514 replies to this topic

[atoosagurl]

By any chance do you have a link to whole video? Looks very interesting and worth a watch. Cheers.

[HB]

Its almost 90 minute movie and would take many hours to convert plus Ill have to find a better version of DVD fab that doesnt leave a watermark on the video I had one with a crack but cant find it.

[malabrat]

Awesome video, thanks!

What struck me is how much some things have changed and how much some things have not changed.

Take Goldstream park proper - really no change in almost 50 years.

But then take suicide corner - no median but it was 3 lanes. Amazing to think 50 years ago there were MORE lanes on part of the Malahat than there is today. I would image the same is true for the first part of tunnel hill too.

[malabrat]

Happy to see the interchange open, the light removed at Spencer and median extension. However to have it end only 100m north of the overpass is crazy. It needs to be extended to West Shore Parkway

[HB]

There is no room .

Would you be Ok with them reducing that section from 3 lanes down to 2 so that the installation of no post can carry on?

I can only think of 1 accident on that curve in 40 years and it was due to a blown tire.

There were weekly accidents all along the highway when it was only 2 lanes and most of those accidents were from people pulling onto the highway from side roads .

The highway originally only had one traffic light where Millstream road crossed the highway.

All of the other access in that area had stop signs

Florence lake
Matson
Brock
Deville
Phelps
Spencer
Jacklin

Huge improvemnets.

Give it time they will eventually widen the next section to Langford Parkway and it will probably be done when they build the soutbound exit road onto Leigh rd

[HB]

Awesome video, thanks!

What struck me is how much some things have changed and how much some things have not changed.

Take Goldstream park proper - really no change in almost 50 years.

But then take suicide corner - no median but it was 3 lanes. Amazing to think 50 years ago there were MORE lanes on part of the Malahat than there is today. I would image the same is true for the first part of tunnel hill too.

The section that stayed the same through Goldstream Park really nice only thing that has changed is tha the trees are bigger and bushier
.
Suicide curve had too many accidents there to count. The curve has a reverse camber which causes drifting while rounding it. They had to remove one southbound lane so that the no-post could be installed. It was done in the mid 1990s after a women from langford had her car and herself decapitated when a tractor trailer passing in the opposite direction drifted into her path and her car went under the trailer.

It usually takes years of dead people before the government acts. The thing that sped up the procees in the above accident is that the woman who got killed was the wife of one of the Langford firefighters who repsonded to the call out for that accident

[Baro]

I know a couple traffic engineers. They've told me even if they know 100% a place is super dangerous they can't secure funding unless X number of people die per year. Sometimes decades can go by with just a one too few people being killed for upgrade funding. They will assign a value to each life, and only start upgrades if that value reaches a certain threshold of the cost of the upgrade. Unless the area is poor, then each life is worth less, or if the area is rich or politically connected or important in an upcoming election, then those lives are worth far more. If a death gets enough negative press and there's enough outcry that will sometimes fast track things as well.

You'll often have situations that are killing people put on hold because some council wants to put money towards making sidewalks prettier or installing traffic-calming or pretty flowers in an area that doesn't need it, or some developer needs his sprawl subsidized.

It can be a pretty stressful and heart-breaking job. To push for some safety improvement backed up by actual evidence and engineering only to get turned down to instead build some useless but political project, then read a whole family was wiped out at the dangerous intersection you wanted to fix.

[malabrat]

There is no room .

Would you be Ok with them reducing that section from 3 lanes down to 2 so that the installation of no post can carry on?

I can only think of 1 accident on that curve in 40 years and it was due to a blown tire.

There were weekly accidents all along the highway when it was only 2 lanes and most of those accidents were from people pulling onto the highway from side roads .

The highway originally only had one traffic light where Millstream road crossed the highway.

All of the other access in that area had stop signs

Florence lake
Matson
Brock
Deville
Phelps
Spencer
Jacklin

Huge improvemnets.

Give it time they will eventually widen the next section to Langford Parkway and it will probably be done when they build the soutbound exit road onto Leigh rd

As a temporary measure I would be ok to have it go from 3 lanes to 2 to add median. My hope would be that afterwards we would see 4 laning with in medium term.

In terms of accidents in that area there was a fatal on that very corner July 1st 2011 due to cross-over. Motorcyclist killed.

[VicHockeyFan]

I know a couple traffic engineers. They've told me even if they know 100% a place is super dangerous they can't secure funding unless X number of people die per year. Sometimes decades can go by with just a one too few people being killed for upgrade funding. They will assign a value to each life, and only start upgrades if that value reaches a certain threshold of the cost of the upgrade. Unless the area is poor, then each life is worth less, or if the area is rich or politically connected or important in an upcoming election, then those lives are worth far more. If a death gets enough negative press and there's enough outcry that will sometimes fast track things as well.

Well, first of all, there has to be some measure, and yes, it might be a measure of deaths, that makes sense. And that's likely recorded somewhere officially.

I don't think so. Unless you mean the area has less money overall. That might make sense. But then we are talking about all the available money. But nobody is officially grading the area based on politics, certainly not the traffic engineers you know.

YES, but this has always been the way it works.

6 Months until Christmas!

[sdwright.vic]

Just went through it. Now Victoria's worst overpass ever. I now even like the airport exchange.

[LJ]

^What are you talking about? It does the job it was designed to do, clearly and easily.
It also improves the traffic flow, I was there last Friday and traffic was slow but moving steadily, much better than the stop light.

[weisguy86]

^What are you talking about? It does the job it was designed to do, clearly and easily.
It also improves the traffic flow, I was there last Friday and traffic was slow but moving steadily, much better than the stop light.

Now they just need to eliminate the new(ish) light at westshore parkway!

[sdwright.vic]

^What are you talking about? It does the job it was designed to do, clearly and easily.
It also improves the traffic flow, I was there last Friday and traffic was slow but moving steadily, much better than the stop light.

What? Both lanes backed up to just after Millstream exit. Two lanes merging into one the a on ramp merging again right after that. Traffic moving at a snails Preferred the traffic light, At least then their was some control in how much traffic proceeded foward. The could of widened the highway under the overpass.

[Sparky]

A little off topic, but didn't Lanford mess with Millstream Road (byHome Depot) 3 times before they got it right?

[sdwright.vic]

What? Both lanes backed up to just after Millstream exit. Two lanes merging into one the a on ramp merging again right after that. Traffic moving at a snails Preferred the traffic light, At least then their was some control in how much traffic proceeded foward. The could of widened the highway under the overpass.

Wow... should really not respond to forums will in the passenger seat on the Malahat at 10 at night, eh?

[LJ]

Now they just need to eliminate the new(ish) light at westshore parkway!

At least it is a short light and only activates if someone is leaving Kettle Creek area and wants to head Northbound, which isn't a lot just yet.

It will be nice for the residents when Westshore Parkway connects through to town, saving them from coming out to the highway.

[stormy]

Thought I was going to hate it but love the overpass.
First stat weekend since it has been open. Coming home today and traffic backed up to Millstream. 'Zip!!'....off the highwy. 'Zip!!'.....on to Goldstream. "Zip!!'......onto the overpass. Merge. Home to KC in 5 mins.

[gumgum]

Before you know it it will be at capacity and Langford will be crying for another overpass.

This isn't smart infrastructure. This will drive more suburban development which in turn will put more pressure on infrastructure.

Why can't the powers that be get light rail going?

[sebberry]

This will drive more suburban development which in turn will put more pressure on infrastructure.

I think the demand for homes drives suburban development. The transportation system just influences where that development will take place.

[sebberry]

Thought I was going to hate it but love the overpass.
First stat weekend since it has been open. Coming home today and traffic backed up to Millstream. 'Zip!!'....off the highwy. 'Zip!!'.....on to Goldstream. "Zip!!'......onto the overpass. Merge. Home to KC in 5 mins.

It won't be long until everyone else starts doing that to try to get around the backlog of cars.