Posts: 7,731
Threads: 36
Joined: Jun 2016
Reputation:
212
https://www.change.org/p/berry-vrbanovic.../684740701
I just saw this petition to right size Benton St. This kind of change is a no brainer.
It pains me that Belmont is being rebuilt with essentially no changes. How much money are we wasting building unnecessary and unsafe roads like this.
Posts: 495
Threads: 1
Joined: Jan 2015
Reputation:
20
Community CarShare cuts Quantum car delivery program
"Waterloo region's car share program will no longer offer its Quantum car delivery service as of Sept. 1, scaling back the program to members living in Elmira and corporate customers."
http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/kitch...-1.4265071
Posts: 10,489
Threads: 66
Joined: Sep 2014
Reputation:
329
There are now no left turns permitted from WB Charles onto SB Benton, presumably because of the LRT tracks.
However, the signage is really weak (the no-left-turn signs are next to the right-hand traffic light, far away from the stop line, which is set back, and on the far-right traffic light) and cars are frequently turning left there. I think there should be some improved signage for this -- a no-left-turn sign in the cat pole, before the intersection; a straight-only lane sign (the right lane has a right-only sign); and/or a straight-only painted arrow in the lane (the right lane has a right-turn-only arrow). As it is, it's not obvious, and not effective.
Would someone be willing to twitter this to the region (or city)?
The view from the stop line:
Posts: 6,905
Threads: 32
Joined: Oct 2014
Reputation:
224
Yeah, they uncovered all of the "No Left Turn" signs everywhere recently!
Posts: 7,731
Threads: 36
Joined: Jun 2016
Reputation:
212
@tomh009 That's certainly a good idea, although pretty much all the turning restrictions are being universally ignored by drivers right now no matter how well signed they are.
Posts: 2,408
Threads: 7
Joined: Aug 2014
Reputation:
50
You're right about that. I was crossing Victoria on the east/north side of King watching as a line of cars started to pile up behind a woman waiting to turn left onto Victoria. Someone started honking just as I was crossing, and then she looked pretty exasperated that my presence in the crosswalk was thwarting her illegal turn.
Posts: 62
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2016
Reputation:
1
(08-31-2017, 01:09 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: @tomh009 That's certainly a good idea, although pretty much all the turning restrictions are being universally ignored by drivers right now no matter how well signed they are. I think it's poor practice to unveil a no left turn sign on a random day and to expect drivers who have been turning left at an intersection for a decade or more to notice the change, especially when the signs are in many cases poorly located.
Posts: 1,101
Threads: 6
Joined: Aug 2014
Reputation:
99
08-31-2017, 03:18 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-31-2017, 03:20 PM by Coke6pk.)
That's why (when it is done right) they have the big neon "NEW" sign. Something that may be useful to break these old habits....
Coke
Posts: 6,905
Threads: 32
Joined: Oct 2014
Reputation:
224
Posts: 1,101
Threads: 6
Joined: Aug 2014
Reputation:
99
(08-31-2017, 03:24 PM)Canard Wrote: Well said Stan!
I think that's Not Stan. 
Posts: 1,195
Threads: 0
Joined: Mar 2015
Reputation:
34
I saw several drivers making now-illegal left turns along Caroline Street today (southbound onto Willis and William; northbound onto Erb), and traffic was backing up behind people as they tried to turn. I tried to gesture to them that they were doing something that they shouldn't, but I was a pedestrian, and thus invisible and/or ignored.
Posts: 62
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2016
Reputation:
1
(08-31-2017, 03:18 PM)Coke6pk Wrote: That's why (when it is done right) they have the big neon "NEW" sign. Something that may be useful to break these old habits....
Coke
Exactly or overhead signs and road markings to mark what is permitted in each lane. Euro road signage is generally much better in this regard.
Posts: 7,731
Threads: 36
Joined: Jun 2016
Reputation:
212
09-02-2017, 12:28 PM
(This post was last modified: 09-02-2017, 12:29 PM by danbrotherston.)
Walked down Columbia St. today, starting to see some finished products. Segregated bike lanes are visible on one side.
Here's one confusing thing, I'm guessing this is going to be a bus stop. I have no idea why there are tactile plates between the bike lane and the bus stop.
Also, the segregated lane seems to end here, which is strange, it's about 100 meters back from the traffic circle, but there seems to be a barrier curb preventing cyclists from getting to the sidewalk. I will be curious to see this in a finished form.
One other interesting thing I got to see, is what looks like mechanically stabilized earth (reinforced soil) being used to build up around the valley that is being levelled. I've never seen it under construction before so that was interesting.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanical...ized_earth
You can see down low one layer of the stabilizing material placed down.
Here is a closeup of the stabilizing material.
As little as I understand of the process, I believe it only needs to resist tension, not be rigid it any other direction.
Posts: 2,163
Threads: 17
Joined: Sep 2014
Reputation:
77
(09-02-2017, 12:28 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: Here's one confusing thing, I'm guessing this is going to be a bus stop. I have no idea why there are tactile plates between the bike lane and the bus stop.
Ah, that's to get the cyclists to slow down and be aware that they're entering a pedestrian conflict point. The bike track continues across that concrete, but it is also where bus loading will occur.
Similar, a bit, to this section of Roncesvalles in Toronto:
https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.6458917,-...312!8i6656
Quote:Also, the segregated lane seems to end here, which is strange, it's about 100 meters back from the traffic circle, but there seems to be a barrier curb preventing cyclists from getting to the sidewalk. I will be curious to see this in a finished form.
Ah, the good ol' "no bicycle infrastructure at intersections" trick.
Maybe they've finally decided that directing bikes on to the sidewalk is not what they want, and so they're going to merge them into the roads from now on?
Quote:One other interesting thing I got to see, is what looks like mechanically stabilized earth (reinforced soil) being used to build up around the valley that is being levelled. I've never seen it under construction before so that was interesting.
The ION station at UW also had the same material laid down. Each cinderblock level had another layer of that plastic stuff connected to it.
Posts: 7,731
Threads: 36
Joined: Jun 2016
Reputation:
212
(09-02-2017, 01:27 PM)Markster Wrote: (09-02-2017, 12:28 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: Here's one confusing thing, I'm guessing this is going to be a bus stop. I have no idea why there are tactile plates between the bike lane and the bus stop.
Ah, that's to get the cyclists to slow down and be aware that they're entering a pedestrian conflict point. The bike track continues across that concrete, but it is also where bus loading will occur.
Similar, a bit, to this section of Roncesvalles in Toronto:
https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.6458917,-...312!8i6656
I did figure it was to provide warning/transition to cyclists entering the boarding zone (why they couldn't put the bike lane *AROUND* the boarding zone I do not know, at least Toronto has obvious space constraints, which don't really appear to apply here. I mean, how hard is it really to just copy the Dutch? I digress. My bigger concern is why they chose an accessibility tactile plate treatment? Isn't that supposed to provide a warning and path to visually disabled folks? Won't this design be very confusing to them, while being needlessly expensive? (Also, why is a steel plate so expensive anyway).
(09-02-2017, 01:27 PM)Markster Wrote: Quote:Also, the segregated lane seems to end here, which is strange, it's about 100 meters back from the traffic circle, but there seems to be a barrier curb preventing cyclists from getting to the sidewalk. I will be curious to see this in a finished form.
Ah, the good ol' "no bicycle infrastructure at intersections" trick.
Maybe they've finally decided that directing bikes on to the sidewalk is not what they want, and so they're going to merge them into the roads from now on?
I am indeed anxious to see what does get built here. Other than this, everything does look reasonable. I suspect somehow they will still be directed onto the sidewalk as at the following traffic circle, the sidewalk clearly transitions back to the segregated lane.
(09-02-2017, 01:27 PM)Markster Wrote: Quote:One other interesting thing I got to see, is what looks like mechanically stabilized earth (reinforced soil) being used to build up around the valley that is being levelled. I've never seen it under construction before so that was interesting.
The ION station at UW also had the same material laid down. Each cinderblock level had another layer of that plastic stuff connected to it.
Interesting, I never did see that being constructed. That's a bit surprising as it looked like a proper retaining wall, which I wouldn't think would require mechanically stabilized soil--I see these types of walls simply built to retain existing earthen berms--but I'm not a geotechnical engineer.
|
