King streetcar pilot working, must continue, Tory says GlobeToronto
After years of planning, study and controversy, the King Street transit pilot appears set to become permanent.
“The King Street pilot is working and must be continued,” he told reporters Tuesday morning. “We essentially created a surface subway along King Street in the space of a weekend, and the benefits are clear.”Council voted in the summer of 2017 for the pilot, which began near the end of that year. In an attempt to clear congestion and allow streetcars to move more quickly, the pilot banned through traffic of private vehicles at most intersections on a 2.
Ridership on the King streetcar has jumped from 72,000 daily to 84,000. Transit vehicles are moving a bit faster and the duration of trips has become considerably less variable, meaning people can be more confident in arriving on time. Journey times for motorists on nearby streets grew, on average, by less than a minute in rush hour.
City staff acknowledge a recent increase in the turnover of business licences in the King Street pilot area. This figure has risen from 8.9 per cent in 2016 to 9.6 per cent in 2017 to 11.1 per cent last year, which staff note remains a lower turnover rate than in the surrounding area and the city as a whole.Tracking of credit-card spending in the pilot area showed restaurant business was down 1.2 per cent in the 12 months after the pilot was installed, compared with the previous 12 months.
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