In addition to converting minor urban streets into cycling-friendly facilities… or removing a parking lane from very wide streets to make a cycling facility … we can find entire roads or multi-lane freeways removed to make way for pedestrian and … Continue reading Urban detail (ii) repurposing roads and streets
The City and NCC have come up with a revised connection of the Western LRT and Richmond Road corridor. But I don’t think it is complete enough, yet. Just like a complete street is better than just a road, the Cleary … Continue reading I can see Cleary now …
In the previous three stories I’ve tried to review what is planned, what some of the tradeoffs were, what the consequences area, and slip in just a teensey tiny wee bit of my opinion. So what would Eric do if faced with the same starting situation, of the City insisting its Western LRT had to go down the parkway space; and the NCC insisting that people using transit is incompatible with their revised greenspace plan? (note I am not considering other completely different route options). The physical plan My goal going into the conflict would be to keep rail on … Continue reading Westward Ho ! (part iv) in which Fantasies come to the fore …
Rochester Field, now to be a condo development site with a green corridor to the parkway along its western (left) edge, is shown on the above map just above the word Richmond [Road]. The new LRT line, in a shallow cut-and-cover tunnel, with the eastbound traffic lanes of the Ottawa River parkway piggybacking on top, is shown as a thick orangey line extending straight along the parkland. This kilometer-long straight section I find very alarming. The “Parkway” is already derisively known as the Ottawa River Commuter Expressway because of its current high volumes and speeds that rarely descend to the posted … Continue reading Westward ho ! (part ii) Western LRT along the parkway
So the NCC and the City came to an understanding for routing the western LRT beyond Dominion Station. It’s time to go beyond the headline coverage. Let’s parse that agreement, and see what’s there and what isn’t. The basic concept: the LRT will extend west from Dominion along the Ottawa River Parkway (ORP) to Cleary Avenue where it will transition southwards to follow the Richmond Road corridor. Instead of being pushed up close to the southern edge of the parkway lands, close to some developed parcels, the LRT will now run roughly down the centre of the space, halfway between … Continue reading Westward ho ! (part i)
Last winter, Domtar knocked down an elderly mill building on the Islands in the Ottawa River. Great consternation arose, as they did it Without Consulting the Bureaucrats. Priceless heritage lost! Like a dog with a bone, the media and planning pundits worried about the lost potential for a vibrant outdoorsy urban waterfront à la Granville Island or The Distillery in Toronto. Few people seemed to notice that Victoria Island is one of the windiest, coldest, bleakest spots in Ottawa, a far remove from sunny* Granville Island or the spirits factory in Toronto. Numerous calls were made for the Distillery Folks to come to … Continue reading Distilling Our Lady of the Condos – part ii
The saga of the amazing perambulating Bayview Station is nearing completion. Recall that the station has been proposed in various scales, sizes, and locations. Well, the final plan is available exclusively to readers here. Bayview Station is back to being “on the structure” of the transitway bridge over the O-Train cut (yes, I know, the O-train isn’t in a cut, it’s on the level, it’s the road that is elevated, but such is our road-focussed society that the road becomes the normal level, and the flat becomes the hole…). The new station is in the same style as the majority of other proposed LRT stations. … Continue reading Bayview Station (final)
The City has been sporadically doing up a CDP (Community Design Plan) (which is a plan of dubious effectiveness under the Official Plan) for the O-Train corridor running from Bayview Station to Carling Avenue. Residents frequently ascribe its tardiness to a desire on the part of the City to see all the developable land purchased and rezoned before the plan is drawn up. In that way, the city won’t have to continually amend it. The City is committed to having CDPs done for all the stations along the OLRT. Having seen some of the in-progress ones I’d have to say they are better than nothing. At least they … Continue reading Sim-City model: Bayview-carling CDP
The Bayview Station is quite complex to describe compared to Tunney’s or Hurdman. Basically, it is a long thin platform built atop an earthen embankment, pretty much where the bus shelters are now. But rather than have sloping pedestrian paths connect to the O-train platform about 16′ lower down, under the overpasses, the City proposes to build an escalator connection at the west end of the new platform that takes users directly down to the O-Train platform. This is a great development for users that transfer. What complicates the Bayview Station is that it is in the middle of an … Continue reading LRT Stations: (part iii) Bayview Station
Perhaps the most controversial and divisive suggestion for converting the transitway to LRT concerned the portion along the Ottawa River Parkway. There seems to be a large crowd that is convinced the parkway would be ruined by letting LRT transit users have a view instead of just motorists. Concerns were expressed about destroying green space, the aesthetics of overhead wiring, and the danger to dog walkers from high speed trains. Spectres of high chain link fences demarking the line where it slashed through mature forests … etc etc. Recall that two of the Richmond-Byron options covered in the previous post used tiny bits of the Parkway – from Dominion … Continue reading Western LRT (part iv) The River Parkway
If the western LRT does not go via Carling Avenue, there is a whole set of options in the Richmond-Byron corridor, shown below: The Churchill-Richmond option had a fatal flaw: too sharp a turn at the corner of Richmond and Churchill. The McRae-Richmond option required redoing the Westboro Station and then entering a short sharp S turn, something that engineers love — NOT. Another McRae option put a President’s Choice station at Loblaws and then turned west under Byron. That tunnel section would have emerged just west of the Westboro Station condo development. Here’s what is left: The Churchill-Byron option digs cut and … Continue reading Western LRT (part iii) Richmond-Byron Options
David James is a blog reader with some keen observations on the merits of various DOTT and west LRT proposals. You will frequently find his intelligent comments on my posts, gently pointing out the error of my ways. David isn’t particularly a fan of the “Loblaws” route I outlined yesterday, but he kindly drew up a drawing illustrating the route, and provided some commentary on its merits. The top right of the illustration below starts the route beside the 30 storey condo tower Minto built a few years ago. Underground, it swings onto McRae, under the Loblaws parking lot, and westward under Byron Road or … Continue reading West LRT – the Loblaws option
It might be best to read part i and part ii, already posted. If you are a keener, the comments received are also worth reading. Now, for part iii … The Bayview Station is located at the top right. It is a future transit hub, with service extending south along the OTrain corridor; north via the Prince of Wales Bridge (possibly as rail, possibly doubled in width as a STO rapibus BRT route with a station at Bayview); east to the downtown; and west to Barrhaven and Kanata. Usually ignored, is the walk-in potential of Bayview Station: because there are no houses immediately adjacent, in … Continue reading West LRT, part iii, Ottawa River corridor
That we have to hire people and machinery to mow the canal is another good reason to reduce run off. Continue reading Honey, go mow the water
The city has set up a stakeholders group to contribute to its process of finding how the LRT will get from Bayview (or Tunney’s) to Lincoln Fields. Options include the Ottawa River NCC lands, the Otrain-Carling route, the Churchill-Carling route, and the transitway-Byron route. All options have very different features for transit users and the adjacent communities. Continue reading Western Leg, LRT (from Bayview to Lincoln Fields via ???)
Logging used to be such a major industry in Ottawa-Gatineau. This historic boat is parked on the Gatineau-side shoreline. Continue reading Wet History
Aerial shot of the west side taken from the CTV balloon on Sunday. Double click to enlarge. The view is looking south, the islands in the Ottawa River and former paper mills are in the foreground. Place du Portage in the foreground, Parliament beyond. Thanks to Danielle for the photos. Continue reading Balloon view of west side Ottawa
Aerial shot of the west side taken from the CTV balloon on Sunday. Double click to enlarge. The view is looking south, the islands in the Ottawa River and former paper mills are in the foreground. Place du Portage in the foreground, Parliament beyond. Thanks to Danielle for the photos. Continue reading Balloon view of west side Ottawa
click to enlarge Notice Britannia Terrace (parallel to Duke street) which is now disappeared. The new Claridge condo on the Flats is right on the ACE of Terrace. Note Queen Street is not shown as jumping over the cliff, but Maria Street (now Laurier Ave) apparently does. Suitable for Nanny Goats maybe. Slater Street ends at Bronson (then called Concession). It was later extended just below the section of Albert that is shown on a diagonal. The extension was to permit the streetcar (Ottawa Electric Railway) to connect to Albert, which accounts for the narrow right of way on the part … Continue reading Ye Olde LeBreton Flats
click to enlarge Notice Britannia Terrace (parallel to Duke street) which is now disappeared. The new Claridge condo on the Flats is right on the ACE of Terrace. Note Queen Street is not shown as jumping over the cliff, but Maria Street (now Laurier Ave) apparently does. Suitable for Nanny Goats maybe. Slater Street ends at Bronson (then called Concession). It was later extended just below the section of Albert that is shown on a diagonal. The extension was to permit the streetcar (Ottawa Electric Railway) to connect to Albert, which accounts for the narrow right of way on the part … Continue reading Ye Olde LeBreton Flats
2010 is the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Navy. This accounts for all the banners and display panels on Confederation Boulevard and down by the war memorial. A monument is being errected to this anniversary at Richmond Landing, the original origin point of Richmond Road, at the Ottawa River below Chaudiere Falls where the Bronson Creek/Tailrace/Kayak course enters into the Ottawa River. The banners behind the tent are some of the ones decorating Confederation Boulevard. There was a large collection of navy-types there. I haven’t seen this many navy uniforms in decades (a navy brat, I grew up down … Continue reading Navy Monument Sod Turning
2010 is the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Navy. This accounts for all the banners and display panels on Confederation Boulevard and down by the war memorial. A monument is being errected to this anniversary at Richmond Landing, the original origin point of Richmond Road, at the Ottawa River below Chaudiere Falls where the Bronson Creek/Tailrace/Kayak course enters into the Ottawa River. The banners behind the tent are some of the ones decorating Confederation Boulevard. There was a large collection of navy-types there. I haven’t seen this many navy uniforms in decades (a navy brat, I grew up down … Continue reading Navy Monument Sod Turning
Double click on the map to enlarge it, and scroll around it for a bit to explore Ottawa in 1895. Notice the area called “Dalhousie” – our community name goes a long way back. Notice that a number of streets have the same name. The Queensway is still a railroad right of way. Carling Avenue is simply “Macadam road”(Macadam invented asphalt paving). Notice that Gladstone doesn’t exist, but many of its segements do, which goes some way to explaining why that street twists and curves the way it does as it connects up bits and pieces of older streets on … Continue reading city map, 1895
Double click on the map to enlarge it, and scroll around it for a bit to explore Ottawa in 1895. Notice the area called “Dalhousie” – our community name goes a long way back. Notice that a number of streets have the same name. The Queensway is still a railroad right of way. Carling Avenue is simply “Macadam road”(Macadam invented asphalt paving). Notice that Gladstone doesn’t exist, but many of its segements do, which goes some way to explaining why that street twists and curves the way it does as it connects up bits and pieces of older streets on … Continue reading city map, 1895
The access road to Lemieux Island water plant has been badly torn up for the construction of the high pressure water mains to the Island. Finally, the road is reappearing, although as you can see from a careful examination of the photo the new road is relocated to the left. During the construction, the ornate gates — which look like they belong to Her Highness the GG instead of here — were removed and this shows the eastern side gate and pailings reinstalled. Continue reading Gates of Lemieux Island re-installed
