• This project was initiated by the Rosemont Community Association in 2019 with a focus on improving pedestrian crossings on Rosehill Drive at Rosewood Road N.W.
• In 2020, The City designed traffic calming measures using temporary materials at each of the intersections along Rosehill Drive N.W. The design narrowed the crossing distance for pedestrians, helping make pedestrians more visible and exposed to traffic for a shorter distance. Further, narrowing driving lanes is proven to lower speeding. 

• In September 2021, curb extensions were installed at four locations along Rosehill Drive. Curb extensions help narrow the street, reducing vehicle speeds. Curb extensions reduce the crossing distance for pedestrians, decreasing the time and distance they are exposed to vehicle traffic. They provide a protected space further into the roadway, making pedestrians more visible, and allowing them to check for oncoming vehicles more easily.
• In November 2021, public engagement was held to understand the effectiveness and impacts of the temporary installation. See the What We Heard Report.

• Public engagement on detailed designs for permanent traffic calming measures ran from Jan. 24 to Feb. 7, 2022. Feedback from the that engagement can be found in the What We Heard Report.
• Key takeaways from public engagement include general support for the proposed traffic calming solutions, specifically for the speed humps. We also heard general appreciation about the accessibility improvements and efforts to reduce shortcutting traffic. Feedback received also showed lack of support for the proposed measures, with cost and parking impacts as main concerns.

We added a curb extension to the north side of Rosehill Drive; it is a logical way to narrow the corridor and compliments the curb extensions on the south side. We made a temporary curb extension on the south side permanent and removed one to mitigate drainage concerns.

What we are doing: After addressing the intersections, the crossings along Rosehill and Roselawn do not warrant pedestrian activated flashing lights at this time. There have also been inquiries about fluorescent border crosswalk signs and high visibility signpost sleeves. The high visibility signpost sleeves are only used along major roads at this time. The fluorescent border crosswalk signs are currently part of a pilot, so this option would be determined at a future date. 

A raised crosswalk at Rosehill Drive at Rosewood Road was explored but not moved forward because a gap is required on either end to allow for drainage toward the catch basins. A gap would become a hazard for pedestrians and a grate to cover that gap is not feasible to maintain in the long term due to corrosion and rust issues.   

We minimized the number of curb extensions along Rosehill Drive and Roselawn Crescent to reduce on-street parking impacts wherever possible. Parking is permitting overtop a speed hump.

Drainage issues stem from a lack of catch basins along the corridor and, intense freeze-thaw cycles causing pooling where there is minimal slope to carry the water to the nearest catch basin. To avoid exacerbating drainage issues, we minimized the number of curb extensions along Rosehill Drive and Roselawn Crescent. Speed humps are designed in a way to allow for drainage along the curb.

We restricted parking near some of the pathway crossings and new wheelchair ramps, to improve pedestrian visibility.

We were able to add two additional speed humps along the east leg of Roselawn Crescent.

Repaving this corridor is outside of the scope and budget for this project.

The posted speed limit for all residential streets is 40 km/hr. Posted speed limit signs on residential streets is not protocol at this time. Residents and community members can request enforcement through Calgary Police Service.

On March 26, 2021 students evaluated the street using a tool that has been adapted from the Gehl Institute Public Life Tools. The evaluation, called Rate my Walk, includes 43 yes / no questions and an assignment for students to share their “funniest, scariest and best wish” for the street. At a high level, the students shared:

• You can have a conversation with the person walking with you and hear them (38 yes, 3 no)
• Do you think people driving can see you? (6 yes, 37 no)
• Does it feel safe to cross the street? (13 yes, 30 no)
• Their top three wishes for the street included:
  • adding colour
  • making it safer to bike
  • slowing the cars
• View the full Walk Audit results here
• View the Visual Exploration results here

On April 9, 2021 students returned to the street to measure the impact of traffic calming built using chalk and pylons. Their assignments included:

• Empathy - Looking at the street through the eyes of someone else by choosing a real or imagined person and developing them in an empathy exercise. View the wide range of lenses the kids tried on to evaluate beyond their own experience.
• Street Vibes - Thinking about the vehicle speeds and sharing the estimated and measured (their teachers used a radar gun) travel speeds. While the results aren’t uniform, it’s clear that most students feel unsafe as vehicle speeds started to exceed 40 km/ hr.
• Street Lab - Students were asked for their opinions on the street lab and whether it made a difference to how they experienced the street. Findings show there is strong agreement that cars were slowing and that students felt safer and more welcome.
• Problem Safari - students were sent on a “problem safari” to see what other needs might have been missed and should be considered. Some of the issues they raised included speeding, cars not stopping at crosswalks, and the need for art or colour.

• Hunch - students were asked to have a hunch of what we could try. Again, the groups talked about colour, accessibility and safety for people biking.

To respond to a community traffic calming request and ongoing conversations with the Rosemont Community Association, The City selected Rosemont to pilot the Neighbourhood Streets Policy. 

Rosemont residents saw temporary traffic calming measures installed in the fall of 2021. Permanent measures were installed in fall 2022 and summer 2023.

The improvements we made in 2023 cost approximately $150,000. Traffic calming and small pedestrian enhancements are generally a cost-effective way to help residents be active and explore their community using different travel choices.

A neighbourhood street is a street you might live on or the one near you with local shops and your closest bus stop. There is a lot of activity that belongs on neighbourhood streets like moving, connecting with neighbours and gardening or mowing the lawn. Neighbourhood streets work well when everyone can move safely and comfortably.

A liveable street is a street that is safe, welcoming to all ages, comfortable for a variety of travel choices, supportive of fun and healthy lifestyles, and enhancing for local destinations through appropriate public amenities.

We typically find the best ways to reach all residents is through a combination of signs, direct mail, and social media advertising (Facebook & Twitter). We have been working closely with the Rosemont Community Association with communications pieces too.