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

[Offshore1]

Originally Posted by wmemeadusjr

The City of St. John's posted the following to their Facebook page:

The City understands that residents are interested in the completion of the Southlands Boulevard extension and the role it will play in connecting Southlands and Galway. Completion of the Southlands Boulevard connection is a requirement within the traffic plans for both the Galway and Southlands developments. The Galway and Southlands developers are responsible for working together to complete the road. The need for this connection was identified as part of the engineering and traffic planning requirements associated with development in Galway and Southlands. There is a present need for this connection to support future growth in Galway due primarily to the volume of traffic generated by the commercial area and the limited access to the residential area. The Southlands development has not yet reached this threshold. At this time, we do not have a construction schedule for the connection but the City continues to advocate for the completion of the road.
With respect to access and safety, Southlands Boulevard currently has sufficient capacity to support existing residential development and provide access to the area's various exit points. It is also important to understand that Southlands is supported by an extensive internal road network with multiple connections to Southlands Boulevard, allowing traffic to move throughout the community rather than relying on a single access point. Once on Southlands Boulevard, residents can access several routes out of the area, including Pitts Memorial Drive, Richard Nolan Drive to Mount Pearl or Ruby Line to Goulds and Robert E Howlett Memorial Drive.
In addition, there is an emergency access connection off Brad Gushue Crescent which connects to Ruby Line and can be used if required. Together, these connections support resident mobility, emergency response and access to and from the community.
It is understandable that last summer's wildfires raised questions about evacuation routes. During that event, the City took proactive measures, including removing barriers at Southland Boulevard, to ensure additional options were available if needed. It is important to note that the Southlands Boulevard extension would not have been used to evacuate Southlands residents as it would be moving them toward an active fire area. Rather, it would have been a potential exit point for the Galway residential area.
Current development in Southlands is supported by the road capacity that has been planned and approved for the area. The City closely monitors growth and transportation needs as development continues. Planned development within Southlands will further improve connectivity by extending the internal road network and creating additional connections by extending Sumac Street to Gold Medal Drive. While the existing road network is sufficient to support the current level of residential development, the City recognizes that continued growth in the area will ultimately require completion of the Southlands Boulevard connection to support future development and maintain an efficient transportation network.
While industrial development in Galway can continue, further commercial and residential development in Galway is limited until transportation requirements, including the Southlands Boulevard connection, are addressed. Commercial development generates significantly more vehicle traffic than residential development, which is why increased road capacity is key to future growth in Galway.
The City continues to work with the parties involved and monitor the situation; however, completion of the roadway ultimately remains the responsibility of the developers.

All I can say to the above from the City is get it together, show some leadership in the Bunker rather than pawn this off on the developers. What a load...