Road repairs

[bigguy1231]

I travel down Main on the way home from work usually late at night and I wondered why it looked so dark the last little while, now I know. The brightness in the picture is nowhere near what it looks like looking down Main from Queen at 1am. It was so dark last night, I was thinking to myself on the drive down Main that it's not going to be safe for people out walking at night.

[palace1]

Originally Posted by mattgrande

You can see the difference they make

It took me a minute to figure out that the picture was showing James Street North!

I wasn't aware of the difference at Art Crawl but I'll have to check next time I'm in the neighbourhood.

Great to see the end of the orange sodium lights!

[AndyLHoang]

I am already liking the LED lights on Main St! I'm tired of HPS lights with their orange glow and I do hope Hamilton follows Mississauga in replacing the HPS lights with LEDs! The power savings alone are quite dramatic!

Here's a dash cam vid from my car as I drove along Main St. last night. There's also a quick second clip showing a lone LED light along King St.
• Video Link

[matt602]

I like how the light stands between Bay and James have an additional light thats lower on the pole for the sidewalk. I hope they add these to more of them, its nice to have more light on the sidewalks.

[HillStreetBlues]

Thanks for the video! And I hadn't consciously noticed the second light nearer to the sidewalk- great idea.

I hate the orange lights, I'll love to see more of them replaced. Hopefully they do areas of density sooner rather than later- in areas where the street light is one of few sources of light pollution, the LEDs will make even greater difference than downtown.

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by HillStreetBlues

I hate the orange lights, I'll love to see more of them replaced. Hopefully they do areas of density sooner rather than later- in areas where the street light is one of few sources of light pollution, the LEDs will make even greater difference than downtown.

I just noticed them last night in Carlisle, of all places. They've replaced the lighting on Centre Rd., from the north side of the village down to just past the main intersection. They look a little odd at first, because you don't see the lights as easily from far away since the light is much more directional than that of the high-pressure sodium lamps. So above the road things appeared darker, but the surface level was bright (with very white light).

Burlington has installed them on the Fairview St. rail overpass between Maple and Brant. I've noticed them in a few shopping plaza lots as well.

I'm indifferent to the sodium lamps - they provide enough light for the streets, though they wash out colours... the golden glow they give the city when viewed from the escarpment or the air is kind of nice but irrelevant to their purpose . However there is a lot of light wasted and they require more energy. LEDs can save cities substantial money, not just in hydro costs but bulb replacement since they're supposed to last a lot longer.

[HillStreetBlues]

I am somewhat interested in astronomy (who isn't, I suppose), and once at a presentation at the planetarium at Purdue in Indianapolis, they had a brief presentation about light pollution. One of the slides was a cartoon featuring different street lighting options- 'The Good' (directional light illuminating the stretch of sidewalk beneath it); 'The Bad' (light that illuminates the sidewalk, but also the walls of the nearby buildings and vertically); and 'The Ugly!' that illuminates mostly horizontally, leaving pedestrians on the sidewalk below in the dark but washing nearby buildings in light. Anyway, I like the new LEDs because they focus the light on what needs lighting: the sodium lights could have done that, but largely don't. Thanks very much for letting me know about the ones in Carlisle- my heart is warmed thinking about people walking underneath them in proper illumination, and nearby homeowners rescued from wasteful light pollution.

Admittedly, I see your point completely about the glow that the City gets from all of the orangey light, though.

[HillStreetBlues]

I was walking on Hunter this afternoon and noticed that at several intersections between Queen and Bay, there were new traffic lights, still covered by garbage bags. They are facing west, opposing the direction of traffic.

The only thing I can figure is that Hunter is being converted to two-way. I have heard that this was recommended by staff, but can not remember hearing anything about it lately. I'm trying to decide whether I have missed something entirely; or jumped to conclusions and yet more foolish hopes.

[matt602]

They're probably for the bi-directional bike lanes that will be installed soon. The street isn't getting converted as far as I know. Cannon will receive the same changes for the same reason.

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by HillStreetBlues

Admittedly, I see your point completely about the glow that the City gets from all of the orangey light, though.

Should be interesting to see how the look of the city grid changes as more lights are replaced.

Does anyone know offhand if the city's plan is to just replace HPS lamps with LED fixtures as they become due, or to do specific streets/blocks each year?

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by matt602

They're probably for the bi-directional bike lanes that will be installed soon. The street isn't getting converted as far as I know. Cannon will receive the same changes for the same reason.

I seem to recall some discussions about the Hunter St. plan last year but it may have been on Raise the Hammer.

Seems to be a bit under the radar... otherwise there would have been some moral outrage about taking away road space on TWO lower city streets in the negative reactions to the Cannon approval.

[HillStreetBlues]

Originally Posted by ScreamingViking

I seem to recall some discussions about the Hunter St. plan last year but it may have been on Raise the Hammer.

Seems to be a bit under the radar... otherwise there would have been some moral outrage about taking away road space on TWO lower city streets in the negative reactions to the Cannon approval.

The City says on its site that the Hunter Street bike lane will be installed “this Spring.” I remember reading about it on Raise the Hammer and elsewhere late last year, too.

Thanks, matt. It didn’t occur to me for some reason that a bike lane would require new traffic lights, but naturally as it’s bidirectional. I guess that will increase the cost of the bike lanes, too… If the municipal government is putting new traffic lights up, I think they might as well paint some new lines and make the street two-way…

[thistleclub]

Stoney Creek’s King Street set for $6.5-million facelift in 2015
(Stoney Creek News, Laura Lennie, Apr 1 2014)

An extensive stretch of King Street is getting a much-needed makeover next year.

Battlefield Drive to Applewood Avenue will see road reconstruction, sidewalk, streetlight and water main replacement, as well as sewer repair. The bridge above Stoney Creek, just past Elm Avenue on King Street East, will also get a new deck, sidewalks and railings.

Work on the $6.5-million capital project is expected to begin in March 2015 and will continue until December 2015.

City design manager Susan Jacob said the area’s infrastructure is in “poor condition” and needs to be “rehabilitated.”

“The sequence of construction is not known at this time,” she said. “Once the contractor and the finalized scope have been established, the city will work with them to produce a work sequence.”

[thistleclub]

Road work season about to begin
(Hamilton Mountain News, Mark Newman, Apr 3 2014)

Now that the long, cold winter finally appears to be ending, Hamilton drivers can look forward to the construction season.

This year the city will be spending nearly $53 million to install new water and sewer pipes, fix bridges and reconstruct roads or build new ones at dozens of locations in Hamilton.

One of the biggest projects that won’t begin until the fall and take about a year to complete is the $12-$18 million Trinity Church Road extension that will see a new, two kilometre, four lane arterial road built from the top of the Stone Church Road ramp off the Red Valley Hill Parkway and extend almost due south where it will hook on to Rymal Road, just west of Trinity Church Road.

“It’s a lot of work that has to be done,” said Susan Jacob, manager of the design section in the capital planning and implementation division of the city’s public works department.

Part of the Rymal Road Area Planning Area master plan, the new road will include an eco passageway or bridge, about 35 metres wide, that will rise over Highland Road and allow for the small creek that runs between the Eramosa Karst land to the east and the Mountain Albion Conservation Area on the west side.

It will also serve as a runway for wildlife, including deer in the area, and a pedestrian pathway is in the works.

Final details of the plan are being worked out.

“We are still in talks with the (Hamilton) Conservation Authority,” Jacob said.

According to the 2006 master plan, the new road will carry 1,850 vehicles during the peak morning rush period and 2,100 vehicles during the peak afternoon rush period.

The city has acquired several hundred acres of land for the new road.

Other Mountain projects this year:

• Rymal Road between Dartnall Road and Fletcher Road. June to October. This is a $12 million project to urbanize this stretch of Rymal Road East including curbs, storm sewers, sidewalks and water main work.

• Mohawk Road from east of Upper Wellington to west of Upper Wentworth. May to September. This is a $2.4 million road reconstruction and water project.

• Queensdale Avenue between Upper Wellington and Upper Wentworth and from East 27th to Upper Sherman. April to October. This $3 million road reconstruction and water project is a continuation of work along the central Mountain road that began last year.

• West 5th from the entrance to Mohawk College north across Fennell to Gateview Drive. May to October. This $6 million project is the third part of the plan to upgrade West 5th that began in 2012.

• West 5th, Stone Church Road to the Linc. May to September. This is a $4 million project is similar to the road and sewer work on other sections of West 5th and will include some sidewalk repairs.

• Chedmac Drive, Rice to Southridge Drive. May to September. The road will be reconstructed at a cost of $650,000.

• Upper James-Highway 6 April to Oct. This $3.5 million project will see the addition of a left turn lane in front of the Mountain Transit Centre and the installation of a park and ride facility at the centre.

• Thomson, Imelda and Helga Courts. June and July. This $810,000 project will see the water mains replaced and the roads resurfaced at those central Mountain cul-de-sacs.

• Fessenden Neighbourhood. This $3 million project is phase three of the plan to control flooding in the west Mountain area near Sir Allan MacNab Secondary School. Road and sewer work will be done alongDaisy Street and Forestgate Drive between May and November.

Lower City

• Centennial Parkway. Work is slated to begin around June on a $27 million project that will see road reconstruction and water work done on this busy artery from King Street to Arrowsmith Road. The work is slated to be completed before the Pan Am Games in July 2015.

• The Canadian National Railway bridge over the road will also be replaced.

Next Year

• The city is planning a $10 million reconstruction of Concession Street between Upper Wellington and Upper Sherman. Jacob said a preliminary design is in the works and a public meeting on the project will likely be held in June.

• Reconstruction of Mountain Brow Boulevard between Oakcrest Drive and Mohawk Road, a $7 million project that includes road and sewer work on Broker Drive between Upper Kenilworth and the Mountain Brow, is slated to begin in the spring of 2015 and take about a year to complete.

[Jon Dalton]

$53 million of spending without a public consultation or Hamilton Spectator poll. People who use those roads should be tolled to pay for it. Where is Scott Thompson on this?

[bigguy1231]

Originally Posted by Jon Dalton

$53 million of spending without a public consultation or Hamilton Spectator poll. People who use those roads should be tolled to pay for it. Where is Scott Thompson on this?

Like it or not Scott Thompson speaks for the vast majority of Hamiltonians who pay taxes for those roads. You are in the minority and in a democracy majorities make the rules. Be nice and you may get a couple of bike lanes, but I wouldn't count on it happening too quickly.

[markbarbera]

The vast majority of the projects are to repair existing aging water and sewage infrastructure, with road resurfacing an inseparable component of that work. The only project that introduces a change to existing infrastructure is the Trinity Road project, which has undergone an extensive EA and public consultation process dating back to 2007. Information about the process can found here.

If you are genuinely interested to here Mr. Thompson's opinion on these repairs, I am sure he will be more than happy to share it with you if you call into his radio show.

[Dr Awesomesauce]

^Is it or is it not a double standard? People are slowly waking up to this fact.

Take me, for example: I own a home and have a nice shiny car. I also happen to come from a long line of True Blue Conservatives. And yet I'm open to spending more so that this city can improve its public transit situation. I'd likely never use LRT, except as a novelty perhaps. Most people I know feel similarly to me or are at least open to discussing the possibility of it. It's a grey world and the hypocrisy of the road's budget should be brought to light.

And, by the way, Scott Thompson speaks only for people who phone in to and listen to idiotic radio shows which is not the majority of Hamiltonians. It's time to stop pandering to a vocal minority.

[markbarbera]

Again, the list of projects, with the exception of Trinity Road, is driven by the need to upgrade an aging water and sewage system. I am pretty sure it us more than a visible minority that benefit from a working water and sewage system. Furthermore, the Trinity Road project has been subject to an EA and public consultation process that scanned the better part of a decade. There is a very weak case to argue any kind of double standard here, but don't let that stop you.

[ScreamingViking]

It will be interesting to see how this may play out on more of the street network, especially with respect to potential new bike lanes and one-way conversions with more curbside parking.


No need to reopen Claremont Access lane, city says
http://www.thespec.com/news-story/4510086-no-need-to-reopen-claremont-access-lane-city-says/

By Carmela Fragomeni

The city has no plans to reopen a lane on the Claremont Access.

The right lane, closed for two years by a rock slide, will likely close permanently. Lower traffic volumes render it unnecessary, says engineering services director Gary Moore.

"The plan is to leave that lane closed forever," he says. "Our anticipation is it is not needed."

The closure provides a larger buffer between the escarpment rock face and the rest of the road, he says.

Such lane closures — even in the absence of damages — could become common on lower city streets for the same reason — less traffic.

The Claremont is one of the city's main Mountain accesses and runs from Wellington to Upper James. The downbound portion feeds into Victoria Avenue.

Moore said 23,000 drivers a day were using it when it first opened more than four decades ago, mostly heading to and from work in the lower city. But downsizings and closures in the city's industrial heartland have significantly reduced that number.

And the Red Hill Valley Parkway, which opened in 2007, has shifted traffic patterns and absorbed some of the volume.

The downhill lanes were closed in February 2012 after a rock slide buckled a metal retaining wall and spilled mud and rocks onto the road. After city crews spent a few days cleaning up the mess, the right lane was left closed.

If the lane is closed permanently, the city will remove the rest of the retaining wall and shore up the rocks and escarpment face, Moore said.

Meanwhile, staff is also considering removing little-used lanes on lower city roads. Councillor Chad Collins, who has requested a staff report on the subject, says traffic flows on Mountain accesses are down substantially.

"Cannon has more lanes than required. If you look at Victoria, Wentworth and Wellington, they carry nowhere near the amount of traffic they used to," he said.

"They were all constructed at a time when our industrial sector was booming, when we had tens of thousands of people coming through on different work shifts" along with many more trucks carrying industrial materials, he said.

"Those roads were built for a higher use (than is the case now)."

Maintaining excess lanes, he says, is costly.

"We pay about $10,000 per kilometre per lane for summer and winter maintenance and repairs each year. So you look at streets that are four and five lanes wide. You do the math and you understand there's a substantial cost to maintaining and repairing those excess lanes … Taxpayers are paying to maintain lanes of traffic no longer needed."

On Burlington Street alone, it will cost $5 million to replace one of the road decks in need of repair in the next two years, he said.

Collins would prefer to see residents get their lawns back or roadside parking spots added if lanes are eliminated in front of their houses.

The Claremont is a good example of what would happen if lanes on more roads were eliminated, he says. "I don't believe it's missed. There have been no backups and no traffic congestion as a result."

Councillor Scott Duvall, whose ward includes the downhill Claremont lanes, says he had no complaints about the closed lane, but he wants an update on what's happening to it.

[email protected]

905-526-3392 | @CarmatTheSpec