Walking

Touchless Pedestrian Crossing Buttons

Coquitlam introduced its first touchless crossing buttons in early 2021, helping to curb the spread of the coronavirus and other germs. 

Coquitlam is among the first cities in Metro Vancouver to implement the new technology, which activates a walk signal with either the wave of a hand or push of a button. Touchless units with instructional signs are now in use at seven intersections on Guildford Way and Pinetree Way used heavily by SkyTrain riders and other pedestrians. 

Following a successful one-month pilot of the technology, Coquitlam has adopted touchless pedestrian crossing buttons as a standard for high pedestrian areas such as the Town Centre, Austin Heights, and Burquitlam. Additional retrofits at high-traffic pedestrian crossings may also be considered, based on budget considerations.

Programs

City of Coquitlam has developed various ongoing programs to improve the safety and environment for the pedestrians including:

  • Annual Sidewalk Program - where each year an evaluation of sidewalk requests considers key factors such as safety. adjacent land use and other factors for sub-sequent year implementation.
  • School Walkability Program - focusing on improving pedestrian facilities around elementary schools.
  • Land Development – Many new sidewalks in the City are also installed through land developments. When land along most roads is subdivided or rezoned, the developer is required to construct the road frontage(s) to the City’s current standard, which usually consists of sidewalks, curb and gutter, landscaped boulevard and streetlights.
  • Local Area Service Program – Sidewalks, through property owner’s petition, can also be built under Local Area Service Program. It is a neighborhood improvement undertaken for the benefit of the property owners whose property directly abuts the street where the work is done. Local area service usually includes sidewalks, road pavement, curb and gutters, street lighting, etc. The costs of service are paid by the owners of abutting properties, with some assistance from the City.

Greenways

Greenways are linear public corridors for pedestrians and cyclists that connect activity centres throughout the City.

Greenways are split into citywide and neighbourhood designations:

  • citywide greenways are long, continuous routes that connect major destinations throughout the City. They are comparable to arterial streets for pedestrians and cyclists.
  • neighbourhood greenways are shorter and provide connections to local destinations.  They are comparable to local streets for pedestrians and cyclists.

As industry practice shifts towards accommodating cyclists of all ages and abilities, we are transitioning to facilities that are physically separated from vehicle traffic.  

Most greenways will include multi-use pathways (MUPs) with boulevards, pedestrian-scaled lighting, and landscaping treatments depending on available right-of-way.  In more urban settings, we may need to provide more separation between pedestrian, bicycle, and other modes of active transportation.