City of Windsor – Transport Terminal Land Use Study – 2020 November 16

Property Standards By-law 9-2019 establishes standards for the maintenance and occupancy of all property in the City of Windsor. All properties shall be kept in a clean, sanitary, and safe condition. Every yard shall be kept clean and free of rubbish, brush, or other debris, and from objects or conditions that might create a fire hazard or unsafe conditions. There are requirements for controlling storm water run-off, adequate lighting, and parking area conditions and so on.

Protection of Highways By-law 25-2010 provides for the protection of highways (streets and roads) in the City of Windsor from hoarding, openings for construction purposes and heavy vehicles. Part 9 prohibits a “vehicle, load, object, or structure in excess of the weight limits or dimensional limits set out in the Highway Traffic Act” without a permit issued by the City Engineer. This by-law is silent on keeping a highway clean from dirt, mud, dust, or other materials gathering on the highway from adjacent parcels.

Traffic By-law 9148 provides for municipal regulation of traffic within the City of Windsor. Part IX regulates the designation of municipal highways as a truck route. Designated truck routes are identified in Schedule “H”. Vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,500 kg or more are restricted to specific streets identified as a truck route.

Trucks are permitted on any municipal street for the purpose of delivering, receiving, loading or unloading of goods, or proceeding to or from a garage or other premise for the storing or repair of such vehicle, provided the vehicle takes the shortest route to an established truck route.

Zoning By-laws 85-18 and 8600 - Section 34(1) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, allows a municipal council to, among other things, pass a zoning by-law restricting the use of land, restricting the erecting, locating or using of buildings, regulate the type of construction and the height, bulk, location, size, floor area, spacing, character and use of buildings or structures to be erected or located, and require the provision and maintaining of loading and parking facilities.

Zoning By-law 85-18 (B/L 85-18) covers the former Sandwich South lands transferred to the City of Windsor and Zoning By-law 8600 (B/L 8600) covers the balance of the City of Windsor as it existed before this municipal boundary adjustment. Some land in the former Sandwich South area has since been removed from B/L 85-18 and added to B/L 8600.

Many existing transport terminals are located within industrial or manufacturing zoning districts in the respective zoning by-laws – M in B/L 85-18; MD1 and MD2 in B/L 8600. The zones list permitted and prohibited uses plus provisions that is specific to those zones.

Both Zoning By-laws have general provisions (such as parking, loading, additional setbacks, etc.) and specific use provisions that apply to Transport Terminals. Zoning also implements design standards for specific matters such as curbing, curb cuts, and widths of driveways, access areas, parking aisles, and so on. A thorough review of the Zoning By-laws is provided in Chapter 3.

Impact of the Regulations on Carriers, Drivers, and Tractor-Trailer Storage

Government regulations dictate almost everything about operating a truck from hours-of-service to E-log devices to fuel emission requirements. The rules are designed to make trucking safer for drivers and the public, and to minimize the environmental impact of the industry.

Since the regulations require drivers to take appropriate breaks and rest periods, one of the consequences of the regulations is the need to park and store trucks in safe and secure facilities. The transition from paper logs to ELDs will increase compliance with the regulations and increase demand for parking and storage facilities.