It was a busy summer across the district as tourists, visitors from across the region and locals descended on their favourite district destinations.
Deep Cove was particularly busy with folks eager to hike Quarry Rock, kayak Indian Arm and browse the shops on Gallant Avenue.
While the extra visitors are a welcome boon to local businesses, managing the additional demands they place on tight local roads and limited parking spots is challenging.
Access issues in Deep Cove are not new. For years we’ve been working to actively manage the increasing number of visitors to this popular destination in a way that balances the needs of local businesses with concerns of local residents.
I know many of you participated in our 2015 Deep Cove Dialogue when we engaged the community to help develop a solution to the issues caused by the village’s growing popularity.
Several of the recommendations that came out of the dialogue have been implemented and this summer we tried a few new initiatives to see if we could improve the parking and congestion issues.
One of the most visible changes in Deep Cove this summer was the presence of traffic control personnel who were stationed at Panorama Drive and Gallant Avenue during peak hours. They facilitated traffic flow into and out of the area, and directed visitors to the overflow parking lots at Cove Cliff Elementary and Seycove Secondary schools.
New, colourful signs were also installed to help visitors find their way to the overflow parking lots and to encourage them to use transit, ride their bikes or carpool for their next visit.
This summer we also changed how we regulate bus activity in the village. Tour buses are restricted from driving northbound on Panorama Drive from Gallant Avenue. This small change means significant safety improvements on Panorama by preventing tour buses from turning around in driveways or reversing down the street because it’s too narrow for them to turn around.
Restricting buses in this way also means fewer obstructions for emergency vehicles who need clear access to the trailheads along this route.
A commercial bus zone was added to the top of Deep Cove Road, just before it curves down towards Gallant Avenue. This 15-minute loading zone provides a spot for dropping off and picking up passengers outside of the busy village core. And to help buses navigate through Deep Cove, a preferred bus route was established.
The route directs commercial bus traffic through the village via Panorama Drive (southbound), Naughton Avenue, Banbury Road and Gallant Avenue to avoid clogging the area’s narrow residential streets.
Over the next few weeks staff will be reviewing the data we collected and assessing what worked and what didn’t. They’ll be looking ahead to next year and mapping out a refined plan for managing parking and access in Deep Cove based on their findings.
If you have a comment or suggestion about the changes we made in Deep Cove this year we’d like hear from you. Send us an email at mayorscolumn@dnv.org. ■
