02-13-2023, 03:28 PM
(02-13-2023, 02:47 PM)KevinT Wrote: I'm trying to picture if this would change my bike to work route or not. Right now I head into town from Doon South on the Homer Watson MUT, turn right onto Ottawa, then use the beg button to cross onto Kehl/Heiman/Mill to pick up the Iron Horse to Waterloo (and the reverse to head home). Fortunately the only thing I need to cross near that roundabout is the 8 east on ramp.
Regardless of whether or not this changes my route, I'll be happy when it's here.
You could take this new bridge by instead going left on Ottawa up through Lakeside Park, to Queens Blvd and using the Kitchener segregated lanes on Queens and Belmont to get up to Waterloo.
You end up in almost exactly the same place. I don't think it'd be faster or necessarily safer (crossing the Homer Watson roundabout might be a reason NOT to go this way, but on the return trip, you'd probably have to cross the roundabout regardless) but it's always nice to have alternative routes.
Eventually I think you could go down Strasbourg directly and avoid Homer-Watson entirely, which would probably be an improvement safety wise avoiding that roundabout. Depending on how bike friendly the residential streets in that area are.
As an aside, does anyone know why Homer Watson is shown having trails under highway 7/8? It didn't when I was there. Also, Ottawa west of Homer Watson is shown without bike trails but as "bike friend"...which is...about as far from reality as possible. Seems like the region's GIS data is getting a bunch of garbage in it again.