[St. John's] Transport development (Highways, Airport, and Public Transit)

[KnightFury]

For all the talk about the roundabouts in Galway and the opening of Costco, things seemed to move pretty well this weekend. I was out there twice (though not during peak periods) and traffic moved well.
Saying that, coming off Pitts (from downtown), I was behind a driver who stopped in the roundabout. But i think that was because a tractor trailer coming from Kent basically barrelled on through without yielding. The driver probably panicked!

[jjavman]

Couldn't this have been handled differently after the tear up last year?
One lane each way until December, and AGAIN ... no nighttime construction!
Stay far away !

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfo...peet-1.5196700

[Marty_Mcfly]

Originally Posted by jjavman

Couldn't this have been handled differently after the tear up last year?
One lane each way until December, and AGAIN ... no nighttime construction!
Stay far away !

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfo...peet-1.5196700

Even more so, does it really make sense to rip up new pavement to do this? Why didn't this work get completed last year?

[J_Murphy]

Originally Posted by Marty_Mcfly

Even more so, does it really make sense to rip up new pavement to do this? Why didn't this work get completed last year?

Is it new pavement though? Work done last year (and finished this year) was east of Polina. This work is west of Polina as far as Peet St.

They replaced a lot of infrastructure last year when they were reconfiguring the intersection. I understand this is just tying into the new stuff placed last year.

[Offshore1]

They did go ahead with night construction last year, I don't think it was right away though.
If they got it on the go now shouldn't that quicken the pace somewhat?

Regardless, I'll be staying as far away as possible.

[Kessel Run]

They went ahead with nighttime construction last year only after complaints. 6 months is a long stretch in that area.

[Arrakis]

I would imagine the roundabouts navigation is not too bad right now with only one store opened in Galway. Wait a year or two when all of the remaining stores are opened and go up there on a Saturday afternoon. It will be quite different I predict. Though I still prefer roundabouts to traditional intersections.

Originally Posted by KnightFury

For all the talk about the roundabouts in Galway and the opening of Costco, things seemed to move pretty well this weekend. I was out there twice (though not during peak periods) and traffic moved well.
Saying that, coming off Pitts (from downtown), I was behind a driver who stopped in the roundabout. But i think that was because a tractor trailer coming from Kent basically barrelled on through without yielding. The driver probably panicked!

[jjavman]

For anyone who missed Minister Crocker's blurb on the evening news; it appears the TGH is stalled again.

He said there is now some doubt about the routing, and they have to study where to best tie in the remainder of the project!
He says the original plans didn't take into account places blooming like Galway & Southlands?

IMHO it sounds like a convenient excuse to delay yet again.
I predict nothing will happen to the rest of the route for at least 2 years.

[Offshore1]

Originally Posted by jjavman

For anyone who missed Minister Crocker's blurb on the evening news; it appears the TGH is stalled again.

He said there is now some doubt about the routing, and they have to study where to best tie in the remainder of the project!
He says the original plans didn't take into account places blooming like Galway & Southlands?

IMHO it sounds like a convenient excuse to delay yet again.
I predict nothing will happen to the rest of the route for at least 2 years.

So it's gone from "on the drafting table" (AKA...pre-election BS) to " challenges with land" to "studying"?
WTF?? As with Nalcor & Hydro - massive levels of incompetence.

[wmemeadusjr]

The TGH should take into account Southlands and Galway, but that tie-in would occur at the very end of the highway and would have nothing to do with the current route. My guess would be that instead of continuing into the Goulds Bypass/Robert E Howlett, the highway should take a route that takes it around the perimeter of Southlands and Galway and eventually terminate near the Country Ribbon chicken farm on the TCH. The Goulds Bypass/Robert E Howlett would be a separate turn off from the TGH.

[Johnny Engine]

Maybe the full text of what Crocker said would clear things up, but the CBC article raises more questions than it answers.

The end of TGH doesn't even point towards Galway - in order to get there without joining the Goulds bypass, it would have to plow right through a residential neighbourhood. Perhaps it'd make sense to twin TGH as far as Cochrane Pond Road, and then make Cochrane Pond into an arterial for Galway that runs perpendicular to TGH...but that shouldn't effect where TGH goes.

And can someone explain why he'd bring up issues getting land from the government, when they already have gravel beds put down in that area?

[jjavman]

Originally Posted by jjavman

For anyone who missed Minister Crocker's blurb on the evening news; it appears the TGH is stalled again.

He said there is now some doubt about the routing, and they have to study where to best tie in the remainder of the project!
He says the original plans didn't take into account places blooming like Galway & Southlands?

IMHO it sounds like a convenient excuse to delay yet again.
I predict nothing will happen to the rest of the route for at least 2 years.

Here's my 2 cynical takeaways FWIW:

1. They wanted a convenient cost saving measure this year with other heavy projects proceeding.

2. The only thing to be done this year, is another traffic study.

I stand ready to eat crow, but I'm upping my estimate to 3 years minimum now!

[jjavman]

Originally Posted by Johnny Engine

Maybe the full text of what Crocker said would clear things up, but the CBC article raises more questions than it answers.

The end of TGH doesn't even point towards Galway - in order to get there without joining the Goulds bypass, it would have to plow right through a residential neighbourhood. Perhaps it'd make sense to twin TGH as far as Cochrane Pond Road, and then make Cochrane Pond into an arterial for Galway that runs perpendicular to TGH...but that shouldn't effect where TGH goes.

And can someone explain why he'd bring up issues getting land from the government, when they already have gravel beds put down in that area?

Should find the newscast here:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfo...-now-1.4405960

Maybe someone will have a less-cynical take than me.

[Marty_Mcfly]

Not surprised by this in the least bit. I'm also not entirely sure what they were thinking when they designed the route of this road to begin with: everyone knows that the city nor the province can expropriate land from the federal government, so why even have the highway designed to run along federal land? I know this was likely done to have as minimal impact on the privately-owned farmland on the other side of Brookfield Road, but they should have seen this coming.

I'm also unsure what they mean by talking about Galway, as the TGH is pretty far from there. Galway is already very well serviced by the highway, so there'd be no point to extend the TGH anywhere near Galway since Pitts is a higher-capacity highway with a higher speed limit (though it could use some love). Once traffic is dumped onto Pitts it can easily get back and forth to Danny Land.

[J_Murphy]

Originally Posted by jjavman

For anyone who missed Minister Crocker's blurb on the evening news; it appears the TGH is stalled again.

He said there is now some doubt about the routing, and they have to study where to best tie in the remainder of the project!
He says the original plans didn't take into account places blooming like Galway & Southlands?

IMHO it sounds like a convenient excuse to delay yet again.
I predict nothing will happen to the rest of the route for at least 2 years.

"We have a land issue with the federal government with the experimental farm," Crocker said. "We're getting close to an agreement on that. That's something we're going to resolve."

I call BS. You are not close to an agreement. If you were close to an agreement, you'd be scheduling construction by now.

[Arrakis]

Was at the airport yesterday and noticed they have concrete barricades and fence installed in the area next to the arrivals. This is where I understand that the new international arrivals terminal will be eventuallylocated. Anyone know if this is the start of construction?

[jjavman]

Originally Posted by Arrakis

Was at the airport yesterday and noticed they have concrete barricades and fence installed in the area next to the arrivals. This is where I understand that the new international arrivals terminal will be eventuallylocated. Anyone know if this is the start of construction?

Wondered when that might happen.
The website says construction to start in 2019.
Could be it.

[Marty_Mcfly]

It could very well be. The airport wouldn't be tied up or delayed by the same garbage that developments within the city would be. YYT and NavCanada definitely makes sure their t's are crossed and i's dotted well in advance. If they plan on starting work in 2019 then they likely will.

[Vivid_Ascent]

Speaking of the Airport, I saw on VOCM that, as part of the new Municipal Authority Agreement, the City will now be allowed access to land to extend Hebron Way to Major's Path.

Perhaps they were waiting on this agreement before beginning construction on the terminal extension?

City of St. John’s, Airport Authority Reach Agreement Ending Long-Standing Dispute

After several years of negotiations, the City of St. John’s has signed an 11-year Municipal Authority Agreement with the St. John’s International Airport Authority, ending a long-standing dispute over taxes and other money matters.

The city says over the years discussions surrounding important topics such as development of airport property, water supply for the airport and the assessed value and taxation of the authority and its tenants have been hindered by the lack of a framework to guide the discussions.

The new agreement will provide such a framework and guide future interactions between the city and the Airport Authority.

Some of the highlights of the agreement include the airport being permitted to connect to the city water supply and the city being granted access to airport land for the extension of Hebron Way.

As well, all taxes to be paid by the airport have been agreed upon back to 2013, meaning all appeals have been dropped. Taxes for 2019 will be $1-million adjusted for inflation on a go-forward basis.

Highlights of the Municipal Authority Agreement:
- The agreement is for an 11-year term with the option to renew for another 10 years.
- Both parties agree to consult with each other on development, especially those which have a direct impact on the other.
- The St. John’s International Airport Authority will be permitted to install double left turning lanes exiting the airport property at their cost.
- The St. John’s International Airport Authority will be permitted to connect to the city water supply, fed from the Autumn Drive reservoir at their cost.
- Taxes to be paid by the St. John’s International Airport Authority have been agreed upon back to 2013, meaning all appeals are dropped.
- Taxes for 2019 will be $1-million, adjusted for inflation on a go-forward basis.
- The city will be provided with access to the land to allow for the extension of Hebron Way to Major’s Path at the city’s cost.
- The city will commit a maximum of $100,000 per year into an airline attraction/retention fund to promote the economic development of the region. This is pending on the agreement of federal, provindial governments and the SJIAA to contribute as well.

https://vocm.com/2019/07/23/city-of-...nding-dispute/

[jjavman]

Coming in Manuals Access, I noticed heavy equipment working parallel to the highway behind 3 Island Pond. Looked like the start of a road.
Anyone know what's going on there?