The development of Burke Mountain in Coquitlam continues to have significant impacts on northern Port Coquitlam neighbourhoods.
Those were the words from PoCo Mayor Brad West last month as the city’s committee reviewed the latest traffic count results for its north–south routes.
According to data presented on Dec. 12, and as the city crafts its new master transportation plan, Coast Meridian Road — the arterial that links Burke with PoCo — has seen a 34 per cent uptick in commuters between the border at Victoria Drive and Greenmount Avenue, a few blocks south, since 2016 when city staff last counted vehicles, speeds and patterns.
Other stretches along Coast Meridian Road have seen increases, too, with high or above the design capacity. For example, the Coast Meridian Road corridor between Coquitlam Avenue and Westminster Avenue is at 101 per cent capacity, carrying about 30,380 vehicles a day, the report shows.
West said a 34 per cent hike in traffic over the past eight years is alarming given that volumes recorded back in 2016 were already at historical highs.
Coquitlam is planning a community of 50,000 residents on Burke Mountain.
The data "underscores the importance of having the Fremont Connector constructed as quickly as possible," West said of the future north–south road that will follow Burns Road in PoCo to Cedar Drive in Coquitlam.
West said PoCo is working with Coquitlam to build the connector (the City of Coquitlam does not list Fremont as a priority in its 2024 Business Plan).
"These traffic counts certainly support the continued push to make that priority because our neighbourhoods on the northside are bearing a very heavy burden because of the development on Burke Mountain," West said.
Traffic upgrades
Port Coquitlam’s 2022 traffic count program for north–south arterials routes studied seven corridors for volumes, speeds and possible improvements:
- Broadway Street
- Coast Meridian Road
- Fremont Connector
- Oxford Street
- Pitt River Road
- Shaughnessy Street
- Westwood Street
Staff also counted traffic along Kingsway Avenue as part of a future road project, as well as at five locations to measure the effectiveness of recently installed traffic calming measures.
Counts were completed during peak weekday hours along the corridor at:
- Coquitlam Avenue
- Fraser Avenue
- Maple Street
- Reeve Street
- Riverside Drive
Now, the city’s engineering department is recommending to PoCo council the following improvements for operations and future capital budgets:
- Broadway Street
- police enforcement for speeding
- installation of barrier protection on existing cycling lanes
- Coast Meridian Road
- digital speed sign between Victoria Drive and Greenmount Avenue
- construction of the full Fremont Connector to reduce traffic volumes
- Fremont Connector (by Fremont shopping area)
- police enforcement for speeding between Seaborne and Nicola avenues
- installation of barrier protection on existing cycling lanes
- Oxford Street
- Operation Scarecrow or Tri-City SpeedWatch to address speeding between Greenmount and Lincoln avenues
- Pitt River Road
- digital speed sign between Pooley Avenue and Citadel Drive
- Shaughnessy Street
- police enforcement for speeding
- digital speed signs
- installation of barrier protection on existing cycling lanes
- Westwood Street
- widen to four lanes with left-turn lanes and multi-use pathway north of Lougheed
- reconfigure intersection with Kitchener Avenue
- new signal at Lougheed and Raleigh Street
- Kingsway Avenue
- construction of Kingsway road project
- Coquitlam Avenue
- construct mid-block speed hump between York and Wellington streets
- Reeve Street
- construct a raised crosswalk on the northern leg of the intersection at Atkins Avenue
- Operation Scarecrow or Tri-City SpeedWatch to address speeding between Wilson and Atkins avenues
- Riverside Drive
- construct mid-block speed hump near the northern limit of Blakeburn Park to address speeding between Parana Drive and Riverwood Gate
Meanwhile, engineer David Walker told the committee that traffic counts were not done in 2023 because of the lack of available contractors. As a result, east–west arterial counts slated for this year will happen in 2024.
