Item - 2022.PH33.12

The Planning and Housing Committee:

1. Received the report and Attachments 1 to 6 (April 6, 2022) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning for information.

The Project Manager Urban Design, City Planning and the Senior Project Manager Transit Planning, City Planning gave a presentation on the Transit Design Guide.

The expansion of Toronto’s rapid transit network has the opportunity to bring about a positive transformation in mobility and residents' experience of the city, provided the infrastructure is designed and integrated into the city's public realm in an appropriate and thoughtful manner. In anticipation of the need to provide City design guidance for transit facilities and infrastructure, City Planning launched work on the Transit Design Guide in 2019 as a tool and resource to aid in the design and development of rapid transit projects and infrastructure across the city and support staff's on-going role in the review of these projects. Each component or element of a transit project – from a station site, to an electrical substation building, to linear infrastructure – has an impact on surrounding communities and the public realm. 

The Transit Design Guide (Guide) is intended to inform how transit can enhance and contribute to the city's public realm and surrounding context. The Guide provides design guidance and process direction for consideration in the design of new and upgraded transit infrastructure, brings together new design and process direction, and provides references to existing guidance for the various subject matter. The purpose is to bring clarity and consistency around the City's expectations for the design of transit infrastructure. This includes recommendations, applicable at each stage of planning and development, and in co-ordination with stakeholders and delivery sponsors and/or agents, to eliminate or mitigate obstacles in the design and delivery of transit projects. The content of the Guide builds on existing guidance, as well as consolidating and clarifying lessons learned and best practices from staff's experience, as well as projects in Toronto and other municipalities. The Guide is intended to be a living document, for which additional chapters will be developed over time, as needed. The chapters that have been completed to-date, and shown in Attachments #1 through #6, include: Introduction, Ancillary Structures, Bus Terminals, Elevated Guideways, Elevated Stations, and Portals and Retaining Walls.

The purpose of this report is to provide background on the Guide, overview of the current contents of the Guide, how the Guide has been and will continue to be used to support the City in its dialogue with the Province and transit agencies, and an outline of next steps in its continued development.