Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page 69
Case Studies 69
ering permanently codifying the MIZOD to a maritime industrial zone. This process has also ele-
vated truck routing issues to more prominence. For example, while Baltimore has had a "non-
truck" route map, it had no truck route map. In response to the raising of this issue during the
MIZOD discussions, the Baltimore Department of Transportation is developing an official truck
route map.
According to the BDC and the Maryland Port Administration, recognizing the problem and
the development of the MIZOD required an education process. The state, the Maryland Port
Administration, and the area's maritime industry needed to take the lead and explain to local
elected officials and the public the port's importance in terms of jobs and the economy and the
Principal Findings
significance of their waterfront location. Their message explained that a "critical mass" of port- Unifying loading,
related industries is necessary to maintain ongoing port operations. unloading, and
The city's creation of the MIZOD was a first step in protecting the port operation. While Bal- waiting restrictions
timore's origins and history are directly tied to the waterfront, it is important to understand that
within contiguous
once a working port is gone, it is likely gone forever. Luxury condos provide taxes, but they are
not a job engine like a working port. Planning officials do not believe the Baltimore story is yet jurisdictions in a
over; the MIZOD is working now, but the city is constantly evolving. As the economy and tastes metropolitan area
in housing change, populations and housing patterns will shift and new problems and issues will
arise. Protecting the land around the port and the health of port industries is critical to the
can make urban
region's economy. How MIZOD use may evolve also will need continual monitoring to ensure delivery more effi-
that the zoning designation continues to achieve its objectives. cient, harmonize
enforcement strate-
References and Sources gies, and improve
Maritime Industrial Zoning Overlay District Annual Report, Summary and Evaluation 20092010, City of Baltimore,
Department of Planning.
understanding
between logistics
Interviews with
providers, their
· Deputy Director for Planning, Maryland Port Administration, State of Maryland,
· Managing Director of Industrial Development, Baltimore Development Corp., clients, and local
· Division Chief for Research and Strategic Planning, Department of Planning, and authorities. In addi-
· Economic Development Planner, Department of Planning.
tion, freight and
service vehicles can
Toronto: Harmonizing of Loading Area Regulation be catered for in
across a Mega-City
simple ways such as
Background
minimum waiting
With a population of over 2.5 million, Toronto is Canada's largest city and the heart of one of periods for freight
North America's largest metropolitan areas. The city's official plans, bylaws, and zoning regula-
tions seek to focus growth in geographic areas where it is best accommodated. As a result, vehicles displaying a
Toronto's designated activity centers contain a significant amount of high-density, mixed-use windshield "service
development, including both business and residential uses. As Toronto's downtown and centers provider" ID card,
have become more densely occupied, goods movement activities become mired in traffic con-
gestion, parking shortages, and inadequate loading/unloading facilities. Consequently, the effi- standardizing load-
ciency and cost-effectiveness of goods movement in the city may be compromised, with direct ing spaces, and
effects on both shippers and receivers. Partially to address these incompatibilities, the City of
allowing hand deliv-
Toronto has undertaken efforts in recent years to manage and accommodate goods movement
and delivery needs in the most densely developed parts of the city. ery of parcels using
In 1998, the Province of Ontario passed legislation "amalgamating" seven municipalities-- metro and under-
the regional government of metropolitan Toronto and six local area municipalities. ground services.
OCR for page 70
70 Guidebook for Understanding Urban Goods Movement
In 2006, amalgamated Toronto had a population of 2,503,281. The Greater Toronto area
has a total population of 5,555,912 with an average density of over 3,900 persons per square
kilometer. In 2009, the city employed 1.3 million people. The office sector is the city's largest
employer with 607,800 jobs. The institutional sector, with 216,000 employees, is the second
largest sector.
Toronto has a well-established history of encouraging and pursuing high-density, mixed-use
development in the central city and appropriate growth zones across the city. The city's Official
Plan directs growth to a number of key areas of the city that can accommodate the magnitude of
growth expected while also protecting and preserving the fabric of existing residential neighbor-
hoods and the valuable green space system. As shown in Exhibits 7-2 and 7-3, these areas are the
downtown and central waterfront, the centres, the avenues, the employment districts, and cer-
tain Secondary Plan areas.
Toronto's downtown core has long been the focal point of issues related to goods movement
and local delivery operations. As building development and the associated traffic levels grow,
competition for curbside access becomes more intense. Until recently, cab stands have been the
only legal curbside activity in downtown's central core--anchored by office towers of the finan-
cial district. Delivery needs associated with new storefronts often occupying ground level (e.g.,
Starbucks) increase the pressure to formally allow use of curbside parking delivery vehicles in
no-parking zones. Data from Toronto found that the average courier stop time in the downtown
zone was about 7 minutes.
Exhibit 7-2. Amalgamated municipal components--city of Toronto.
Source: City of Toronto Official Plan, October 2009.
OCR for page 71
Case Studies 71
Exhibit 7-3. City of Toronto Official Plan urban structure, 2009.
Source: City of Toronto Official Plan, October 2009.
The Story
To achieve the vision of Toronto's Official Plan, the city must accommodate and facilitate effi-
cient goods movement, including curbside access to loading/unloading areas in the central city.
In the dense, mixed-use urban environment envisioned by the Official Plan, inadequate plan-
ning for loading zones undermines cost-effective logistics, safety, passenger and freight mobility,
and general quality of life.
Toronto is pursuing initiatives to both facilitate more efficient delivery and support alterna-
tive logistics methods for delivery operations in the central city area. These initiatives include
citywide harmonization of loading zone requirements and policies, new and expanded loading
zone signage, a courier windshield permit system, and use of an underground walkway network
by couriers and delivery services.
Shortly after amalgamation of Toronto was complete, the city recognized the need to thor-
oughly review and consider major revisions to rezoning, parking and loading policies, and regu-
lations. In 2002, Toronto City Planning staff began laying out a course for a comprehensive effort
to unify zoning, parking, and loading bylaws. The goal was to make city codes more uniform,
understandable, and enforceable across the entire city and more in line with current and future
plans for development projects and patterns.
OCR for page 72
72 Guidebook for Understanding Urban Goods Movement
The harmonization process took nearly 8 years and included an extensive effort that encom-
passed multiple studies and reviews, as well as ongoing outreach to citizens and stakeholders across
the city. The process culminated in August 2010 with Toronto City Council approval of a new city-
wide zoning bylaw. With the adoption of standard loading/unloading space standards across the
amalgamated City of Toronto, all concerned parties have a common set of rules by which to play.
City officials believe that while the bylaw may not significantly affect existing development and
buildings, it will facilitate much more efficient and safe delivery and goods movement in new struc-
tures in the downtown area. For example, new construction in the Maple Leaf Square area has been
required to have all loading areas built underground and to be interconnected.
During 2011, Toronto plans to install signs in some no-parking zones of the downtown (see
Exhibit 7-4) to delineate specific curbside package delivery space to accommodate two or three
vehicles at a time at each location. The city is beginning this effort by signing the zones that
records compiled by the courier industry show as being the 10 most frequently ticketed locations
in the downtown. The City Traffic Operations Division will monitor the use of these signed
spaces, evaluate their impact/effectiveness, and possibly expand the delivery space concept across
the entire downtown in 2012.
Windshield Permits for Downtown Messenger Vehicles
Many messenger services in Toronto employ vehicles (typically automobiles) that park briefly
in curbside no-parking areas adjacent to office towers because of the time-sensitivity of their
business. Often, these vehicles have no identifying information to indicate their commercial pur-
poses to a parking enforcement officer. To accommodate the messenger service demand and
manage the number of vehicles vying for curbside parking in dense downtown areas, the City of
Toronto is facilitating creation of a messenger identification card system. The courier industry
is designing and issuing numbered windshield identification cards that will be recognized by
Toronto Police Parking Enforcement. The Traffic Operations Unit will request parking enforce-
ment officers to provide reasonable consideration to the parked vehicle (10 to 15 minutes) to
allow the driver to complete his/her delivery before issuing a parking ticket.
Courier Use of Toronto PATH (Downtown Walkway) System
PATH is downtown Toronto's underground walkway system, linking 28 kilometers of shopping,
services, and entertainment. The system facilitates pedestrian linkages to public transit, accommo-
Exhibit 7-4. Delivery vehicle in downtown
no-parking zone.
OCR for page 73
Case Studies 73
Exhibit 7-5. Map of Toronto's downtown walkway
system (PATH).
Source: "City of Toronto PATH--Toronto's Downtown Walkway,"
http://www.toronto.ca/path/
dating more than 100,000 daily commuters and thousands of additional tourists and residents on
route to sports and cultural events. As shown in Exhibit 7-5, more than 50 buildings/office towers
are connected through PATH. Twenty parking garages, five subway stations, two major department
stores, six major hotels, and a railway terminal also are accessible through PATH.
The first underground path in Toronto originated in 1900 and by 1917 there were five tun-
nels in the downtown core. With the opening of Union Station in 1927, an underground tunnel
was built to connect it to the Royal York Hotel (now the Fairmont Royal York). The PATH began
to grow in earnest in the 1970s and in 1987 Toronto's City Council adopted the recommenda-
tion that the city become the co-coordinating agency of PATH and pay for the systemwide costs
of designing a signage program. Each segment of the walkway system is owned and controlled
by the owner of the property through which it runs, with about 35 corporations involved.
The City of Toronto is developing a PATH Master Plan to guide the future development of
the underground pedestrian network and improve its current operational design. Currently, the
PATH system is a network of approximately 28 kilometers of combined underground and
above-ground walkways that provides direct access to close to 4 million gross square feet of retail
space. There are plans to connect the PATH to seven proposed residential buildings over the next
5 years, and the city is constructing a new link that will extend 300 meters northward from Union
Station under Wellington Street at a cost of $60 million.
PATH also provides an important means for timely and cost-effective deliveries in a major
part of downtown Toronto. For example, Purolator Courier, Canada's largest courier service
provider, maintains five package distribution rooms within the PATH system, from which about
35 foot couriers operate to and from buildings across downtown. One of the most important
benefits for Purolator of using the PATH system is that it can maintain its courier services even
when mobility on the surface streets is disrupted.
