[St. John's] Transport development (Highways, Airport, and Public Transit)

[Arrakis]

Work seems to be resuming on part of the bifurcation road near Old Pennywell Road. They have a section of Old Pennywell Road that will go over the new highway diverted now so they can build the overpass. Also in the distance is another overpass being constructed which I think is for the feeder road from the Old Pennywell/Columbus Drive intersection. I wonder how Old Pennywell Road is going to be reconfigured when the feeder road joins up with it?

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/1185787_10151605760406616_1253038028_n.jpg

[rthomasd]

Originally Posted by Arrakis

Work seems to be resuming on part of the bifurcation road near Old Pennywell Road. They have a section of Old Pennywell Road that will go over the new highway diverted now so they can build the overpass. Also in the distance is another overpass being constructed which I think is for the feeder road from the Old Pennywell/Columbus Drive intersection. I wonder how Old Pennywell Road is going to be reconfigured when the feeder road joins up with it?

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/1185787_10151605760406616_1253038028_n.jpg

A new document has appeared on the Gov't website outlining this year's construction,
http://www.tw.gov.nl.ca/publications/Team_Gushue_Highway_Underpass.pdf

[ed0797]

They're going to have to change the light sequence at the intersection at the Old Penneywell/Columbus as well. It takes up to around 5 minutes for them to change now, and with all that new traffic wanting to turn left it'll get tangley for sure. There's been times at peak where we'd have to wait for a second light cycle just to drive through.

[Arrakis]

Thats awesome. Thanks for posting this. Been wondering how those overpasses were going to be configured.

Originally Posted by rthomasd

A new document has appeared on the Gov't website outlining this year's construction,
http://www.tw.gov.nl.ca/publications/Team_Gushue_Highway_Underpass.pdf

[J_Murphy]

Work is continuing on the Team Gushue Highway extension through the metro area. The Department of Transportation says underpass work is currently underway, which is not always visible to the public.



A spokesperson says a construction site visit with the minister is planned for next week with a complete update on the project.

http://www.vocm.com/newsarticle.asp?mn=2&id=38028&latest=1

[jeddy1989]

This is a great step in overhauling the system and what some candidates are saying about it has me very hopeful that we WILL get transit overhauled!

City gushing as new Metrobus depot nears completion

Metrobus hopes public transit in St. John's will get a boost into the modern era when its new "green" depot opens later this month.

Metrobus is moving from its old location on Freshwater Road, to its new state-of-the-art facility off Kelsey Drive. And senior staff expect new technology used there will carry them into the future.

Judy Powell, general manager of Metrobus, says the new depot will help the company utilize more 'green' technologies and use fewer resources.Judy Powell, general manager of Metrobus, says the new depot will help the company utilize more 'green' technologies and use fewer resources. (CBC)
General manager Judy Powell said new technology in the building will align with the company's goal of being as green as possible.

"It features a number of sustainable designs and energy efficient technologies. For instance, there's a rain harvesting system. We have a cistern under the building that will hold about 200,000 litres of water, estimated to collect about four million litres per year, which is a 55 per cent reduction in our use per units for water," Powell said.

She said the new building will be far more efficient to run than the old one.

Powell said a new bus wash system, which will use the collected rain water, will accommodate the bike racks on buses, which will tie into the city's boost for fewer vehicles on the road.

She said the new site on Messenger Drive also allows for future development.

"There's still a fair bit of room for growth and the building can certainly be expanded if we do exceed that in the future," Powell said. "Our current building is about 55 years old, so when we designed this building we were looking at at least another 50 years."

Cutting down on emissions
Coun. Tom Hann said the decision to build the new $34-million facility was one of the city's smartest moves.

City Coun. Tom Hann says the new Metrobus depot was one of the city's wisest decisions.City Coun. Tom Hann says the new Metrobus depot was one of the city's wisest decisions. (CBC)
"It's probably one of the wisest investments the City of St. John's has made. We were able to access $26 million from a federal green fund to build this, and the city's investment is $8 million, and we have a brand new energy-efficient building that's going to last for another 50 or 60 years," Hann said.

"Hopefully it will improve service down the road. We're replacing the fleet, so all of it is going to be modernized and I think staff are going to be really impressed."

Hann said the federal money that helped pay for the construction of the new building would not have been available if they decided to renovate the old location. He added that the total cost of a renovation would have exceeded the bill for a new building.

Hann admits construction of the facility may be a bit behind schedule, but adds it's better to ensure everything is top-notch before making the big move.

"Yes, we are behind schedule. But right now the inspectors are shaking down the building and making sure everything is operational and it was worth waiting for," he said. "In a few weeks we'll be able to transition the staff and get them in here and we'll be operating full tilt from there."

Metrobus hopes the upgrades and efficiencies will mean more riders, and fewer cars on city roads.

Twenty-six new buses will also replace older ones by 2015.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2013/09/02/nl-metrobus-new-depot-903.html

Lorne Loder posted the link on Facebook saying:

Lorne Loder at Large

I think the new (green) Metrobus facility is a great addition to the City however in order to increase ridership and functionality we MUST review the routes and increase the frequency in the busier corridors!
Also, through a comprehensive marketing plan we need to change the perception of Metrobus so that people see it as a viable alternative to cars.

[J.A.I.L.]

Airport Announcement Coming


An announcement will be made this afternoon concerning a new airline and destination for St. John's International Airport. The announcement will be made this afternoon at 2:00 at the airport. VOCM News will be there to bring you the news first.

http://www.vocm.com/newsarticle.asp?mn=2&id=38282&latest=1

very exciting! I hope its somewhere good and opens up alot of new travel!!

[Marty_Mcfly]

Originally Posted by J.A.I.L.

Airport Announcement Coming


An announcement will be made this afternoon concerning a new airline and destination for St. John's International Airport. The announcement will be made this afternoon at 2:00 at the airport. VOCM News will be there to bring you the news first.

http://www.vocm.com/newsarticle.asp?mn=2&id=38282&latest=1

very exciting! I hope its somewhere good and opens up alot of new travel!!

C'mon JFK/LaGuardia or Boston!

[jeddy1989]

Originally Posted by Marty_Mcfly

C'mon JFK/LaGuardia or Boston!

It might be the direct flights to Ireland that they were talking about a while back.

Edit: It says a "New Airline and destination" so maybe Icelandic Air?

[Marty_Mcfly]

Originally Posted by jeddy1989

It might be the direct flights to Ireland that they were talking about a while back.

Edit: It says a "New Airline and destination" so maybe Icelandic Air?

Oh that's no fun. Even with a direct flight I can't afford to fly to Ireland. At least with something along the eastern seaboard by say Delta or US Airways I may be able to visit within reason

[Chew]

USAir to Philly or AA to JFK (less likely) could be possibilities.
Icelandair used to fly seasonally to Rekjavik, if I'm not mistaken, so a return is possible.

[rthomasd]

Originally Posted by J_Murphy

http://www.vocm.com/newsarticle.asp?mn=2&id=38028&latest=1

Let me guess - project on schedule, lots of ongoing work, finished in 2015 (not a chance).

Here's what I see on a visit -

They've added and paved another bypass at the Pennywell Road bridge (looks like the original was not well placed) , but otherwise there's been no work on that underpass in months. Footing hole dug, full of water, no concrete, no sidewalls.

The Pennywell / new road underpass has one side of the road sidewall done (they were working last Sunday), and some footings.

The Capt Whelan underpass has one road sidewall done and some footing work completed with about 20 ft of exposed rebar. This work is on about the same pace as "the overpass" work.

Looks like they'll do Blackmarsh Road next year, perhaps part of the Topsail Road. Topsail road is a major overpass with cloverleaf, etc so perhaps all of 2015 for that. Not sure what they're doing beyond that, the roadbed just ends in the middle of a field off Brookfield road. There's also some unknown amount of work to tie-in Blackmarsh/Capt Whelan.

2016 for paving, 2017 for guardrails, open in 2018. How's that estimate sound ? It amazes me how long road construction takes for the government projects.

[jeddy1989]

This was posted in the Atlantic Canada airports thread... so no Dublin or NYC hahaha

Originally Posted by C_Boy

GMIA to offer direct flights to St. John's, Newfoundland

Starting October 10th, the Greater Moncton International Airport will offer direct flights to St. John's, Newfoundland, 5 days a week. The flights will be provided by Pascan Aviation Limited, and will run Monday through Friday.

Source: News 91.9 News alert

[Chew]

Thanks for posting that, Jeddy, anti-climactic as it may be. I had never even heard of Pascan prior to this. I don't think Moncton-St. John's is a big market, even for a little Bombardier plane. But, hey, competition is good, and I wish the folks at Pascan well with this.

[jeddy1989]

we need to get more international ones

[Townie709]

That's a disappointing announcement... We are worthy of a much better location than Moncton. Direct flights to JFK/Laguardia, Boston, Chicago or a European destination would have been much more exciting.. I see no realson whyy a yone would ever want a direct flight to moncton except for business. Moncton is boring and gross. I despise Moncton.. I'm pretty sure I've said that multiple times here before haha

[Marty_Mcfly]

The airport could use more international flights to really drive home the idea that it's an international airport. Most of it's international flights are seasonal only. The flight to London is year-round now, yes?

[Townie709]

Originally Posted by jeddy1989

we need to get more international ones

I think we should get a new map while we're at it

I don't remember Calgary and Edmonton being as far north as Alaska, or Newfoundland being as large as africa haha.. although that world be pretty cool

[Marty_Mcfly]

There's a great discussion of the Moncton to St. John's flight in the atlantic canada form. The general consensus is that while it's a great idea, an 800 buck round trip flight to and from will not work considering how relatively cheap the Halifax to St. John's route is.

[goodgrowth]

Originally Posted by Marty_Mcfly

There's a great discussion of the Moncton to St. John's flight in the atlantic canada form. The general consensus is that while it's a great idea, an 800 buck round trip flight to and from will not work considering how relatively cheap the Halifax to St. John's route is.

wait, what? $800 for a round trip to Moncton..small city regional flights are killer