Editor’s Note:
This is a follow up to Victoria Long’s original letter, which you can read at https://legacy.revelstokecurrent.com//2016/02/15/is-the-mackenzie-meadows-development-a-recipe-for-disaster.
Dear Editor,
What about that traffic study on the proposed Mackenzie Village development?
Thanks to Dean Strachan, I have found the Preliminary Traffic Study as Figure 11 in the January Report to Council http://bc-revelstoke.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/View/2197,
Oddly enough it seems to consider only weekday traffic flows to/from city center. I wonder why weekends are not included – no data kept from 2015 traffic counts or no counts done on weekends?
Even more odd: the design principles of the proposed development would focus on reducing vehicular traffic by car-shares, promoting ride-shares, private vans or buses to cover heavy volume trips to business or pleasure destinations? The narrow streets and little space allocated to vehicle parking bolster this conclusion as well as the emphasis on trail development. But the traffic projections for straight-line increases would only apply if a Business As Usual scenario applied, wouldn’t they?
The oddest oddity is Section 2.2 Existing Traffic Volumes – based on 2015 counts that don’t specify at what time of year the counts were done (I did look but couldn’t see any info) despite the fact that the Summary and Findings section clearly states, ” It is predicted peak traffic from the development will be approximately double the summer traffic counts during winter due to the proximity to the ski resort. ”
As Table 2 states- the Proposed Mackenzie Village new Dwelling Breakdown is Single Family 19, Duplex 28, Townhouse 328, Apartment 866, Total 1241. Does this mean adding the same number of trips as a development with the same number of single family homes? Even if the “Village” doesn’t acquire a stock of rechargeable electric vehicles for residents to book for trips or its own vans or buses to/from RMR for winter trips, in this era of reducing fossil fuel use, straight-line increases are unlikely.
In my humble and confused opinion, this Traffic Study is fluff and nonsense and no one should base anything on it.
Victoria Long
Revelstoke, BC
