Gastown's Water Street will be a car-free public space in Summer 2024
For two months in Summer 2024, a sizeable segment of Water Street in downtown Vancouver’s Gastown district will become a car-free public space.
The main car-free area will span one full city block of Water Street between Richards Street/Cordova Street and the Gastown Steam Clock at Cambie Street. A smaller secondary car-free area will be situated to the east where Water Street meets Maple Leaf Square (outside Local Public Eatery) at Carrall Street.
Between both car-free areas of Water Street, the two city blocks of Water Street from Cambie Street to Carrall Street would become a car-light, pedestrian-focused area that maintains local access for residents, businesses, and the Gastown Parkade.
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In a November 6 internal memo to Vancouver City Council, Lon LaClaire, the General Manager for Engineering Services of the City of Vancouver, says these car-free and car-light areas respond to City Council’s direction earlier this year requesting a car-free Water Street pilot project to help improve the area’s vibrancy, support businesses, and enhance the ability to host events.
It is noted that for events or on weekends, a longer stretch of Water Street could potentially be made car-free.
The pilot project slated throughout July and August 2024 will take place after a three-month-long road maintenance project ending in June 2024 to repair the brick pavers in the roadway of Maple Tree Square.
Over the coming months, as planning work continues, City staff will consult with the Gastown Business Improvement Society, businesses, property owners and managers, tour bus operators, and event organizers to refine the programming and temporary street configuration concept.
Preliminary draft Water Street concept for Gastown’s Summer 2024 pilot project, with dark blue indicating car-free areas and light blue indicating car-light areas. (City of Vancouver)
New street furniture will be installed, including seating, tables, planters, and other “engaging features,” along with support for businesses, buskers, and vendors to activate the spaces. There will be an “enhanced stewardship management plan” to “support the daily care and cleanliness of the street” during the pilot project period.
The total estimated cost of the pilot project is pegged at $750,000 to $900,000, which covers traffic signal and traffic management measures, street furniture, and operations and maintenance strategies.
TransLink’s No. 50 False Creek/Granville Island bus route currently runs through the segment of Water Street between Columbia Street and Richards Street/Cordova Street. This bus route will need to be rerouted.
This pilot project will provide learnings for future pilots and the City’s Gastown Public Spaces Plan, which is the current planning process for making permanent pedestrian-oriented, event-friendly public space changes to Gastown over the longer term. The final plan is expected to be ready for City Council’s consideration by Fall 2025.
This planning process will also consider turning Cordova Street within Gastown into a two-way street for vehicles. Currently, Cordova Street east of Richards Street is a one-way, eastbound-only street.
In the memo, LaClaire states “key traffic signal changes would support re-routing of vehicle traffic. However, due to the significant signal and intersection changes required to make Cordova Street two-way, Cordova Street would remain one-way for the Summer 2024 pilot.”
Gastown is buzzing tonight! It’s great seeing the Global Relay Gastown Grand Prix making its first return since the pandemic.
Gastown-based tech firm Global Relay has been funding and organizing this event in-house since a decade ago when they first revived it. Kudos to them. pic.twitter.com/szd1ncFGF9
— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) July 13, 2023
- You might also like:
- City of Vancouver seeks public input on pedestrianized streets in Gastown
- New vision for Gastown narrows roads for pedestrian spaces, relocates Steam Clock
- Major effort to finally repair Gastown's cobblestone sidewalks this year
- Six-way pedestrian scramble crossing to be tested at Robson and Granville intersection
- New permanent plaza design coming to Robson and Bute intersection in downtown Vancouver
- Lee's Donuts opens in former Starbucks location next to Gastown Steam Clock
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