14 & 15 Avenue S Mobility Improvements

As funding has now been secured for the next phase of this project, we will be completing the following work:

• Upgrading the existing painted wheeling lane to provide a protected two-way wheeling lane on the north side of 15 Avenue S between 12 Street S.W. and 1 Street S.E. This will require the removal of parking on the north side of the road.
• When the proposed changes are made to 15 Avenue S, the 14 Avenue S corridor will change back to a two-way road. Parking will be maintained on both sides of 14 Avenue S, and the existing painted wheeling lane will be removed.
• Both corridors will see upgrades to their pedestrian infrastructure, including curb extensions, marked crossings, and wheelchair ramps to support improved accessibility for everyone. 

As part of the 17 Avenue S.W. Construction Project, detours were required along 14 Avenue and 15 Avenue S. Both corridors were temporarily converted to one-way roads allowing people who drive to travel westbound along 14 Avenue and eastbound along 15 Avenue from 1 Street S.E. to 12 Street S.W.

Although parking was maintained on both sides of the road, the corridors were wide which can encourage speeding.

As a result of this change, stakeholders encouraged The City to improve the experience for those who walk and wheel through the community. The following changes were implemented:

• One-way wheeling (bicycles, scooters, etc.) lanes, and buffered wheeling lanes where road widths allowed, were installed in the direction of traffic to provide connected and consistent wheeling facilities and to reduce the widths of the vehicular travel lanes.
• Temporary traffic calming curbs were installed where crosswalks already existed to improve visibility and reduce crossing distances for people who walk and to encourage a reduction in traffic speeds as vehicles approach intersections.

We then set out to collect data, review operations, and gather feedback from Calgarians to develop a design recommendation for permanent infrastructure along the 14 and 15 Avenue S corridors.

The image below represents the current configuration of a typical eastbound one-way block on 15 Avenue S. Individual blocks and intersections may operate differently depending on the surrounding environment.

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For the 14 & 15 Avenue S Mobility Improvements project, we conducted two phases of engagement. Thank you to all who participated. 

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Phase 1: Identification

Between September 28 and October 19, 2020, Calgarians had an opportunity to provide input by telling us what is working well and what is challenging for those moving along the 14 and 15 Avenue S corridors (12 Street S.W. to 1 Street S.E.). We also asked what future improvements Calgarians would like to see. A summary of the feedback received is available in the What We Heard report.

Phase 2: Prioritization

We incorporated feedback received during Phase 1: Identification, along with technical analysis, to develop potential improvement options for the study area.

From January 11 to 31, 2021, Calgarians were invited to view these potential options and provide feedback. We received close to 1,100 individual contributions through the online portal, conducted two virtual sessions for area businesses and hosted several one-on-one meetings as requested by individual stakeholder businesses and organizations. Read the What We Heard report for Phase 2: Prioritization.

Upon completion of stakeholder engagement, data analysis and technical work, we developed the following preferred concept design: