Calgary Public Transit II - Page 475

MasterG · #**9481** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 3:47 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Full Mountain

This is an interesting challenge, would think that Heritage Properties would make it uneconomical to buy the snowden building from them given the amount of work they've put into it.

IMO I think they could take away 2 lanes on 11th and there would still be plenty of room for vehicles.

I don't understand the issue that has the community worked up, is the plan to take two lanes from 11th Street? That area has always been a bit of a run-down ghost town every time I have been there. Is there significant traffic during rush hours?

Surely an on-street bus-way / low-floor LRT is capable of fitting there. Add a stop and you might actually add some people to the area which could make businesses viable along that stretch.

Does anyone have a link to a map of the proposal? I don't quite get what the hooplah is all about.

CalgaryAlex · #**9482** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 3:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Full Mountain

This is an interesting challenge, would think that Heritage Properties would make it uneconomical to buy the snowden building from them given the amount of work they've put into it.

IMO I think they could take away 2 lanes on 11th and there would still be plenty of room for vehicles.

It's really too bad CP has pulled back on this a bit. However, other than chopping off the back of a couple heritage buildings (and the Shamrock), there isn't too much at risk along that stretch. In this context, it's good that the redevelopment of 11th St has taken so long to come to fruition, or this process would be much harder.

I wonder if the city will also have to buy land from Lilydale? That might mean Lilydale would consider selling the property in full. That potential alone would probably lead Ramsay residents to overwhelmingly approve such an alignment.

In any case, it will be great when 11th St becomes a nice mixed-use corridor straight from Inglewood to Crossroads. I would love to see that Inland plant cement closed and replaced, as well.

CalgaryAlex · #**9483** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 3:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MasterG

I don't understand the issue that has the community worked up, is the plan to take two lanes from 11th Street? That area has always been a bit of a run-down ghost town every time I have been there. Is there significant traffic during rush hours?

Surely an on-street bus-way / low-floor LRT is capable of fitting there. Add a stop and you might actually add some people to the area which could make businesses viable along that stretch.

Does anyone have a link to a map of the proposal? I don't quite get what the hooplah is all about.

As I understand it, the plan Ramsay residents want is to follow the curve of the CP track that does an S-curve from ~17th Ave, behind the Inland plant (where I believe the CP tracks have been removed), to Crossroads... unless I am getting this horribly wrong.

UofC.engineer · #**9484** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 3:58 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MasterG

I don't understand the issue that has the community worked up, is the plan to take two lanes from 11th Street? That area has always been a bit of a run-down ghost town every time I have been there. Is there significant traffic during rush hours?

Surely an on-street bus-way / low-floor LRT is capable of fitting there. Add a stop and you might actually add some people to the area which could make businesses viable along that stretch.

Does anyone have a link to a map of the proposal? I don't quite get what the hooplah is all about.

Exactly, I don't understand it either. 11th is just one of many inner city roads that is disgustingly over sized. (10,000 cars/day)

http://www.calgary.ca/Transportation/TP/Documents/data/traffic_flow_maps/2012_flowmap_city.pdf

Also, why doesn't CP want to sell the land? Its just going to lay fallow not generating any income for them.

suburbia · #**9485** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 4:04 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by UofC.engineer

Exactly, I don't understand it either. 11th is just one of many inner city roads that is disgustingly over sized. (10,000 cars/day)

I couldn't find where it says 10K/day for 11th. That colour stands for 10K to 25K/day, a big range. That is not an insignificant number, though it is all relative.

UofC.engineer · #**9486** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 4:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by suburbia

I couldn't find where it says 10K/day for 11th. That colour stands for 10K to 25K/day, a big range. That is not an insignificant number, though it is all relative.

Open the map then zoom in on 11th street and it displays the number 10,000.

You Need A Thneed · #**9487** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 7:01 PM**

Here is the right of way that the city has planned the line to go in (CP train moving on the right).

It's tight, especially since the approed alignment has the LRT above grade here to curve over the CP tracks.

Picture mine.

If you look closely, you can see CP siding tracks in the grass, that are pretty much abandoned, but the city would have to have that space to make anything work.

Full Mountain · #**9488** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 8:16 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MasterG

I don't understand the issue that has the community worked up, is the plan to take two lanes from 11th Street? That area has always been a bit of a run-down ghost town every time I have been there. Is there significant traffic during rush hours?

Surely an on-street bus-way / low-floor LRT is capable of fitting there. Add a stop and you might actually add some people to the area which could make businesses viable along that stretch.

Does anyone have a link to a map of the proposal? I don't quite get what the hooplah is all about.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CalgaryAlex

It's really too bad CP has pulled back on this a bit. However, other than chopping off the back of a couple heritage buildings (and the Shamrock), there isn't too much at risk along that stretch. In this context, it's good that the redevelopment of 11th St has taken so long to come to fruition, or this process would be much harder.

I wonder if the city will also have to buy land from Lilydale? That might mean Lilydale would consider selling the property in full. That potential alone would probably lead Ramsay residents to overwhelmingly approve such an alignment.

In any case, it will be great when 11th St becomes a nice mixed-use corridor straight from Inglewood to Crossroads. I would love to see that Inland plant cement closed and replaced, as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CalgaryAlex

As I understand it, the plan Ramsay residents want is to follow the curve of the CP track that does an S-curve from ~17th Ave, behind the Inland plant (where I believe the CP tracks have been removed), to Crossroads... unless I am getting this horribly wrong.

I believe the initial plan was to place the busway on the west side of 11th taking out the businesses that are there. There are a couple 2 storey office buildings, a number of automotive businesses and the shamrock. I'm not sure that this is a fight worth having, this is a primarily auto oriented street, with businesses to match, for the 10k cars/day having a 2 lane road with 2 bus lanes is a far better use of space than the current road is.

Policy Wonk · #**9489** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 8:47 PM**

I wouldn't make any long-term decisions around anything CP Rail says or does at the moment. CP Rail is scrutinizing every inch of their urban real estate for development potential to "unlock shareholder value". There is a completely different bunch of people working on this now and they're unlikely to make any commitment at this time because they just don't know anything.

The Palliser Station Grounds are also likely to go on the block in this process, those being a natural end-point for an at-grade SELRT.

UofC.engineer · #**9490** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 9:19 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Policy Wonk

I wouldn't make any long-term decisions around anything CP Rail says or does at the moment. CP Rail is scrutinizing every inch of their urban real estate for development potential to "unlock shareholder value". There is a completely different bunch of people working on this now and they're unlikely to make any commitment at this time because they just don't know anything.

The Palliser Station Grounds are also likely to go on the block in this process, those being a natural end-point for an at-grade SELRT.

I wonder how much area of land CP owns in inner city Calgary? They could probably make a pretty penny if they wanted to sell it all.

UofC.engineer · #**9491** Posted **Mar 13, 2015, 9:22 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by You Need A Thneed

Here is the right of way that the city has planned the line to go in (CP train moving on the right).

It's tight, especially since the approed alignment has the LRT above grade here to curve over the CP tracks.

Picture mine.

If you look closely, you can see CP siding tracks in the grass, that are pretty much abandoned, but the city would have to have that space to make anything work.

The city could make it happen! That looks to be about 35 feet. Why not just shave off the corner of the Snowden building?

Policy Wonk · #**9492** Posted **Mar 14, 2015, 1:29 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by UofC.engineer

I wonder how much area of land CP owns in inner city Calgary? They could probably make a pretty penny if they wanted to sell it all.

Not entirely, since the tracks themselves aren't going anywhere. But all the infrastructure for Palliser Station can be eliminated, the plan as of a few years ago was to realign the track from 7th Street S.E. to 11th Street S.W. to double-track and then lay double-track as far as the yard west of Stoney Trail.

The removal of the remaining passenger infrastructure would make room for an at-grade SELRT to traverse downtown as far as 11th Street S.W.

The old tracks at the station aren't used for much other than parking the Rocky Mountaineer.

MalcolmTucker · #**9493** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 3:27 AM**

I'd still like to see pictures of the station infrastructure - there doesn't seem to be any easily google images-able.

Policy Wonk · #**9494** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 3:57 AM**

There just isn't much to see. There is a waiting room and bathrooms for the Rocky Mountaineer and a hallway that leads to the platform. I think the baggage carousel is still there. Even when the current station opened it was extremely austere, CP Rail already wanted out of the passenger business at that time.

Some of the space is (or was) used as a social club for CP Rail retirees. I don't know if or how the theatre encroaches on the space.

Policy Wonk · #**9495** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 4:09 AM**

Waymarketing

Massey F. Jones

MalcolmTucker · #**9496** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 4:18 AM**

Ahh cool. Thanks! So the platforms each have stairs right now?

Policy Wonk · #**9497** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 4:31 AM**

The multiple platforms are mostly a relic of the earlier station. If you had to step across the tracks you looked both ways, looked down to make sure you weren't stepping in shit and walked across the tracks.

If you went there when the Rocky Mountaineer was arriving or departing I doubt anyone would stop you from looking around.

UofC.engineer · #**9498** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 3:48 PM**

New video of SE Transitway

• Video Link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snY-y6HxSho&feature=youtu.be

Fuzz · #**9499** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 4:13 PM**

That video makes me want to ride the whole damn thing on a road bike. droool.

CalgaryAlex · #**9500** Posted **Mar 16, 2015, 6:01 PM**

The potential for TOD around those stations is incredible, straight from downtown to the end of the line.