Roads/Bridges projects/issues

[waterloowarrior]

@citizenduffy 1m
The Rockcliffe Parkway is being renamed in honour of Sir George-Etienne Cartier, John A. Macdonald's political partner. #ottnews

[rocketphish]

Rockcliffe Parkway renamed for George-Étienne Cartier

Andrew Duffy, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: September 6, 2014, Last Updated: September 6, 2014 6:21 PM EDT


Ottawa-Orleans MP Royal Galipeau and National Capital Commission CEO Mark Kristmanson unveil the new name of the Rockcliffe Parkway.

The scenic Rockcliffe Parkway has been renamed in honour of George-Étienne Cartier, a central player in the drama of Canada’s nationhood.

National Capital Commission CEO Mark Kristmanson and Ottawa-Orléans MP Royal Galipeau unveiled Saturday a roadside marker with the new name on the 200th anniversary of Cartier’s birth.

Two years ago, the NCC renamed the Ottawa River Parkway after Canada’s first prime minister and foremost nation maker, John A. Macdonald. Renaming the Rockcliffe Parkway after Cartier — Macdonald’s key ally and political partner in the Confederation project — adds an important layer of symbolism to Ottawa’s parkway system, Kristmanson said.

“It is fitting that the two parkways that connect east and west Ottawa should be named after the two men who worked side-by-side to link Canada from coast to coast,” he said.

Galipeau, who lobbied the federal government to make the change, was delighted with the initiative to honour Cartier.

“I do not believe we could pay tribute to him in a more befitting manner,” Galipeau told reporters at the ceremony.

Cartier, a Montreal lawyer and the most important political figure in Quebec at the time, worked with Macdonald to set in motion the events that led to Confederation and to convince Quebecers that the new country would serve their political interests.

At the time, the British colonies in North America were under threat from the United States, which had designs on annexation, and were beset by political deadlock in the parliament that united Upper and Lower Canada.

“Cartier balanced religious, political and regional animosities,” Galipeau said, “and masterfully manoeuvred a tumultuous and fragmented colony, paralyzed by a union government, into a federation of provinces.”

Cartier, one of the Fathers of Confederation, served as this country’s first defence minister. He also helped to negotiate the entry of British Columbia and Manitoba into Confederation and was a vocal proponent of the transcontinental railway that would unite the country after his death in 1873. Cartier was 58 when he died of Bright’s disease.

Galipeau said Cartier should be remembered as a nation builder who helped to achieve “a confederation that accommodated and respected differences.”

It’s unconscionable, Galipeau noted, that the site of Cartier’s former home in Ottawa at the corner of Metcalfe Street and Laurier Avenue does not even bear a plaque.

“If you travel to Washington, or anywhere in the U.S., you will find a plaque anywhere George Washington laid his head, or where Thomas Jefferson tipped his hat,” he said. “Here in Canada, we don’t do that sort of thing — and I think we should should because Confederation was a very, very difficult project. And our fathers need to be better recognized.”

[email protected]

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/rockliffe-parkway-renamed-for-george-etienne-cartier

[danishh]

macdonald-cartier bridge linking hull with lowertown
macdonald-cartier freeway running through upper canada along the st lawrence towards quebec
macdonald-cartier international airport in ottawa

how many tax dollars have been wasted in this mostly redundant renaming the ottawa river parkway and the rockliffe parkway???

[MaxHeadroom]

I really hate when the names of existing landmarks are renamed for somebody else. But we can't name something new after anyone because we haven't built something really new!

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by danishh

macdonald-cartier freeway running through upper canada along the st lawrence towards quebec

Ontario has largely ceased using the Macdonald-Cartier Freeway name for the 401. The MTO never uses that name anymore, the signs for it are almost all taken down now (I think a few rusty ones remain) and most people don't know the name anymore especially the younger generation. Sort of like how the name 'Queensway' for the 417 is falling out of fashion, except more pronounced.

[rocketphish]

City expands Springhurst Park
Group touts green space protection as victory against Alta Vista corridor

By Laura Mueller
Ottawa East News, Sep 18, 2014

It doesn't look any different, but Springhurst Park just grew more than twice its size.

The Old Ottawa East green space was expanded when the city dedicated an additional 2.5 acres of an adjacent city-owned field as parkland for a total of 4.1 acres.

The mostly invisible victory is a big coup for the local community association, which has been battling the city's longstanding plans to run an elevated parkway known as the Alta Vista Transportation Corridor (AVTC) through the field at 160 Lees Ave.

While the expanded parkland dedication doesn't protect the entire field beside the Lees Avenue apartment towers, the move is being touted as a victory against the AVTC.

"This is really good news. This is real progress," Old Ottawa East Community Association president John Dance told association members during a Sept. 9 meeting.

"Now the challenge it make sure the addition becomes a real part of the park and there never again is contemplation that the lands will be used for an AVTC," Dance said in an email after the meeting.

The transportation corridor's status was demoted in a recent update of the city's transportation master plan last fall, meaning construction of the proposed roadway is no longer imminent and likely wouldn't be contemplated for at least 15 years.

The plan to expand the park was originally revealed as part of the transit-oriented development plan for Lees Station. The area is set to grow, with zoning that allows some of the tallest buildings in the city, so expanding the park was proposed as a way to provide recreational space for the growing population.

Capital Coun. David Chernushenko said no improvements have been proposed for the additional area that's been added to the park and no money is currently available for any work. The space already functions as parkland and is used by local sports groups as an informal field.

And while the city wouldn't put anything in the corridor of land that must be reserved for the new road, Chernushenko said he would like to pursue improvements to grade and fix up the surface of the field area, including adding goal posts.

"It would be 15 years minimum before anything would be done with the AVTC ... that would be 15 wasted years," Chernushenko said.

The city will have to be careful what kinds of construction are undertaken in the area because underground contamination of coal and other fuel waste could balloon the cost of any improvements, Chernushenko said.

The councillor said it's still likely there will be some sort of roadway through the field in the future, but he hopes it would be a pedestrian-friendly main street.

"The idea of an elevated four-lane parkway - we all oppose it and I don't think we'll ever see that," Chernushenko said. "If we do, it's a long way away."

http://www.ottawacommunitynews.com/news-story/4867203-city-expands-springhurst-park/

[1overcosc]

Shame. I'm against the ATC, but I think the corridor should be reserved for use as a possible revival of the railway to Union Station downtown. Such a railway could have used the ATC row just before dipping under Lees as a tunnel. It could have been a bored tunnel up to Colonel By Drive, then Colonel By could have closed to have the rest of the tunnel dug as cut-and-cover under Colonel By.

[waterloowarrior]

http://ottawa.ca/en/news/huntmar-campeau-roundabout-open-today

Huntmar-Campeau Roundabout open today
24 September 2014
Public Service Announcement
Ottawa – Residents travelling along Huntmar Drive will experience two permanent changes in traffic flow beginning today.

First, Huntmar Drive, north of Palladium Drive, is again open to traffic. This section of Huntmar Drive has been closed due to construction since June 9.

Second, the intersection of Huntmar Drive and Campeau Drive has been turned into a roundabout. The roundabout will be expanded to a two lane roundabout in the coming weeks. In the meantime, it will be operated under construction conditions.

[umbria27]

Article in the CBC about pedestrian right of way on roundabouts:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rou...ehicles-frustrating-for-ottawa-1.2791874

Unlike every other crosswalk in Ottawa, those around a roundabout do not prioritize pedestrians. This surprised me. I've been yielding to pedestrians when I enter the Brookfield roundabout

[waterloowarrior]

Originally Posted by umbria27

Article in the CBC about pedestrian right of way on roundabouts:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rou...ehicles-frustrating-for-ottawa-1.2791874

Unlike every other crosswalk in Ottawa, those around a roundabout do not prioritize pedestrians. This surprised me. I've been yielding to pedestrians when I enter the Brookfield roundabout

I learned how to use roundabouts in the Waterloo area and they have signs everywhere and education campaigns telling people to yield to pedestrians. Very confusing coming back to Ottawa and they say cars have the right of way.

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by waterloowarrior

I learned how to use roundabouts in the Waterloo area and they have signs everywhere and education campaigns telling people to yield to pedestrians. Very confusing coming back to Ottawa and they say cars have the right of way.

Odd. The article said the HTA put vehicles first, and Waterloo would obviously be required to follow it. Perhaps it's a grey zone in the HTA?

Also the article says that amendments to the HTA have now been pushed back to early 2015. If it weren't for the election it would have been law by now (it was one of the bills that died with the election call).

Not too sure about the effect on roundabouts, but I do know that the HTA amendment will (provided it's reintroduced as identical to the one that died):
1) Give pedestrians right of way at unsignalized crosswalks (making "courtesy crossings" no longer a courtesy). This may include roundabouts.
2) Mandate vehicles to remain 1m away from cyclists at all times. This is already a guideline in the driver's handbook but not legally required
3) Demerit points can now be given for texting and driving
4) Significantly increase the punishment for dooring a cyclist

[Cre47]

Another 6 km of Highway 5 in Chelsea just opened today. So A-5 is now continous all the way to Wakefield Village

[acottawa]

The previous transport minister refused to legislate on roundabouts
http://metronews.ca/news/kitchener/785250/minister-rejects-roundabout-legislation/

Not sure if the current Minister has different views

[Horus]

Originally Posted by waterloowarrior

I learned how to use roundabouts in the Waterloo area and they have signs everywhere and education campaigns telling people to yield to pedestrians. Very confusing coming back to Ottawa and they say cars have the right of way.

Same here. Waterloo did a very nice job of educating motorists on proper roundabout etiquette and usage. Here's their updated video on Pedestrians

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7Svgp6xgto#t=6m27s

To me, that is much more sensible than what they've done at the roundabouts along Boul des Allumettières in Hull. It takes a pedestrian approx 10sec to cross a roundabout section. By installing those ridiculous pedestrian traffic lights, they've increased stopping time to 30sec+ and completely defeated the purpose of a roundabout.

Without direction to yield to pedestrians, a busy roundabout would become virtually impossible to cross on foot.

[1overcosc]

Amendments to the Highway Traffic Act were introduced today in Queen's Park. From the press release at http://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2014/10/making-ontarios-roads-safer-6.html I found the following set of amendments that are of interest to pedestrians & cyclists.

-Requiring drivers to yield the whole roadway to pedestrians at school crossings and pedestrian crossovers.
-Amending the HTA to allow for new pedestrian crossing devices on low-speed and low-volume roads as requested by municipalities.

-Allowing cyclists to use the paved shoulders on unrestricted provincial highways to promote safer opportunities to cycle.
-Supporting cycling in urban areas by allowing municipalities to create contraflow bicycle lanes to provide more direct routes and connectivity. A contraflow lane is a lane in which traffic flows in the opposite direction of the surrounding lanes as would be the case on a one-way street.
-Increasing the fine range for convictions of dooring of cyclists from $60 to $500, to $300 to $1,000 and raising the demerit points from two to three.
-Requiring all drivers to maintain a distance of one metre when passing cyclists, where practicable.
-Increasing the maximum fine from $20 to a set fine amount that falls in the range of $60 to $500 for not using required bicycle lights and other reflectors/reflective material; and permit the use of flashing red lights as a safety feature on bicycles.

This last one is nice for Ottawa specifically:

The proposed legislation would also improve municipalities' ability to charge and prosecute individuals from out-of-province who run red lights and fail to stop for school buses.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

The proposed legislation would also improve municipalities' ability to charge and prosecute individuals from out-of-province who run red lights and fail to stop for school buses.
:

Oh, oh. Looks like I am going to have to start being more careful when I am in Ottawa. (Red lights of course, not school buses.)

[eternallyme]

Regarding the extension of Autoroute 5, is there any chance it could be extended beyond Wakefield, i.e. towards Maniwaki? What are traffic counts like beyond Wakefield?

[Kitchissippi]

it will be a long time before they can even think of extending it, at least 30+ years, even 50. The traffic counts on the A-5 are really low, the issues had more to do with safety. The last bit will take care if the worst of the narrow roadway and blind curves, beyond that the Gatineau River valley opens up and highway 105 has frequent passing lanes.

[wingman]

Agreed. I would like a revisit of the A-550 (a planned connector between the 50 at the curve and the 5 in Chelsea). It would help with the general flow and redirect some rush hour traffic. Though the MTQ said it is not necessary, I drive the 50 almost every day I would disagree.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by eternallyme

Regarding the extension of Autoroute 5, is there any chance it could be extended beyond Wakefield, i.e. towards Maniwaki? What are traffic counts like beyond Wakefield?

It is being extended a few more km north of the section just opened (still in the Wakefield area) and then that will be it for the foreseeable future.