Re-imagining Main Street

Every few months or so, the subject of redeveloping Main Street in the city's North End  rears it head again across the various local social networks, blogs, and chat threads. It remains a prominent pet peeve of mine (the street, not the recurring discussion) and is a very visible reminder of failed, ill-informed ideals, and the destruction of one of Saint John's key corridors.  It's time to start planning now for the ultimate demise of this inner-city highway and rebirth as a modern pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use incarnation of  its past.

During one of the many discussions on the subject, I decided to put my ideas on paper to illicit some discussion (see the image below) -- as the saying goes, "a picture is worth a thousand words."  Of course, these are pie-in-the-sky, unlimited budget ideas, but let me know what you think of the ideas presented or how you would fix what ails Main Street.

Key points:

1. Prioritize streets based on their best use (people streets, car streets, and shared spaces)
2. Divert east & west flow-through traffic onto Hilyard Street, Paradise Row, and Chesley Drive, effectively creating a "Main Street Bypass"
3. Reduce Main Street down to 2 or 3 lanes with on-street parking and active transportation facilities
4. Develop mixed-use infill projects on the 10+ acres of freed-up land under the existing Main Street lanes (and collect those tax dollars!)
5. Reduce the Viaduct to 4 or 5 lanes (or less!) with a dedicated pedestrian / cycle trail connecting to the Uptown, Harbour Passage, and the Boardwalk
6. Remove the high-speed on/off ramps from the viaduct in favour of pedestrian-friendly intersections