads is designed to make the area more pedestrian-friendly, as it will slow traffic and make the street more walkable, while it should also be easier for people to cross the wider sections of Pacific Boulevard.

Phase one is currently being installed along the stretch of Pacific Boulevard between Howe Street and the Granville Street Bridge. Later stages call for the creation of a neighbourhood high street, through the heart of Yaletown, between Cambie and Howe.

For more information, check out the 2002 City of Vancouver Policy Report here (link to pdf).

The cycling people do a more colourful job of presenting the details on their website here.

Comments

[mrjauk]

I enjoy your site and visit occasionally. I am a native Vancouverite but have lived abroad for close to 15 years. The ex-girlfriend of a friend of mine lived in one of the first new condo towers on Pacific Ave., and I remember looking down onto the street from her 20th floor living room window telling them that in 10 years this street would be a major Vancouver thoroughfare. It's nice to see that my predictions have come to fruition.