Highways in Canada - Page 318

MonctonRad · #**6341** Posted **Jul 25, 2017, 3:33 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Proof Sheet

Most of NB looks like that from that highway. You literally see no towns and the road is just a clearing in the trees.

The TCH in NB is dreadful for scenery (except for portions of the route through the upper river valley). The entire stretch from Moncton through to Woodstock (about a 2.5 hour drive) is through the wilderness. The highway bypasses Fredericton partway through this stretch, and you would never guess that you're only 3-4 km from a city of 110,000.

There are three bands of civilization in NB:
1) - Fundy coast to Saint John, and then up the Kennebecasis & Petitcodiac river valleys to Moncton.
2) - Acadian coast along the Baie des Chaleur, La Peninsule Acadien and the Northumberland coast down to Moncton.
3) - Fredericton and the upper Saint John River valley

The rest of the province (at least 80%) is wilderness. The planners of the new TCH alignment took great care to make sure that the highway alignment is smack dab in the middle of this wilderness!!

This is incredibly sad because after living here awhile, I can guarantee you that some of the most scenic drives in the Maritimes are in fact in NB, mostly along the coastline and generally hidden from view from all those tourists racing to NS and PEI.........

MolsonExport · #**6342** Posted **Jul 25, 2017, 3:34 AM**

that road from Renous to Plaster Rock....has absolutely...nothing. Nothing at all.

swimmer_spe · #**6343** Posted **Jul 25, 2017, 3:38 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

The TCH in NB is dreadful for scenery (except for portions of the route through the upper river valley). The entire stretch from Moncton through to Woodstock (about a 2.5 hour drive) is through the wilderness. The highway bypasses Fredericton partway through this stretch, and you would never guess that you're only 3-4 km from a city of 110,000.

There are three bands of civilization in NB:
1) - Fundy coast to Saint John, and then up the Kennebecasis & Petitcodiac river valleys to Moncton.
2) - Acadian coast along the Baie des Chaleur, La Peninsule Acadien and the Northumberland coast down to Moncton.
3) - Fredericton and the upper Saint John River valley

The rest of the province (at least 80%) is wilderness. The planners of the new TCH alignment took great care to make sure that the highway alignment is smack dab in the middle of this wilderness!!

This is incredibly sad because after living here awhile, I can guarantee you that some of the most scenic drives in the Maritimes are in fact in NB, mostly along the coastline and generally hidden from view from all those tourists racing to NS and PEI.........

I have driven the TCH in NB. Agreed.

However, last summer, I drove Highway 11, right to Moncton. That is a gorgeous highway. The scenery is stunning.

SignalHillHiker · #**6344** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 12:15 AM**

Not a highway picture this time, but I realized tonight I've never shared this for this purpose.

Twice now I've seen Phil from The Once in concert solo (he's the band's guitarist). He's actually the writer of this song, even though Geraldine is associated with the vocals so it's generally understood from a female point of view.

Anyhow, last weekend for the second time I've heard him explain the inspiration.

He explained that nothing tests a relationship like driving across Newfoundland. 10 hours of nothing but trees, dozens of kilometres away from the sea and... life, really. So he was in a serious relationship with this girl, for several years, and they set out to drive from Port-aux-Basques to St. John's. And, he tells it in quite a humorous way but thickly accented so I can't really type it out... anyhow, by Deer Lake it was clear to both of them that it was over.

And this song was inspired by the silence and breakup that followed.

• Video Link

Now that's a highway.

Loco101 · #**6345** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 8:34 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

He explained that nothing tests a relationship like driving across Newfoundland. 10 hours of nothing but trees, dozens of kilometres away from the sea and... life, really. So he was in a serious relationship with this girl, for several years, and they set out to drive from Port-aux-Basques to St. John's. And, he tells it in quite a humorous way but thickly accented so I can't really type it out... anyhow, by Deer Lake it was clear to both of them that it was over.

And this song was inspired by the silence and breakup that followed.

Now that's a highway.

I've driven the Trans Canada Highway across Newfoundland. I'd say that Highway 11 through Northern Ontario is even worse in the sense that there's not much along the way. Most people find the stretch between Hearst and Longlac to be the most difficult. But I do enjoy the trees, animals and bodies of water along both highways.

SignalHillHiker · #**6346** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 1:51 PM**

A big change happened here without us noticing.

I'll get a pic next I'm past Whitbourne (where the divided highway ends and it becomes mostly a three-lane highway with alternating passing lane).

milomilo · #**6347** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 2:17 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

A big change happened here without us noticing.

[IMG]http://i64.tinypic.com/71l6bn.png[IMG]

I'll get a pic next I'm past Whitbourne (where the divided highway ends and it becomes mostly a three-day highway with alternating passing lane).

I actually dislike the way this is done in Canada. The left hand lane is an overtaking lane, of course they should yield to the traffic on the right which may be a slow moving truck which can't go any faster, or just doing the speed limit when the left lane isn't. It's much easier for the faster vehicle to slow down and merge than vice versa.

The beginning of additional climbing lane sections is similarly wrong and encourages the poor lane discipline we see everywhere - because it is always an additional lane on the right people just lazily stay in their own lane, wasting that additional lane. I've seen trucks going 80km/h straight up the middle - if they don't think the climbing lane is for them, who is it for? It is much more logical to add the additional lane on the left, so people can just stay in their lane, and overtake using the left lane if neccesary.

The design and rules regarding freeways/Autobahns/Motorways etc in general is far better in Europe than here, this country just doesn't seem to 'get' that these are meant to be high capacity roadways not just country roads with extra lanes.

SignalHillHiker · #**6348** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 2:18 PM**

Update, MartyMcFly confirms even farther from St. John's it goes back to the old way

.

Proof Sheet · #**6349** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 2:22 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

that road from Renous to Plaster Rock....has absolutely...nothing. Nothing at all.

Well there was this...

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/wayne-rattray-murder-tilley-renous-remains-1.3608774

not a good news story. The victim is the uncle of a professional colleague of mine.

I flew in and out of St Leonard once and headed via plane to Bathurst. Literally 5 km east of St Leonard the ground below is all logging and bush almost all the way to Bathurst.

MonctonRad · #**6350** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 2:35 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

that road from Renous to Plaster Rock....has absolutely...nothing. Nothing at all.

If you're going to be driving the Renous Highway (using the term "highway" liberally), make sure you have a full tank of gas, some extra food and water and bring along a blanket. Bug spray in the summer might be a good idea too - just in case. Cell phone coverage is pretty spotty........

MolsonExport · #**6351** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 4:36 PM**

I have done that drive about a dozen times. We used to vacation in PEI, and back then that was the shortest route. The TC was not twinned throughout NB back in those days (1980s).

wave46 · #**6352** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 9:43 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loco101

I've driven the Trans Canada Highway across Newfoundland. I'd say that Highway 11 through Northern Ontario is even worse in the sense that there's not much along the way. Most people find the stretch between Hearst and Longlac to be the most difficult. But I do enjoy the trees, animals and bodies of water along both highways.

Can confirm for the stretch between Hearst and Longlac. Set the cruise at 115-120 (there's no cops), cue up a podcast and appreciate the vastness and emptiness of the country.

Laceoflight · #**6353** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 10:10 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by FrAnKs

New video !

This time, I am Covering the NB2 ( New Brunswick Route 2) also part of the Trans-Canada Highway going through the Appalachian Hills.
The video starts near Hartland and goes to Edmundston near the Québec border for a total distance of ±142km in 10 minutes.
Enjoy !

• Video Link

Awesome video, Franks!
The USA flag floating around... Made me laugh

SignalHillHiker · #**6354** Posted **Jul 27, 2017, 10:19 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by wave46

Can confirm for the stretch between Hearst and Longlac. Set the cruise at 115-120 (there's no cops), cue up a podcast and appreciate the vastness and emptiness of the country.

I don't remember any of the town names, but I moved to Kenora, Ontario in... I believe it was 2005. My father and I drove from St. John's to there. I remember reaching Halifax (we went a little out-of-the-way to stay with relatives) and thinking, this is halfway to Toronto, so give or take a few hours, I'm basically half way there. And the Halifax leg alone was endless. It took us almost two days to drive there, with the ferry and a delay.

We get to Sault Ste. Marie and I'm thinking, OK, Kenora is the next town by now?

The drive was beautiful, though. 120 the whole way, a hideous but convenient little gas station town every so often. But endless. It was... in my mind now, all these years later, I remember the relentless feeling of "Are we there yet?" driving from Sault to Kenora more than I remember the entire rest of the drive, which DELIGHTED me in Quebec.

vid · #**6355** Posted **Jul 28, 2017, 2:30 AM**

It's kinda funny reading these because as someone who lives here, I consider towns 100km away to be "right there". I look at Nipigon and Schreiber on a map and think "wow, they're practically a single community!"

You can hopscotch local buses from Barrie to Niagara Falls, so I think of them as practically being neighbours. Realtors advertise rural properties here with lines like "It's only 120km away from the airport!"

swimmer_spe · #**6356** Posted **Jul 28, 2017, 2:35 AM**

I live in Sudbury.

At Highway 17, there are mile markers that are in the 1500s. That is the distance to Manitoba.

1500km to Manitoba!

vid · #**6357** Posted **Jul 28, 2017, 3:00 AM**

You have mile markers? We literally don't have mile markers here. We got fire numbers in 2012 I think. People still use RRs for mailing.

swimmer_spe · #**6358** Posted **Jul 28, 2017, 4:32 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by vid

You have mile markers? We literally don't have mile markers here. We got fire numbers in 2012 I think. People still use RRs for mailing.

Many of the major highways in Northern Ontario are getting them. I have seen them on 17, 11, 144, and a few others.

Loco101 · #**6359** Posted **Jul 28, 2017, 4:37 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by vid

You have mile markers? We literally don't have mile markers here. We got fire numbers in 2012 I think. People still use RRs for mailing.

Most of the main highways in the Northeast now have kilometre markers on them. Odd numbers are on one side of the road and even on the other.

Here is one a KM 2 on Hwy 17 just East of the Manitoba border: https://www.google.ca/maps/@49.7404468,-...lVwa5LVp2wWvpVmxGmKIw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

I don't think they bothered with a KM 1 because it's pretty obvious where you are at that point.

By fire numbers you mean those little green (sometimes blue) signs at the end up driveways with the numbers on them right? They were done in my region maybe 10-12 years ago in rural areas within municipal boundaries. There are still a number of unorganized townships where there is nothing at all for emergency services. The fire numbers are basically the address for the dwelling or property.

Because I work in government, I know that there a move to get rid of P.O. box numbers and RRs and simply go with addresses. My parent used to have a box number at the post office. They still have a post office box but the boxes at that post office now just go by house addresses.

Getting back to kilometre markers: Can anybody find the one with the highest number in Ontario? (Is on on Highway 17 or 11?)

Airboy · #**6360** Posted **Jul 28, 2017, 4:48 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by swimmer_spe

I live in Sudbury.

At Highway 17, there are mile markers that are in the 1500s. That is the distance to Manitoba.

1500km to Manitoba!

I remember the last time I drove from TO to Edmonton. About 24hrs of driving from TO to Winnipeg. then 18 hrs from Winnipeg to Edmonton.

Kinda makes you appreciate the size of the country.