Second Avenue and Fourth Avenue downtown are slated to become two-way streets, following a city council decision Monday night.
Converting the avenues to two-way traffic has been identified in multiple city reports as a way to slow down traffic downtown. On Monday council approved a plan to use a roundabout on Fifth Avenue at Cassiar Street - where Fifth Avenue splits into Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue - to achieve the change.
City transportation engineer Glenn Stanker said city staff weighed multiple options before recommending the roundabout at Cassiar Street.
"The existing one-way couplet, the way it is designed, allows people to speed - making it dangerous for pedestrians. The two-way is considered optimal," Stanker said. "The most effective way is to do that transition right at the beginning, Fifth Avenue. Roundabouts cost more and take more area, but they have a good record with collisions."
The proposed design would be a single-lane roundabout with entrances from Cassiar Street to the north, Third Avenue from the east, Fourth Avenue from the south and Fifth Avenue from the west.
McBride Crescent would continue to link into Fourth Avenue, but Laurier Crescent and the western section of Third Avenue will become cul-de-sacs.
Stanker said the proposed design will allow traffic to spread out into downtown quickly, without having to stop at a traffic light. In addition, traffic circles cost less to operate than traffic lights.
"We've looked at the Cameron Street Bridge roundabout and we're very pleased with how it's performing," Stanker said. "There is delays at some peak times, but there would be delays anyway with a controlled intersection. And on collisions, roundabouts win every time."
The next steps for the city will be conducting a detailed traffic analysis, completing detailed design work and consulting with residents and businesses in the area, he said.
"The second thing we want to do is plan how to budget this," Stanker added.
The estimated cost of building the roundabout and the additional work needed is almost $2 million.
Work and public consultation on the proposal is expected to take into the spring.
Not all members of council supported the proposal. Coun. Brian Skakun said he believes the roundabout design is complex and would be confusing to drivers.
