unhappy Winnipegger

[UrbanPlannerr]

Originally Posted by 1ajs

south bound lag at grasie the left turn light there you can wind up sitting for 5 or more.... but then that spot is has a large incress in traffic the last while and needs the lights riped right out there http://www.google.ca/maps?ie=UTF8&ll...09559&t=h&z=17

I've had a similar experience heading east on bishop before the waverley intersection, which I can't remember how many cycles but there was not accident just plain traffic jam. The traffic went all the way from the intersection to the bend where it turns into keneston.

Also, is there any website which records the amount of traffic on winnipeg streets, highways, ect??

[drew]

Originally Posted by UrbanPlannerr

truviking, as for the hateful comments, the reason i live in suburbia is because it was what was affordable at the time. I do not live in a cul de sac, and fail to see your good intentions with these comments.

I'm not sure what time you bought your house, but for my 30 or so years, the most affordable living (in terms of house prices) has always been closer to the core, not in suburbia.

[UrbanPlannerr]

Originally Posted by trueviking

...look what happened the second an underpass was built on kenaston, waverly west, the ikea retail development....pipelines to the burbs cause sprawl.

I'm guessing you are against the city expanding in size?, thus where would the more proper place to put the new ikea be, downtown?

[jmt18325]

Originally Posted by UrbanPlannerr

I've had a similar experience heading east on bishop before the waverley intersection

Traffic synchronization will fix that.

[UrbanPlannerr]

Originally Posted by jmt18325

Traffic synchronization will fix that.

Well I'd hope so, if this is true than likely an interchange at waverley and bishop is not needed and would add a lot of relief; usually I avoid super busy routes anyways so I do not drive down bishop all the time, perhaps this has gotten better by now since the last time I drove down it?

[jmt18325]

I've never actually had problems on Bishop going in that direction (probably because of the time of day that i travel). I have on Kenaston, but I didn't have ti wait all that long.

[UrbanPlannerr]

Originally Posted by jmt18325

I've never actually had problems on Bishop going in that direction (probably because of the time of day that i travel). I have on Kenaston, but I didn't have ti wait all that long.

Yes... same for me, usually there is certain sections of roadways which see extreme traffic at rush hour, than once past that it is free flowing again (pembina, bishop, keneston, ect...); but the real point of the thread was simply because the Maritime has freeways and we (Manitoba) don't on the trans-canada hwy; and basically what I am getting out of this is that Manitoba is simply catching up with in terms of interchanges on the perimeter, and is eventually going to make it a freeway, because interchanges cost lots of $.

[grumpy old man]

Here is something to ponder (perspective). I don't necessarily agree with the notion that the Maritimes can do it and Manitoba won't. It might well have everything to do with density. It must cost Manitoba HUGE bucks to manage an infrastructure as widespread as it is. This same argument appears when US highways are bench-marked. Especially those in North Dakota.

New Brunswick
Area Ranked 11th
Total 72,908 km2 (28,150 sq mi)
Land 71,450 km2 (27,590 sq mi)
Water (%) 1,458 km2 (563 sq mi) (2.0%)
Population Ranked 8th: Total (2009) 748,319
Density 10.50 /km² (27.2 /sq mi)

Nova Scotia
Area Ranked 12th
Total 55,283 km2 (21,345 sq mi)
Land 53,338 km2 (20,594 sq mi)
Water (%) 1,946 km2 (751 sq mi) (3.5%)
Population Ranked 7th Total (2005): 939,531
Density 17.49 /km² (45.3 /sq

Manitoba
Area Ranked 8th
Total 649,950 km2 (250,950 sq mi)
Land 548,360 km2 (211,720 sq mi)
Water (%) 101,593 km2 (39,225 sq mi) (15.6%)
Population Ranked 5th Total (2009) 1,213,815
Density 2.14 /km² (5.5 /sq mi)

[grumpy old man]

That said, and those outside the perimeter highway bristle when this is said, but Winnipeg/Southern Manitoba is the economic engine that drives this province. Yet disproportionate money is spent on rural/Northern Manitoba. Perhaps the powers that be should spend more time and money making the engine run more smoothly.

Food for thought...

[UrbanPlannerr]

It was really this picture that also pissed me off as I just have the feeling that Manitoba is being left behind in the dust in terms of highway infrastructure compared to other places in Canada (this image being taken in Halifax), and seems to have similar traffic to bishop or waverley at rush hour.

And grumpy old man, I was only talking about a small section (trans-canada) of the perimeter, not the entire province's highways.

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by grumpy old man

That said, and those outside the perimeter highway bristle when this is said, but Winnipeg/Southern Manitoba is the economic engine that drives this province. Yet disproportionate money is spent on rural/Northern Manitoba. Perhaps the powers that be should spend more time and money making the engine run more smoothly.

Food for thought...

Well, a lot of the "engine" runs on the resources extracted from elsewhere in the province.

It's true the the Maritimes have some freeways, but their highway budgets are concentrated in a much smaller area and their traffic, urban and rural, tends to be squeezed into a few constricted arteries. Not like Winnipeg or Manitoba as a whole. Also their freeways take advantage of natural valleys; often it looks like the amount of earthworks required to construct an interchange out here (I'm in Halifax right now) would be very small compared to the huge amount of work that I remember for the creation of the 1/12 interchange at Ste. Anne, for example.

Also it is probably true that politics in the small-town-dominated Maritimes has traditionally been more focused on delivering goodies like roads to government MLAs' constituencies, giving jobs to the MLA's cousins and his buddy's paving company, than has been the case in Manitoba. The connection between rampant political corruption and quality of highways in North America would make for an interesting study, actually. One example would be that crazy "Interstate 99" in Pennsylvania or wherever or Alaska's famous "Bridge to Nowhere".

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by UrbanPlannerr

It was really this picture that also pissed me off as I just have the feeling that Manitoba is being left behind in the dust in terms of highway infrastructure compared to other places in Canada (this image being taken in Halifax), and seems to have similar traffic to bishop or waverley at rush hour.

And grumpy old man, I was only talking about a small section (trans-canada) of the perimeter, not the entire province's highways.

But Halifax needs that because the arterial roads (to the extent there even are any worthy of the name) are almost totally useless for getting around. Winnipeg is just the opposite. The freeway plan was rejected in the early 70s because urban freeway-building was going out of fashion everywhere. While a few more interchanges could be built at strategic spots, on the whole the lack of freeways is one of the good things about Winnipeg, IMHO.

[rypinion]

Originally Posted by grumpy old man

Ummm, and you know this how?

How did you connect those dots?

He's referring to these plans:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/manitobamaps/2962340566/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/manitobamaps/2808499535/

[rypinion]

Originally Posted by UrbanPlannerr

It was really this picture that also pissed me off as I just have the feeling that Manitoba is being left behind in the dust in terms of highway infrastructure compared to other places in Canada (this image being taken in Halifax), and seems to have similar traffic to bishop or waverley at rush hour.

And grumpy old man, I was only talking about a small section (trans-canada) of the perimeter, not the entire province's highways.

I also hope that one day people can take photos of Winnipeg and Manitoba scenery where 50% of the photo is concrete and asphalt.

[1ajs]

u ever seen the plans gom

[vid]

Look at a map of Dartmouth. That is the ONLY east-west road in that city. It also spans a lake, and that mall is the biggest in the Maritimes. Where in Winnipeg would you find such a set-up?

[grumpy old man]

Originally Posted by 1ajs

u ever seen the plans gom

Nope. Never even heard of them...

[1ajs]

gues u missed all the great transit debates then on newwinnipeg

[Pootkao]

Idolizing Calgary's Deerfoot is a pretty narrow window into how cities function.

No freeway in North America has made any neighbourhood more walkable, friendlier, supported more local business (other than construction companies) or more vibrant.

Freeways enhance sprawl, propel car culture and spawn waves of urban ugliness. Winnipeg is very very lucky it has escaped the freeway craze thus far unscathed. That picture you posted above with the giant parking lot is suburban ugliness defined.

That said, your freeway wish is being granted for about 2km or so from the airport to the perimeter in a few years.

Most importantly, why don't you move closer to downtown? You can walk, bike or take transit to work and not have to worry about freeways anymore. And your life and your city will be the better for it.

They are not something to be idolized.

Smart cities like Portland actually tear them down.

[UrbanPlannerr]

As of right now moving closer to the core sounds very attractive, anything basically seems better than driving up and down pembina highway every day, and this was one of my headaches for the past year and a half, lol. I actually hate suburbia (driving through bishop grandon past st.vital mall, and many suburban houses, as its almost driving me nuts! )

I also joined because I do want a better winnipeg to live in for the possible future, and think there are obviously many other ways winnipeg can improve upon itself and become a better place to live, work, and play, as well I like to stay informed with what is going on in my city.