Traffic generation in the north arm industrial area

In the constantly changing pattern of our cities, it is the task of the planner to guide these changes towards desired objectives. During the period of rapid growth, the structures created in the past and the needs of the present conflict, giving rise to the various problems that the planner has to face. Perhaps one of the most dramatic, undoubtedly one of the most discussed, and surely one of the most frustrating of these conflicts has manifested itself in the problem of moving persons and goods, and of the vehicles that transport them through our cities. In one generation the motor vehicle has become as much a part of our lives as has the toothbrush. The experience of the past few years has shown us how essential and important is highway transportation to our economy. Naturally, with the fast-growing transportation service, serious problems have arisen. Streets and highways have become outmoded and unsuited for present day traffic volume and speed, congestion and delays have become serious, especially in the cities; and Metropolitan Vancouver is no exception. With the expected increase in population and automobiles in the Vancouver Metropolitan Area, the traffic is bound to increase in all directions by 1971. Traffic to and from industrial areas is a problem that the planner faces everywhere, and the traffic created by the journey to work is a main problem in our metropolitan areas. The North Arm Industrial Area is an off-centre one in Metropolitan Vancouver. It has an area of 3,018 acres, of which only 386 acres were fully developed in 1955. It offers adequate open space for industry, which has been choked elsewhere in other central areas. Thus, in future, it is bound to become one of the important centers of industrial activity in the Metropolitan area. The study presents a forecast of traffic volumes for 1971 in the North Arm Area and points out the planning implication of the predicted volumes. If fully developed by 1971, as has been assumed in the study, this area is expected to have a total traffic volume of 23,200 trips per day, out of which 19,500 trips per day are expected to be home-to-work trips made during the peak hours. As at present, the arterial system lacks proper bridges to Lulu Island and is congested during peak hours. The traffic problem in our Metropolitan area is only beginning and only bold plans, continually amended, and equally bold programs of road construction can hope to meet this problem. Alternately, the growth of traffic could be controlled by restricting the land use and diverting the industries to other areas. Peak hour traffic of journey-to-work could be, to some extent, solved by staggered working hours. Building of low rental housing for industrial workers within walking distance from their work places could also be thought of as a solution to this expected problem. However, if the planners do not act in time, the traffic in this area could strangle its own circulation and become costly to handleApplied Science, Faculty ofCommunity and Regional Planning (SCARP), School ofGraduat