The Official Saint John, NB Project Thread

[JHikka]

Comparison of the corner of Union and Charlotte from July 2009 to October 2012. Literally the only thing that's changed other than Saigon Noodle becoming TARO is the foilage growing.


Charlotte Street between Union & King's Square:


Corner of Dorchester & Union


Corner of Wellington & Union (where lights are apparently going to be added). Also note the surface parking.


Peel Plaza wrapping up:


And finally, a building i've liked since its gentrification a few years ago. Canterbury Street between Princess & Duke.


All photos by me, courtesy of Flickr.

[kwajo]

Originally Posted by hebertovich

Another traffic Light ...Good grief!! I think we have by far the most traffic lights per km in useless places than any other city ... Get creative, put in a round about once in a while ? They've worked in Europe forever ! jeez!

Sorry just too many lights in our fair city! I heard there was one going at the end of the new bridge in Rothesay also ?? What a way to wreck the progress of adding new lanes

A roundabout in an urban area with that kind of slope? Good luck.
I don't like the idea of the traffic lights either, but neither of those intersections would take a roundabout.

[kwajo]

Thanks Greg for the photo of the surface lot at the corner of Wellington and Union, as I personally detest that lot and want it replaced with in-fill as soon as possible!

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by kwajo

Thanks Greg for the photo of the surface lot at the corner of Wellington and Union, as I personally detest that lot and want it replaced with in-fill as soon as possible!

Definitely. In-fill, however, won't be happening any time soon with the amount of currently empty lots and vacant spaces throughout that area of Uptown. Unless someone comes forward with a really sweet deal I don't think anything's going to happen there for a while.

With the new parking garage i'd imagine we can spare a few surface parking lot spaces, though.

[kwajo]

Oh I agree, I just choose to be optimistic
That was originally the idea, that the garage would free up the city to sell off more surface lots, but in the current market I doubt they'll have a rush from interested buyers.

[Ire Narissis]

I miss when the corner of Union & Charlotte was a Wendy's. D:

Tied with Arby's for my favourite fast food joint, both of which are a pain to get to from uptown. XD Though I'm working on the West side these days just up the road from Simms Corner...

[DizzyEdge]

Originally Posted by GregHickman

And finally, a building i've liked since its gentrification a few years ago. Canterbury Street between Princess & Duke.


All photos by me, courtesy of Flickr.

Is that where radian6 is located?

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by DizzyEdge

Is that where radian6 is located?

I'm not sure who the tenant(s) is/are.

[phishy]

Originally Posted by DizzyEdge

Is that where radian6 is located?

That is where Radio6 is located. They occupy the whole building now after expanding to the upper floors.

[ErickMontreal]

Saint John Port studies cruise ship industry expansion
Province paying $50,000 to study 'home port' designation



CBC News
Posted: Oct 22, 2012 2:32 PM AT
Last Updated: Oct 22, 2012 4:33 PM AT

The provincial government is investing $50,000 into a new study to look at whether Saint John should become a The provincial government is investing $50,000 into a new study to look at whether Saint John should become a "home port." (CBC)


The provincial government is investing $50,000 into a feasibility study that will examine the possibility of the Port of Saint John becoming a “home port” for cruise ships in the future.

The cruise ship industry has become an important economic generator for the city and the new study will study the options of expanding the industry.

Tourism, Heritage and Culture Minister Trevor Holder announced the provincial funding on Monday.

“While it is wonderful to have ships visit the Port of Saint John, if it was to become a home port we would be taking this industry to the next level,” Holder said in a statement.

“I am eager to see whether it is possible to capture an even greater share of this business in the years to come.”

A home port designation would allow cruise ships to start and end their trips in Saint John.

Cruise passengers would likely fly into the city in advance of their trips and then end their vacation in Saint John.

Miami, for example, is designated as a home port.

The greater Saint John region reaps an estimated $15 million in economic spinoffs in 2012, according to the provincial government.

A total of 74 ships visited Saint John and brought roughly 190,000 visitors to the city.

Holder said the provincial government needs to "capitalize on every possibility to grow industries,” such as the cruise ship sector.

Stephen Campbell, the chairperson for the Saint John Port Authority, said the feasibility study will be important to help the sector expand.

“Cruise tourism business is extremely important to New Brunswick and we are pleased today to learn that the province of New Brunswick is investing in a study to examine the future opportunities for expanding the cruise industry as a contributor to tourism in the Bay of Fundy region,” Campbell said in a statement.

_________________________________________________________

Port Of Saint John Could Become A Home Port

Our cruise ship industry could be taking a turn, with you being the cruise ship passenger departing from Saint John to another location.

The provincial government will be investing $50,000 into a feasibility study to see if our port could be a home port for cruise ships.

Tourism Minister Trevor Holder tells CHSJ news the opportunities and spin offs could be endless. He says it could create an opportunity for visitors to fly here, spend a few days in our hotels, then hop on a cruise ship. Holder adds that could also attract new flights from the US, help rebuild the economy and bring in new money.

Holder says a home port wouldn't just be about cruise, but would be another opportunity to showcase our tourism.

By the end of this 2012 season, 74 ships will have docked in our port with about 190,000 visitors.

[cdnguys]

It would only be a home port for smaller vessels doing river cruises. We don't have the airport infrastructure to bring in 3000 people in one day, the hotel rooms for pre or post cruise. Besides cruise lines require large originating catchment basins like Boston, New York, Baltimore and Florida. The pic of the large cruise ship makes it deceiving.

[dhottawa729]

Originally Posted by cdnguys

It would only be a home port for smaller vessels doing river cruises. We don't have the airport infrastructure to bring in 3000 people in one day, the hotel rooms for pre or post cruise. Besides cruise lines require large originating catchment basins like Boston, New York, Baltimore and Florida. The pic of the large cruise ship makes it deceiving.

Yeah I don't really see how this is a good thing. When I flew to miami for a cruise once, there was no time/desire to tour Miami because the focus was on the cruise. Besides, we get 3000 americans per ship all with nothing to do but spend an entire day in Saint John spending their money. I guess on my trip we did have a flight in/out, a night in a hotel on either end and meals on either end of the trip. I'm just worried that being a home port will clog up the port reducing the amount of moorings available for visiting ships and contribute even more to ship emissions (7 days a week). I like how Saint John is a mid-cruise destination where people are on vacation enjoying themselves rather than just a point where people are on their way to/from a ship.

[hebertovich]

Originally Posted by kwajo

A roundabout in an urban area with that kind of slope? Good luck.
I don't like the idea of the traffic lights either, but neither of those intersections would take a roundabout.

Just so were clear, I wasn't meaning a round about there, but surely there are area's in and around that would benefit a round about instaed of a light ...Simms for example

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by hebertovich

Just so were clear, I wasn't meaning a round about there, but surely there are area's in and around that would benefit a round about instaed of a light ...Simms for example

With the amount of traffic that Simms gets I would personally prefer that the intersection is squared off and widened down the hill towards Fairville Boulevard and had lights installed. I'm sure there are studies on how much traffic roundabouts can maintain but I just feel as though it'd be easier to break people in with a low-traffic roundabout first before dropping one on them in one of the busiest intersections in the city. The Armdale Rotary in Halifax is a good example of a roundabout with too much traffic. As far as i'm aware the roundabouts in Moncton (both ends of Wheeler Boulevard) do alright with traffic.

Although it's not a roundabout in the classic sense, there is (kind of) one in Champlain Heights.

[MonctonRad]

The roundabout at Hall's Creek marsh (next to Champlain Place) does surprisingly well. The other roundabout at the causeway however is frequently backed up at rush hour, especially coming off Wheeler. I think this is just a reflection of the fact that it has a tight radius and you are going from a divided highway into a single file traffic situation with stop and go traffic entering the roundabout.

I think a roundabout at Simms Corner would work pretty well. Right now Simms Corner scares the bejesus out of me!!

[JHikka]

Saint John will be hosting Skate Canada in October of 2013! This is really surprising given there wasn't much word of it prior to the announcement today. This is a really big deal given that it'll be the Skate Canada event directly before the Olympics in 2014, so a lot of the skaters going to/attempting to go to Sochi will be in competition. Saint John last hosted in 1995 and 1999.

[Dmajackson]

The seven or eight that are now functional in Halifax all seem to work well. We have three basic types; One-lane/Small (ie Margeson Drive & Sackville Drive), Multi-Lane/Large (Armdale), and Highway Interchanges (ie Larry Uteck).

Only Armdale ever runs at 100% capacity so it does suffer from long queues at peak hours on non-peak approaches (ie Joseph Howe from 3-6 pm). The higher flow approaches have little to no flow problems. The other intersections seem to work efficiently and they are a massive benefit.

The best-of-the-best in Halifax is the corner of Larry Uteck and Nine Mile/Starboard. While still in a fast-growing community (aka "instant city") it has decent traffic volume and even at peak hours all four approaches flow smoothly. Waits never exceed a few seconds and it is well marked with almost everyone travelling at the ideal 30km/h. IMO this exact style of roundabout should be installed at most major - major intersections.

I've never driven Simms Corner before but looking at it on Bing Maps it would require a somewhat unique roundabout because of the one-way street and adjaent railway. I could see one working there but what are the flow volumes like (ie all equal or dominated by one direction).

MonctonRad is the Champlain Place intersection technically a rotary? I've driven that a couple of times and I seem to remember the people entering the circle having the right-of-way. The circle just seems to large to be considered safe. With two highway approaches the travel speed should be ~50km/h and not the speeding that could currently be done.

[MonctonRad]

MonctonRad is the Champlain Place intersection technically a rotary? I've driven that a couple of times and I seem to remember the people entering the circle having the right-of-way. The circle just seems to large to be considered safe. With two highway approaches the travel speed should be ~50km/h and not the speeding that could currently be done.

Not to hijack this thread but.....

The roundabout at Hall's Creek (Champlain Place) is referred to by the locals as a "traffic circle". It probably is not a traditional roundabout in that the entering speed is typically 70-80 km/hr and the circle is 2-3 lanes wide. If you enter the traffic circle from Veteran's Highway, the outside lane leads directly to Wheeler Blvd and you don't have to yield right of way. The inside lane however merges into the middle lane on the roundabout and yielding is mandatory. It doesn't take too long to get used to it, but I imagine the traffic flow drives the tourists crazy!

I think there are lots of variations to roundabout design. The "magic roundabout" in Swindon, England is legendary.


I remember coming across a roundabout in Scotland once, near Edinburgh, where the circle was at the confluence of two major high speed divided motorways! I think I lost a couple of my nine lives driving through that one!

The new roundabout proposed for the Killam/Collishaw/Russ Howard intersection in Moncton will have five entries. I don't think they have decided yet if it will have one or two lanes....

[CdnEh]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

I've never driven Simms Corner before but looking at it on Bing Maps it would require a somewhat unique roundabout because of the one-way street and adjaent railway. I could see one working there but what are the flow volumes like (ie all equal or dominated by one direction).

I'm sure if a roundabout was constructed at Simms one-way up from Fairville Blvd would become a two way.

The only reason there's no access to Fairville Blvd at Simms in the current layout is because it'd be virtually impossible to actually get across the damn intersection in the first place. The road expands to 2-way immediately after, at the exit from the Tims/Wendy's on the corner. There is also no left turn allowed when approaching from Fairville Blvd.

I drive it every day, and I truly, TRULY, feel sorry for people who aren't from here who have to drive through that hell... I swear some people just close their eyes and hope for the best.

[CdnEh]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Not to hijack this thread but.....
I think there are lots of variations to roundabout design. The "magic roundabout" in Swindon, England is legendary.

How do you even work that thing?????