Good morning, committee members.
Thank you for the opportunity to share a perspective on city facilities around the parliamentary precinct.
With me today is Ms. Renée Amilcar, the City of Ottawa's general manager of transit services, who will deliver remarks specifically on the transit operations in this area.
I'd like to begin my remarks with some background facts.
As you know, Wellington Street is a highly recognizable and iconic street in the city of Ottawa. It's a very valuable asset and is used by residents from both sides of the Ottawa River and by millions of tourists who visit the nation's capital every year. It's a major arterial road that connects Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway and the Portage Bridge, with about 56,000 motorists—that's pre-COVID—travelling on an average day through that intersection to Rideau Street and Sussex Drive. It connects to one of five interprovincial bridges linking Gatineau and Ottawa, specifically the Portage Bridge, where 19,500 vehicles cross daily. Since February 2022, Wellington Street has been temporarily closed between Bank Street and Elgin Street, whereby approximately 19,500 daily motorists have had to find a new route to get across this section of the city.
In terms of the future plans for Wellington Street, following the illegal occupation in February, city council directed staff to initiate discussions with federal officials regarding the future function of that road, as well as the potential to transfer ownership. Those discussions are under way with representatives of Public Services and Procurement Canada, who've expressed in the past a federal interest in taking over the street, and potentially other streets, for a more cohesive management of federal assets in the precinct.
It is expected that these investigative discussions will take some time to conclude, as there are many issues to consider, such as the impact on traffic circulation through the downtown, and how those impacts will be mitigated; access to the city's existing underground infrastructure for asset management; securing Wellington as one of the key corridors in the city's wider cycling network, for which considerable investments have been made by the city; and not least of all is the assessment of the real estate value of Wellington Street.
At this time, the only road contemplated for full closure is Wellington Street east of Bank and Elgin Street. Today, we will also hear from the City of Gatineau and STO on their tramway project, which will cross into Ottawa. In 2020, city council approved Wellington Street as one of two corridors for the STO to study in their next phase of tramway planning. The council's preferred option is a tunnel under Sparks Street, which has many transit and operational benefits and a potential for better integration with Ottawa's Confederation Line, which means more convenience for transit customers on both sides of the river. However, the Sparks Street tunnel has a higher capital cost than the Wellington Street surface option even though this tramway will be serving generations to come.
For Sparks Street, the city has a public realm plan that council approved in 2019. This pedestrian mall is of significant interest to many organizations. It's owned by the city, but it's managed by the Sparks Street Mall Authority, programmed in part by the Sparks Street BIA and surrounded by properties owned or leased by PSPC, the NCC and others. The high-profile Sparks Street public realm plan was developed with many stakeholders and was intended to inform long-term planning exercises for the parliamentary precinct.
Finally, in the area, the city is also reviewing the Rideau-Sussex-Colonel By node to improve mobility for all users and create a better public space for this significant downtown intersection.
In closing, as you can appreciate, there are many complex issues and public space projects that have been established within and around the parliamentary precinct. Continued collaboration between the city and federal officials will be critical for successful outcomes moving forward.
Thank you.