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Roads: Ontario/GTA Highways Discussion

Interesting... and your location is "nosing into something". Very suspicious.
Currently, our habits (and locations and buying habits and ... ) are being tracked by governments, ad companies, credit card companies, social media ... for targeted ads, increasing or decreasing certain fees, and it can be based on many things - including where you live, and your habits which have nothing to do with whatever is being charged. road tolls are benign, but that information can be hacked, sold to corporations (wouldn't put it past Doug), used to track for other purposes (crime reduction models often unfairly target innocent people of minorities and poor people), and so on.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/auto-insurance-credit-checks-privacy-1.5492770
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/06/18/why-do-we-care-so-much-about-privacy
https://www.brookings.edu/research/...losing-game-today-and-how-to-change-the-game/
 
That's great for summer. But in a snowstorm where you can't see which lane you're in, it's not going to work.
Highways are often the first to be plowed in a snow storm and get regular plowing until the surface is clear. So while, yes during the few hours of a snow event where the plows haven't been through to clear the roadway there will be basically a free for all. For the vast majority of the time it will be clear surfaces. And anyway this is true for any roadway with surface markings, the minute snow covers the road it becomes a free for all where people wind up driving.
 
Highways are often the first to be plowed in a snow storm and get regular plowing until the surface is clear. So while, yes during the few hours of a snow event where the plows haven't been through to clear the roadway there will be basically a free for all. For the vast majority of the time it will be clear surfaces. And anyway this is true for any roadway with surface markings, the minute snow covers the road it becomes a free for all where people wind up driving.
In North America, pedestrian are always last to get snow clearing. Especially last are the snow windrows at corners. Impossible for motorized wheelchairs or walkers.
umea-norrland-sweden-march-older-ladies-out-their-walkers-snow-214143405.jpg

From link.
 
That's great for summer. But in a snowstorm where you can't see which lane you're in, it's not going to work.

The road markings are accompanied by overhead signs. Generally, road markings have no force in law in Ontario but I do note that the HTA and HOV regs. do make reference to the "placement of markings". Regardless, the markings are mirrored by the signs.
 
New story out on the controversial Bradford Bypass proposal. This one, a joint investigation by the National Observer, and The Star covers a wide range of issues, including:

1) A route change to avoid a golf course owed by the family of a setting Conservative MPP, which will result in additional destruction of forest and private residences
2) Plans to possibly toll the route, including at rates equal to or higher than 407E
3) The very low environmental score (lowest possible) achieved by the proposal in a gov't report which suggested alternative investments.
4) The connections of assorted developers to lands near the proposed extension.

The Star version is paywalled; but the Observer's version is not.

Link: https://www.nationalobserver.com/20...-pork-barrel-doug-fords-rich-developer-donors

Decent sized read.
 
New story out on the controversial Bradford Bypass proposal. This one, a joint investigation by the National Observer, and The Star covers a wide range of issues, including:

1) A route change to avoid a golf course owed by the family of a setting Conservative MPP, which will result in additional destruction of forest and private residences
2) Plans to possibly toll the route, including at rates equal to or higher than 407E
3) The very low environmental score (lowest possible) achieved by the proposal in a gov't report which suggested alternative investments.
4) The connections of assorted developers to lands near the proposed extension.

The Star version is paywalled; but the Observer's version is not.

Link: https://www.nationalobserver.com/20...-pork-barrel-doug-fords-rich-developer-donors

Decent sized read.
Ironically there seems to be a less resistive path if the highway were routed North of the golf course as there appears to be just a bunch of open space there vs private homes.
 
Ironically there seems to be a less resistive path if the highway were routed North of the golf course as there appears to be just a bunch of open space there vs private homes.
That's a lot more sensitive environmental land though. The south alignment is mostly woodlot without any wetlands from my understanding, while north of the course is mostly wetland.

The south alignment also only requires a single dwelling from my understanding, and some acreage from a few other residential properties. It's actually a lot less damaging in terms of private property impacts than the initial alignment through the golf course and marina, and as mentioned has a better environmental impact.


Regarding the points northern light posted, I'll put my thoughts on them in bold below:

1) A route change to avoid a golf course owed by the family of a setting Conservative MPP, which will result in additional destruction of forest and private residences
The MPP immediately declared a conflict on the matter upon joining the Ministry of Transportation, and they apparently have a process so that he does not even get circulated on information on the highway. I'm not really sure what else the government is expected to do about it, drop him as transport minister because of it? I also addressed the property impacts above, they are very minor overall still.
2) Plans to possibly toll the route, including at rates equal to or higher than 407E
This to me seems like it's standard government due diligence, confirming options, that's all. By the sounds of the results of the study, tolling the road didn't work out favorably and I doubt they will implement it. Especially at rates higher than 407E, which was likely a "sounding" option just to test extremes of options, and not seriously considered.
3) The very low environmental score (lowest possible) achieved by the proposal in a gov't report which suggested alternative investments.
I can no longer find the full study, but this slide deck from the public open houses at the time is still available online and indicates that the Bradford Bypass when tied to a new Highway 427 extension would significantly improve traffic over simply widening existing corridors. It doesn't indicate it's impact without the 427 extension, but it certainly indicates that simply widening existing corridors isn't going to cut it given the huge growth that's happening in Simcoe County. And that's only on the provincial highway network, many of the trips the Bradford Bypass is replacing is on local arterial roads as Yonge St is currently the only major crossing of the marsh today forcing all traffic to funnel through that one crossing and into downtown Bradford.
4) The connections of assorted developers to lands near the proposed extension.
This is a constant theme The Star is trying to push on the Ford Government, and I'm just not buying it. The most they have managed to come up with so far is that the PCs take donations from developers just like every other party. Of course developers own land near the highway, it's a high growth area that has been designated to handle a lot of the GTHA's new low-density growth in the coming decades, for better or for worse. It's been pretty clear from the start that this highway is a pet project of Mulroney's as it's directly in her riding and is something she has championed profusely. The local municipality is also very supportive of and it is a very popular project in Bradford as locals realize how challenging and frustrating it is to access Newmarket today.


The one other major point made by the article is the lack of a complete redo of the Environmental Assessment, which it makes out that the province is plowing ahead with the highway without any additional study. That isn't true, the PCs did pare back EA requirements for a lot of highway projects with previously completed EAs, though there is still a decent amount of work required before beginning. Which is why you see MTO re-evaluating things like how the highway crosses the marsh, as well as other smaller tweaks to the project. They aren't doing no changes, but instead are critically reviewing the EA (which was completed in 2002, not 1997 as the article suggests) and making adjustments where required, compared to the previous requirements would would have required a full restart, years of additional work duplicating information likely to have not changed much if at all since 2002, just to end up with a project likely very similar if not identical to what they will end up building. I'm just not sure of the utility of such an exercise.
 
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The fact that the province values a GOLF COURSE more than people's homes might be a huge red flag for the 413....
Nevertheless another crossing of some form over the marsh is needed, whether it ends up being the Bypass or another arterial.
It's 1 house that is impacted and the MTO highlighted the change for lowering impacts on the Holland Marsh and river crossing more than it was for property impacts. MTO is prioritizing environmental impacts over the house, not the golf course over the house.

I imagine the 2002 EA chose the northern alignment to avoid residential property impacts and MTO has prioritized lowering environmental impacts instead, which I support. It's a single residence, hardly a major property impact for a large infrastructure project like this.
 
It's 1 house that is impacted and the MTO highlighted the change for lowering impacts on the Holland Marsh and river crossing more than it was for property impacts. MTO is prioritizing environmental impacts over the house, not the golf course over the house.

I imagine the 2002 EA chose the northern alignment to avoid residential property impacts and MTO has prioritized lowering environmental impacts instead, which I support. It's a single residence, hardly a major property impact for a large infrastructure project like this.
That makes more sense
 
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Not tolling 413 sounds like madness to me. I thought all new 400 series would be tolled?
we are discussing the Bradford Bypass here, I think it's more likely the 413 will be tolled. But tolls are also wildly unpopular so I think it could go either way.
 

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