Integrating Terminals, Humanizing Arterials and Delivering Complete Streets

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THE CHALLENGES

What is being delivered is a new TOC neighbourhood of 9 km2 with a fine-grain grid of Complete Streets with generous sidewalk, provisions for cycling, street landscaping, active ground floors, etc. Three interrelated ‘tough nuts to crack’ are:

• Gateway Terminal – a highly used terminal in an awkward location creating a barrier, and underutilizing valuable land with poor connection to LRT on Hurontario/Main Street.
• 100% Corner – the intersection of Steeles, Hurontario/Main Street where two major arterials cross and 4 major redevelopment projects will eventually frame all 4 corners, currently an extremely hostile and dangerous environment for pedestrians.
• Steeles Arterial – becoming the locus of several kilometers of intensive new urban development and added population with an opportunity for transformation into a street that accommodates urban life and all modes.

THE VISION

2018 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) identified:

Create a system of connected Mobility Hubs is the cornerstone of ‘The Big Move’ to create a connected City Region. Gateway Terminal is identified as a Mobility Hub connecting two (2) Frequent Rapid Transit Networks along Steeles and Hurontario-Main. These key intersections of Frequent Rapid Transit Network are intended to integrate various modes of transportation and accommodate an intensive concentration of places to live, work, shop or play.

Making walking and cycling safe and accessible is a cornerstone of complete communities and the Growth Plan’s goal for intensification. While 22% of trips in GTAH are short enough to be made by walking and 56% of trips are short enough to be cycled, only 11% of trips are actually made on foot or by bike. Walking and cycling activity is highly dependent on density, built form, supportive infrastructure, and users’ perception of attractiveness, convenience and safety.

Coordinate RTP with municipal land use plans and establishing a mechanism to guide the review of planning applications is a priority to Metrolinx to advise on alignment with the RTP. Regional collaboration will encourage planning of communities to support transit, cycling and walking; parking management that encourages car-sharing; a Regional Cycling Network for longer trips, overcome barriers and connect more easily to rapid transit stations.

The Council endorsed 2040 Vision identified:

Active Mobility – Brampton will be a mosaic of safe, integrated transportation choices and new modes, contributing to civic sustainability, and emphasizing walking, cycling and transit

Design – Brampton will be a City ‘By Design’, where design excellence is led by City Hall to ensure public interests, complete in a studio setting through co-design with developers and made a prime factor in all approvals and other decisions for change

Collaboration – Brampton will join forces, resources, as well as share decision-making with senior government and private interests to extend the reach and success of civic ventures

Uptown Brampton – A place to capture immediate opportunities for high-order businesses, and be the ‘beating heart’ of a growing and diversifying economy with new custom-designed, transit-oriented work/live civic core for business, commerce, leisure and tourism. The landmark of Brampton with expressive buildings and spaces, modern attractions, shopping and programming and high-tech jobs specialty. A car-free core with advanced civic infrastructure, smart technology and sustainability innovation

UNPRECEDENTED OPPORTUNITIES

Transit Terminal Expansion – Gateway Terminal is currently positioned as the ‘hub’ to provide direct rider access to Frequent Rapid Transit Network FRTN along Hurontario-Main and Steeles. Identified as the busiest terminal in Brampton, Gateway Terminal provides direct connections to Sheridan College, Humber College and GO buses to the surrounding GO Stations. City envisions future terminal expansion will integrate the facility into a mixed-use development, and serve as an anchor to create vibrant retail, office, and commercial node.

Developments are happening at 100% Corner – Developments are happening along 3 corners of the Steeles/Hurontario 100% corner. All with the development vision to provide a critical mass of retail, commercial, offices and high-quality urban squares. RioCAN’s ‘Shoppers World Brampton: A New, Urban Future’, envisioned transforming the site into a sustainable and walkable transit-oriented community, and to revitalize the site as a retail destination for the 21st century.

2020 Transit-Oriented Communities – Province’s Transit-Oriented Communities envisions high density, mixed-use development to connect to transit stations, increase ridership and reduce traffic congestion through increasing jobs and housing access to transit. Catalyzing complete communities while providing positive value capture to maximize transit investment is a key priority for TOCs.

EMERGING POTENTIAL

39,000 current daytime population within a 15-min walk – Growing to 100,000 population at build-out, this intersection has the potential to be one of the busiest pedestrian areas in the City Region, setting the stage to transform into an urban anchor where businesses, entertainment and tourism destinations converge.

Unprecedented demand for offices, retail, and multi-family – March 2022 CoStar reports indicated 3.5% office vacancy, 1.1% retail vacancy, and 1.1% multi-family vacancy in Brampton. Brampton is also the 2nd largest GDP contributor in the GTA, generating $35 billion annually at $50k per capita. This Uptown Brampton Mobility Hub has the potential to ‘unlock’ the anticipated commercial building boom, create a northern anchor, a ‘gateway’ to the new face of Brampton, and a leading example of transforming well-positioned auto-oriented ‘power centre’ into a compact, high value, transit-oriented mixed-use urban attractions for many generations to come.

Unprecedented population growth and progressive municipal policies and initiatives – Brampton is growing at 3 times the provincial average. 90% of 2016-2021 Peel growth are in Brampton. In 2021, Brampton has 36,000 new population. To leverage this unprecedented growth to shift Brampton as a ‘City of Transit-Oriented Communities’, minimum parking requirement is removed in Uptown Brampton, which applies to over 22 million SF of new high-density mixed-use developments. To reach the 60% walkable employment goal, the City’s new Main Street Ambassador will support creating a BIA for Uptown Brampton.