Waterloo Region Connected
Cycling in Waterloo Region - Printable Version

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RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - Bob_McBob - 10-07-2019

Yes, there is no signal there because there's literally one train a day, so it's done with a flag waver. The train comes to a complete stop and proceeds through at walking speed. At one point they were even idling behind the derail for a couple hours every night because Keolis was so slow about giving CN permission to proceed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njCcra2kVxI


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - danbrotherston - 10-07-2019

(10-07-2019, 02:45 PM)ijmorlan Wrote:
(10-07-2019, 11:26 AM)danbrotherston Wrote: Regional staff have claimed the official status, I have no personally pulled the land deeds lol, but I generally trust them.

And yes, the city also put up the sign.  Frankly, it seems like one of these "stop asking questions lest we be forced to do something about it" situations.

That being said, I think it would be not too hard to fix, it would only take about 15 parking spaces in the parkade and some small renovations to redirect the path out through the parkade and avoid the entire alley...it should be trivial to work across the road from that point--its safer and less congested there anyway.

There is already a path connecting Regina to King next to the parkade. I guess taking some extra space to widen would be helpful. But why would anybody use that when the direct route is available? The only real problem is the flangeways; the fact that the space is shared with trains simply isn’t a problem, safety or otherwise (well, except administratively!).

More fundamentally, we have a regulatory framework which isn’t capable of officially taking into account local conditions and making appropriate accommodations, or at least not without excessive expense. It shouldn’t take more than a few hours’ total time by various people to request, investigate, and approve a request to consider that area to be shared right-of-way between trains and multi-use trail, subject to a low maximum speed for the trains and reconsideration in the event train traffic increases significantly.

It’s a good thing trains already exist. If they were invented now I doubt level crossings would even be allowed, anywhere, and trains would end up being infeasible to install almost everywhere.

The pathway exists, but is not wide enough for biking and walking. I'm thinking of routing into and through the parking garage, wide comforable (and covered) path.

Certainly I don't think sharing with the train is a safety issue, that being said, I'm not sure I'd totally trust the flangeway, it might work 99% of the time, and 1% of the time fail, so if you're always riding along the tracks, eventually someone will take a fall. As for changing human nature, yes, that is hard, but I expect exposed railway ties would convince the vast majority of cyclists to take the new easiest path which would be the trail. I bet you'd still have peds using the alley, but this is probably fine.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - ijmorlan - 10-07-2019

(10-07-2019, 04:26 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: The pathway exists, but is not wide enough for biking and walking. I'm thinking of routing into and through the parking garage, wide comforable (and covered) path.

Certainly I don't think sharing with the train is a safety issue, that being said, I'm not sure I'd totally trust the flangeway, it might work 99% of the time, and 1% of the time fail, so if you're always riding along the tracks, eventually someone will take a fall. As for changing human nature, yes, that is hard, but I expect exposed railway ties would convince the vast majority of cyclists to take the new easiest path which would be the trail. I bet you'd still have peds using the alley, but this is probably fine.

I want to install retail on the ground floor of the parkade, along King St. You could add 2-3 stores, depending how big they are, and only take away a few parking spots.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - danbrotherston - 10-07-2019

(10-07-2019, 05:41 PM)ijmorlan Wrote:
(10-07-2019, 04:26 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: The pathway exists, but is not wide enough for biking and walking. I'm thinking of routing into and through the parking garage, wide comforable (and covered) path.

Certainly I don't think sharing with the train is a safety issue, that being said, I'm not sure I'd totally trust the flangeway, it might work 99% of the time, and 1% of the time fail, so if you're always riding along the tracks, eventually someone will take a fall. As for changing human nature, yes, that is hard, but I expect exposed railway ties would convince the vast majority of cyclists to take the new easiest path which would be the trail. I bet you'd still have peds using the alley, but this is probably fine.

I want to install retail on the ground floor of the parkade, along King St. You could add 2-3 stores, depending how big they are, and only take away a few parking spots.

I could get behind this too, I'm not sure what the changes would be required to meet code, but there's also plenty of room for a trail.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - ijmorlan - 10-07-2019

(10-07-2019, 05:50 PM)danbrotherston Wrote:
(10-07-2019, 05:41 PM)ijmorlan Wrote: I want to install retail on the ground floor of the parkade, along King St. You could add 2-3 stores, depending how big they are, and only take away a few parking spots.

I could get behind this too, I'm not sure what the changes would be required to meet code, but there's also plenty of room for a trail.

Yes, indeed, actually I should have responded to the trail idea too. Sounds good to me! Wouldn’t even need much space — combining the existing trail with a bit of the garage could give a very pleasant space. Maybe the part inside the garage could in effect form a portico with retail stores fronting on it, and the existing path could be reserved for bicycles. Or something like that. Keep some space for covered bicycle parking. The car entrances are all on Regina or Willis, so traffic flow to the upper levels wouldn’t be affected.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - nms - 10-23-2019

Believe it or not, I think that the Parkade is designated as the emergency overflow should the Laurel Creek watershed ever get rain of the same volume as the microbursts that drowned part of Toronto in past years. As such, it was left as open as possible.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - ijmorlan - 10-23-2019

(10-23-2019, 01:18 PM)nms Wrote: Believe it or not, I think that the Parkade is designated as the emergency overflow should the Laurel Creek watershed ever get rain of the same volume as the microbursts that drowned part of Toronto in past years.  As such, it was left as open as possible.

Interesting! Although at the point where the space inside the parkade is acting to drain Laurel Creek, I think Willis Way and the railway would also take some flow. That would certainly be a mess.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - jwilliamson - 10-23-2019

There was a crew out tonight installing concrete barriers between the cycle lane and vehicle lane on University between Seagram and Phillip. The barriers are the low ones often used in parking lots at the end of each parking spot.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - plam - 10-24-2019

(10-23-2019, 11:04 PM)jwilliamson Wrote: There was a crew out tonight installing concrete barriers between the cycle lane and vehicle lane on University between Seagram and Phillip. The barriers are the low ones often used in parking lots at the end of each parking spot.

I saw them in place on the north side last week. We'll see how much safety they feel like they add...


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - KevinL - 10-24-2019

I'd love to see a mix of these, and flex bollards. The barriers would physically stop vehicles, the bollards would remind drivers of where to be.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - Bob_McBob - 10-24-2019

(10-23-2019, 11:04 PM)jwilliamson Wrote: There was a crew out tonight installing concrete barriers between the cycle lane and vehicle lane on University between Seagram and Phillip. The barriers are the low ones often used in parking lots at the end of each parking spot.

They were out by University and Albert last Thursday night. I know because I was driving past and one of the workers backed a construction vehicle into the open lane of traffic at the last moment and I had to swerve to avoid a collision Rolleyes


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - timc - 10-25-2019

(10-24-2019, 10:49 AM)KevinL Wrote: I'd love to see a mix of these, and flex bollards. The barriers would physically stop vehicles, the bollards would remind drivers of where to be.

That is exactly what is being done on University. I like it.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - KevinL - 10-25-2019

Ah, excellent!


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - megabytephreak - 10-28-2019

Does anyone know the story with the bike signals at the intersection of King and the Eastbound 85 Exit ramp/Manulife?
https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.4914633,-80.5281575,3a,34.6y,215.15h,93.92t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sfMohVbXu6isR5W9e0B8pOg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
There are pavement markings and signals hung, but the signals are bagged and it seems to have been that way for nearly a year according to street view.


RE: Cycling in Waterloo Region - megabytephreak - 11-04-2019

(10-28-2019, 10:05 PM)megabytephreak Wrote: Does anyone know the story with the bike signals at the intersection of King and the Eastbound 85 Exit ramp/Manulife?
https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.4914633,-80.5281575,3a,34.6y,215.15h,93.92t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sfMohVbXu6isR5W9e0B8pOg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
There are pavement markings and signals hung, but the signals are bagged and it seems to have been that way for nearly a year according to street view.

Of course the next time I go through the intersection after posting about it the signals appear to have been unbagged! Still not sure why they were left covered all summer, but at least they are functional now.