Kicking buses to the curb a step down for BRT, planner says

With east London facing construction delays and road closures to build bus rapid transit (BRT), a local urban planner says a move away from dedicated centre bus lanes means London is getting a slower transit system. 

"That is not bus rapid transit, that's just express bus service," said Alexander Wray, a Western University PhD student in geography and the environment with an undergraduate degree in planning.

"I think we're back at zero again when it comes to solving the rapid transit question for London."

At issue is a shift away from what Wray says is a key component of any BRT system: Buses running in their own dedicated centre transit lanes. The original concept was that with no other traffic would be in their way, BRT vehicles would travel faster and deliver more consistent on-time service. 

But between the original environmental assessment phase and the shaping of more detailed designs, the BRT shifted away from centre-running lanes for the East London Link.

Instead, the transit-only lanes will run along the curb with regular traffic in the middle two lanes along the route. Although other vehicles still won't be allowed to travel in the BRT lanes, they can still cross over them for right turn moves and to travel into and out of the middle lanes. That has the potential to slow the BRT buses. 

'Silver plus' standard

Jennie Dann is the city's lead engineer on BRT. She said the move away from dedicated centre bus lanes came after extensive consultation with the community.  She said part of the problem is that parts of Dundas Street are too narrow to make centre transit lanes optimal. Also, she said the original plan was always subject to potential changes.

"This is still rapid transit," said Dann. "If the centre-running lanes are the gold standard, we're at a silver plus, plus.

"By giving buses their own lanes ... we can have that schedule adherence, people can come to trust that their bus is going to come when they think it's going to come," she said.

Dann said having regular traffic in the middle two lanes has other benefits, including:

• The ability for vehicles to turn left and make U-turns at signalled intersections without turning across dedicated transit lanes.
• Less space between stops. For east London, this means adding an extra stop at Kellogg Lane. 
• Fewer land acquisition costs. 
• Conventional (non BRT) buses can also use the dedicated transit lanes

However Wray said curb running is still a step down because it doesn't give full priority to transit vehicles. More lane sharing means vehicles will slow the transit vehicles down, he said. 

Councillor has questions

The East London Link will run through the heart of Coun. Susan Stevenson's ward. She's asking staff for more detail about the changes, saying she wants to ensure the construction pain will lead to the best possible transit service. 

"The concerns have been raised such that I want to look at it again, and just be sure that we're going to be doing something that we're going to be proud of, and that's going to be worth the pain for many decades," she said. 

Phase 2 construction of the East Link takes place this year between the intersection of King and Lyle Street and Dundas near Egerton Street. 

Phase 3, set for construction next year, will carry the line up to Oxford Street East. 

Construction on the Wellington Gateway, BRT's south leg, starts this year and is scheduled to wrap up in 2027. It will feature dedicated centre transit lanes south of Horton Street. 

Two other proposed BRT routes connecting downtown with north and west London were not supported by council. 

Challenge for businesses

Construction on the East London Link is already posing challenges for businesses along the route. This week the road surface was removed on Dundas Street between Ontario and Quebec Streets. The intersection of Dundas and Ontario Street is closed to vehicle traffic.

That's a big problem for Robin Pero. She owns Grow & Bloom Co., a florist operating out of two locations: 569 Richmond St. on Richmond Row and at 898 Dundas St. 

The construction has forced Pero to temporarily close her Dundas Street location. 

Her shop has flower deliveries and pickups throughout the day, which are impossible with the street torn up. She tried using the parking lot across the street at the Western Fair Market, but that won't work for the volume of deliveries that come with wedding season and other big events.

"We're really closing off walk-in traffic, so it's inconvenient for customers," she said. "I have a very heavy wedding schedule this year and I need to operate out of that shop, so sooner or later I have to come back," she said.

Pero has been told  the road won't be resurfaced until later this year as underground plumbing is replaced, but she's wary of time overruns. 

"This could be next year before we actually have a road," she said. 

The final phase of the East London Link is due to be finished in 2025.