Deerfoot Trail problems - Ideas, solutions?

[Acey]

Alberta Transportation has screwed themselves north of the city. They had big plans for Shaganappi and that could have been a long-term reliever route for QE2, bypassing Airdrie to the west. If you look carefully at the Stoney/Shag interchange you can see the grading for the now abandoned plans for third level EB-NB and WB-SB flyovers. Then, they had a plan for Stoney on the east side of the city to continue northbound which is why the northeast curve of Stoney up there has a huge median and massive radius... it was supposed to be an interchange. Plans nuked.

Now we're stuck with QE2 and that stupid mall so it's a gongshow. Must be frustrating to be the guys who saw this coming 30 years ago only to watch us destroy it and box ourselves into a corner. It's fixable, but won't be cheap: 4 lanes the whole way between Calgary and Airdrie, completely obliterate and replace the Hwy 566 interchange which is already approved, and then braided ramps both directions on QEII between Stoney and Cross Iron Drive.

It should have never gotten this bad in the first place. The incompetence of Calgary road planning will be studied in civil engineering classrooms for generations to come.

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

The biggest f up was glenmore's measly one lane access to southbound Tsuu Tina, causing a solid line of cars down the middle lane line every day

[Acey]

Yeah that could have been a two-lane loop at relatively little additional cost. Errors were made.

[lazypucker]

Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent

The biggest f up was glenmore's measly one lane access to southbound Tsuu Tina, causing a solid line of cars down the middle lane line every day

Same with 16 Ave to Stoney North on-ramp.

The city/province always only did a 90% solution up front just to get by, and then spending hundreds of millions to fix it years later...

[Fuzz]

Why do it right when you can do it twice.

[tvp2003]

Originally Posted by Acey

New 4th lane open both directions between 32 Ave and Beddington Trail as of a couple days ago. No tangible difference in traffic as the road is so horrendously over capacity that one lane can't make a dent. The interchange reconfigurations at McKnight, 16th and 64 Ave will increase safety outside of peak hours and that's really the goal in the north.

The changes in the south are far more drastic and will significantly help flow; Deerfoot will be 14 lanes across between Southland and Anderson. Couple more years before all that work is done.

Are the interchanges fully open now? The signs have been up for over a month, but the exit from NB Deerfoot to McKnight Blvd was still bifurcated, i.e. one exit eastbound and then a later one exit westbound (with non-existent signage).

[Table 5]

Originally Posted by Acey

Errors were made.

I believe that's the department tagline. Someone should make t-shirts.

[Acey]

Originally Posted by tvp2003

Are the interchanges fully open now? The signs have been up for over a month, but the exit from NB Deerfoot to McKnight Blvd was still bifurcated, i.e. one exit eastbound and then a later one exit westbound (with non-existent signage).

No. McKnight still has a ways to go, done before the end of the season I would imagine but they're completely redoing the southbound exit ramps. Northbound exits still have a lot of work left as you said. They're also widening mainline to the outside (in addition to the now open median-side widening) between 16 and 32 Aves, and digging for that has only just started from what I can see... so that won't be done before snow falls. So the only thing fully done as of now is McKnight through to Airport Trail.

[calgaryrocks]

Originally Posted by Acey

Alberta Transportation has screwed themselves north of the city. They had big plans for Shaganappi and that could have been a long-term reliever route for QE2, bypassing Airdrie to the west. If you look carefully at the Stoney/Shag interchange you can see the grading for the now abandoned plans for third level EB-NB and WB-SB flyovers. Then, they had a plan for Stoney on the east side of the city to continue northbound which is why the northeast curve of Stoney up there has a huge median and massive radius... it was supposed to be an interchange. Plans nuked.

Now we're stuck with QE2 and that stupid mall so it's a gongshow. Must be frustrating to be the guys who saw this coming 30 years ago only to watch us destroy it and box ourselves into a corner. It's fixable, but won't be cheap: 4 lanes the whole way between Calgary and Airdrie, completely obliterate and replace the Hwy 566 interchange which is already approved, and then braided ramps both directions on QEII between Stoney and Cross Iron Drive.

It should have never gotten this bad in the first place. The incompetence of Calgary road planning will be studied in civil engineering classrooms for generations to come.

I didn't realize Calgary road planning was responsible for getting traffic past Airdrie? It wasn't done well (I am curious who nuked the plans) but I think your starting point of Alberta Transportation is a better place to lay the blame...

[para transit fellow]

Originally Posted by Acey

Yeah that could have been a two-lane loop at relatively little additional cost. Errors were made.

Someone refresh my memory.

Was The southwest ring road built on a p3 partnership basis?

[Acey]

Originally Posted by calgaryrocks

I didn't realize Calgary road planning was responsible for getting traffic past Airdrie? It wasn't done well (I am curious who nuked the plans) but I think your starting point of Alberta Transportation is a better place to lay the blame...

Calgary is responsible for bailing on their own Métis Trail plans which could have provided relief to Deerfoot in the north, and it would also be the city responsible for downgrading Shaganappi, thus forcing the province to abandon any plan for the large interchange at Stoney.

It is the city who have also missed opportunities for 14 St or Centre St/1 St to become higher capacity thoroughfares that could exit to the north.

Originally Posted by para transit fellow

Was The southwest ring road built on a p3 partnership basis?

Yup.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent

The biggest f up was glenmore's measly one lane access to southbound Tsuu Tina, causing a solid line of cars down the middle lane line every day

Bad.

Also for some reason having two right lanes just disappear on N Stoney trail after 69th street. People merge left after the first one and think they're done, then realize they have to do another one. It messes up the highway 8 off ramp too.

[Acey]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Bad.

Also for some reason having two right lanes just disappear on N Stoney trail after 69th street. People merge left after the first one and think they're done, then realize they have to do another one. It messes up the highway 8 off ramp too.

That one is understandable on paper, it's so traffic coming off 69 St doesn't have to make 2 lane changes to get onto mainline. There's probably something in the Design Guide about it, or I bet in simulation it actually ran better with that lane ending.