Highways in Canada

[ssiguy]

Calgary's ring road may look like overkill but from a BC perspective we could only dream of such a highway and transportation planning.

[Corndogger]

Originally Posted by ssiguy

Calgary's ring road may look like overkill but from a BC perspective we could only dream of such a highway and transportation planning.

The fact that some sections have already been expanded and others are in the design stages to be expanded, I'd say the freeway is not overkill at all.

As for B.C.'s (read Vancouver's) crappy/nonexistent freeway system, don't you guys have an election coming up very soon? Vote out the current guys who have either canceled, significantly scaled back and/or delayed damn near every major road project that was on the books. Some of the projects that were proposed about five years ago would have been a great start and a few of them looked pretty damn cool.

[milomilo]

Originally Posted by Taeolas

Looks like they are trying to future proof it by having space (including space under the bridges) to switch to an Express + Collector highway design in the future. The Median is certainly wide enough that you could put a second Express highway through there comfortably.

Though it is hard to imagine there being enough traffic to need ~8 lanes of highway. Is that area of Calgary anticipated to have anywhere near that much traffic?

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Toronto redux/delusions of grandeur.

Even the current 10 lane configuration is wildly optimistic.

The province has specifically stated that any plans to build the second freeway down the middle were abandoned before construction even started, but they didn't change the design. Sheer incompetence by a government that had been in power for 40 years and didn't have to spend much of that time being fiscally prudent. Now we have to witness that waste for the rest of our lives driving past this 100m wide wasteland of a median.

[Corndogger]

Originally Posted by milomilo

The province has specifically stated that any plans to build the second freeway down the middle were abandoned before construction even started, but they didn't change the design. Sheer incompetence by a government that had been in power for 40 years and didn't have to spend much of that time being fiscally prudent. Now we have to witness that waste for the rest of our lives driving past this 100m wide wasteland of a median.

Why are you repeating the same lie again when about two years ago we presented a ton of evidence including video footage that proved that what you're saying is complete nonsense?

[milomilo]

Originally Posted by Corndogger

Why are you repeating the same lie again when about two years ago we presented a ton of evidence including video footage that proved that what you're saying is complete nonsense?

Mason blames PCs for 'overbuilt' S.W. ring road, says it's too late to change

I'll let everyone else decide if what I just posted is a lie.

[sonysnob]

^ That could just be a politician deflecting some heat from his constituents on a previous government too, regardless of what his (and his government's) private opinion is. But that's not something an outsider can ever truly know.

[haljackey]

Still, what's wrong with a wide-boi median?

Good for drainage and the distance helps reduce glare from oncoming traffic's headlights. I hate it when lifted vehicles with aftermarket lights drive by me- I'm blinded!

[jamincan]

Originally Posted by haljackey

Still, what's wrong with a wide-boi median?

Good for drainage and the distance helps reduce glare from oncoming traffic's headlights. I hate it when lifted vehicles with aftermarket lights drive by me- I'm blinded!

I don't think the median is problematic in and of itself, the bridge structures have got to be significantly more costly, though.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by jamincan

I don't think the median is problematic in and of itself, the bridge structures have got to be significantly more costly, though.

This, and it's just a God awful waste of space. I sympathize with the glare of oncoming headlights, but you could address this problem by just planting trees in the median. The medians here in NB are about 75% forested.

[swimmer_spe]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

This, and it's just a God awful waste of space. I sympathize with the glare of oncoming headlights, but you could address this problem by just planting trees in the median. The medians here in NB are about 75% forested.

The wide medians and long bridges makes adding lanes easier. If they had went with shorter bridges, they would be doing what ON is doing to the 400 to fit 12 lanes of traffic.

[jamincan]

Originally Posted by swimmer_spe

The wide medians and long bridges makes adding lanes easier. If they had went with shorter bridges, they would be doing what ON is doing to the 400 to fit 12 lanes of traffic.

Maybe that's the case. The reality is that most of those bridges on the 400 (similarly with the 401 expansion west of Mississauga) were due for replacement anyway.

[Innsertnamehere]

Originally Posted by jamincan

Maybe that's the case. The reality is that most of those bridges on the 400 (similarly with the 401 expansion west of Mississauga) were due for replacement anyway.

Yup. most of the bridges on the 400 date from the early 1950's. They were built to handle enough road capacity for 70 years, and needed to be demolished anyway.

I think MTO has put off widening the 400 longer than it would have otherwise because of them though, as they have created issues with widening. MTO didn't spend a dime on the 400 for decades though so they have a lot of catching up to do.

The oldest bridges in the 400 series network, over the 401 in Oshawa, are all getting replaced in the next couple of years and they date from the 1930's! The 401 through Oshawa began construction in 1939, didn't open until 1942 due to materials shortages, and didn't get paved until after WW2 (it operated as a gravel road for a while). There are also a handful of bridges on the QEW dating from 1937, but none are overpasses so you don't really see them driving down the highway. The Etobicoke Creek brdige is getting replaced right now, but the Bronte Creek and Credit River bridges are being retained and have been or are about to be restored.

[Airboy]

Both the Henday and Stoney trail were not built correctly in my opinion. Originally they were under designed. They should have collector lanes to accelerator or decelerate properly. Should never come off an on ramp directly into the high speed lanes. That seeks to be where the bottle necks are currently.

Plus building them out as 4 lanes instead of six was wrong. The population growth at the time was significate that you could see they would need the extra lanes sooner rather than later at a greater cost.

They did design the West side Henday bride for another lane. But they are still doing quite a bit of extra work to add it now.

[itom 987]

Originally Posted by ssiguy

Calgary's ring road may look like overkill but from a BC perspective we could only dream of such a highway and transportation planning.

The Alberta government always overestimates infrastructure projects for Calgary and underestimates infrastructure projects for Edmonton. It pisses me off to no end.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by swimmer_spe

It seems BC sets their speed limits right. It is not a limit due to some nanny state, but a limit that if you go over it, you die. 120 km/hr on a mountain freeway and 100km/hr on a 2 lane mountain highway is about as fast as one would want to go.

If Ontario did that, 100km/hr in the GTA makes sense as you cannot go faster than that. BC even has changeable signs. That should exist on all major highways.

For the most part I agree about BC, but I think some of the speed limits are artificially low in Metro Vancouver:

- Highway 1 drops down to 90 westbound before the Port Mann Bridge, drops further to 80 past Grandview Highway, and then down to 70 before the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge. 80 is way too low through the Cassiar Tunnel, IMO. In North Vancouver, the speed limit is also artificially low.

- Highway 99 drops down to 60 northbound a short distance north of Highway 91. It feels ridiculously low, at least up until you reach the Marine Drive interchange.

- Also on Highway 99, the speed limit around Lion’s Bay is only 60. The reason for that speed limit, from my understanding, is not connected at all to safety and is for the benefit of some very well-off locals who don’t like highway noise.

[theman23]

Originally Posted by manny_santos

For the most part I agree about BC, but I think some of the speed limits are artificially low in Metro...

- Also on Highway 99, the speed limit around Lion’s Bay is only 60. The reason for that speed limit, from my understanding, is not connected at all to safety and is for the benefit of some very well-off locals who don’t like highway noise.

This one is also a favourite for police speed traps, no doubt because they know it’s far too low and pretty much everyone ignores it unless the police are there.

[libtard]

Originally Posted by haljackey

Still, what's wrong with a wide-boi median?

Good for drainage and the distance helps reduce glare from oncoming traffic's headlights. I hate it when lifted vehicles with aftermarket lights drive by me- I'm blinded!

Exactly

Nothing wrong the the wide median

[The Great Scaper]

This is a new interchange that's being built in Victoria. It's the trans Canada highway and McKenzie Ave. It's taken an extremely long time to construct.

Trans Canada Highway and McKenzie interchange, Victoria B.C. Canada by thegreatscaper, on Flickr

Trans Canada Highway and McKenzie interchange, Victoria B.C. Canada by thegreatscaper, on Flickr

[Harrison]

Originally Posted by itom 987

The Alberta government always overestimates infrastructure projects for Calgary and underestimates infrastructure projects for Edmonton. It pisses me off to no end.

The SW and SE Henday, both built as 4 lanes initially, are great examples. Now, the GOA is widening the SW section to 6 lanes, as they severely underestimated the population growth in the SW part of the city.

[Airboy]

Originally Posted by Harrison

The SW and SE Henday, both built as 4 lanes initially, are great examples. Now, the GOA is widening the SW section to 6 lanes, as they severely underestimated the population growth in the SW part of the city.

Then there is also the section from Campbell road to fort road. Always a bottle neck. Has been sine it opened.