Traffic Impact Studies in Guelph

Understanding the Transportation Requirements for Your Development

A Transportation Impact Study (TIS) evaluates how a proposed development will affect the surrounding transportation network and identifies improvements required to accommodate future travel demand. In Guelph, the assessment considers vehicle traffic, intersection capacity, site access, road safety, public transit, cycling infrastructure, pedestrian connectivity and opportunities to reduce automobile dependence.

A TIS may be required to support development applications such as Official Plan Amendments, Zoning By-law Amendments, Plans of Subdivision, Plans of Condominium and Site Plan Control applications. The scope depends on the development’s size, anticipated trip generation, location and potential impacts on the surrounding transportation network.

The City’s October 2023 Transportation Impact Study Guidelines establish a consistent technical framework for applicants and transportation consultants preparing these assessments.

What Does the TIS Process Involve?

1. Establishing the Study Scope

The process begins with consultation with the City’s Manager of Transportation Planning. Before commencing the TIS, applicants must submit a Terms of Reference (TOR) outlining the proposed study area, development description, peak periods, analysis horizons, growth assumptions, data requirements and proposed methodology.

The TOR must also identify whether a Parking Justification Study is required and include preliminary Transportation Demand Management (TDM) recommendations. Additional assessments, such as sightline analysis, traffic signal warrants, turning-lane warrants and functional road designs, may be incorporated depending on the development.

2. Reviewing Existing Conditions

The consultant documents existing roadways, intersections, traffic controls, transit services, pedestrian crossings, cycling facilities and access arrangements.

Traffic counts, turning movements and vehicle classifications are collected to establish existing conditions. The study also considers pedestrian and cyclist volumes, heavy-vehicle movements, transit ridership, collision history and existing operational constraints.

Guelph permits existing traffic data less than three years old to be used as baseline data, subject to City acceptance. Where new counts are required, the guidelines establish minimum collection periods of two hours during the weekday morning peak (7:00–9:00 AM) and four hours during the afternoon period (3:00–7:00 PM).

3. Forecasting Future Travel Demand

The study estimates development-generated trips and their distribution across the surrounding transportation network. Trip generation can be established through local surveys of comparable developments, Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) trip-generation rates or first-principles calculations.

Future forecasts incorporate background growth, approved and proposed developments, and planned transportation improvements. The assessment typically considers existing conditions, the anticipated development completion year and a future horizon five to ten years after completion. Larger developments may require a ten-year post-completion assessment, with additional scenarios for phased projects.

The analysis also considers travel mode share and potential reductions in vehicle trips resulting from transit, cycling, walking and TDM initiatives.

4. Evaluating Traffic Operations and Safety

The consultant evaluates intersection capacity, vehicle delays, volume-to-capacity ratios, turning movements and 95th-percentile vehicle queues. The analysis identifies operational deficiencies and assesses whether the development will create unacceptable traffic or safety impacts.

Access arrangements, sight distances, turning-lane requirements, driveway spacing, vehicle-pedestrian conflicts, heavy-vehicle movements and potential traffic infiltration into surrounding neighbourhoods are also examined.

5. Developing Mitigation Measures

Where deficiencies are identified, the study recommends improvements to accommodate future transportation demands. These may include intersection modifications, traffic signals, additional turning lanes, access restrictions, pedestrian crossings, cycling infrastructure and traffic-calming measures.

Recommendations must consider the interaction between different road users and should incorporate appropriate Transportation Demand Management strategies.

6. Preparing and Submitting the Report

The final TIS documents the development proposal, study methodology, existing and future traffic conditions, operational analysis, safety findings and recommended improvements.

Supporting appendices include traffic counts, intersection modelling outputs, traffic signal and turning-lane warrant analyses, sight-distance assessments and functional designs where applicable.

The final report must be submitted electronically, with appropriate professional certification, accompanied by the original electronic Synchro and/or SimTraffic files used in the analysis.

What Makes Guelph’s TIS Requirements Distinctive?

A clearly defined 100-trip threshold: A development generating at least 100 additional net new two-way trips during the adjacent roadway peak hours or the development’s peak hours will generally trigger a TIS. However, smaller developments can also require a full or scoped transportation study where they are located in congested areas, introduce new traffic signals or turning lanes, have access or sightline concerns, or may worsen existing road-safety and operational deficiencies.

Mandatory Terms of Reference approval: Guelph requires applicants to submit a Terms of Reference to the City’s Manager of Transportation Planning before starting a TIS. This establishes the study scope, confirms available data, verifies assumptions and identifies any additional technical requirements. This early approval process is particularly important for developments with complex access arrangements or multiple land uses.

Specific traffic data and modelling requirements: Guelph establishes detailed expectations for traffic collection, data balancing and intersection modelling. Synchro is used for signalized and unsignalized intersection analysis, Highway Capacity Software (HCS+) is identified for unsignalized intersections, and ARCADY is used for roundabout analysis. Reports must include levels of service, average vehicle delays, volume-to-capacity ratios and 95th-percentile queues compared with available storage.

Defined intersection performance thresholds: At signalized intersections, further analysis is required where overall or shared through/turning movement volume-to-capacity ratios reach 0.90 or higher, exclusive turning movements reach 0.95 or higher, or projected queues exceed available turning-lane storage. At unsignalized intersections, movements operating at Level of Service E or worse or queues exceeding available storage must also be identified.

Access management and arterial-road restrictions: Guelph emphasizes minimizing the number of site accesses and locating driveways on minor roads wherever possible. Direct access to arterial roads is discouraged unless the applicant can demonstrate that safety and operations will not be compromised. Sight triangles, access spacing, throat lengths, curb radii and turning movements must be evaluated. Traffic Geometric Plans may be required to demonstrate that passenger vehicles, delivery trucks, waste collection vehicles and emergency vehicles can safely access the site.

Transportation Demand Management requirements: The TIS must identify appropriate measures to reduce automobile trips and encourage sustainable transportation. Examples include improved pedestrian and cycling connections, car-share memberships for multi-unit residential developments, transit-pass subsidies, unbundled parking, bicycle repair facilities and improved bicycle parking.

Separate Parking Justification Studies: A Parking Justification Study is not automatically part of the TIS. Where required, Development Planning staff will advise the applicant during pre-consultation and review it separately. The City encourages consistency between parking recommendations and the TIS’s proposed TDM strategies.

Preliminary infrastructure cost estimates: The final study must include an implementation strategy outlining the timing of recommended road improvements and preliminary cost estimates for identified operational and roadway improvements. This helps establish potential development-related infrastructure obligations early in the approval process.

MTO coordination near the Hanlon Expressway: Guelph is responsible for its public road network, with the exception of the Hanlon Expressway (Highway 6 North), which is under provincial jurisdiction. Developments within the MTO Controlled Area, including those near the Hanlon Expressway, require coordination with MTO’s Highway Corridor Management office to obtain the Ministry’s approval of the TIS and development plans.

Plan Ahead for Development Approval

Early consultation with Guelph’s Transportation Planning staff helps confirm the required study scope, identify potential access and intersection constraints, and determine whether additional parking, sightline or infrastructure assessments are necessary.

Developers should pay particular attention to access management, internal vehicle circulation, pedestrian and cycling connections, transit-supportive design and potential infrastructure costs. Incorporating these requirements during initial site design can help reduce redesign and support a more efficient development application review.

Reference: City of Guelph — Transportation Impact Study Guidelines, October 2023. Requirements and study scope depend on the development proposal and the City’s review.

Our team has in-depth expertise at conducting these assessments. Contact us today to find out how we can help with your project.