33 replies to this topic

[D.L.]

What improvements would you make to the road network in Victoria if you could do anything? I'm interested to hear. This city has a messy road network in many ways so let's come up with ways to clean it up!

Here are a couple of my ideas

(All images from Google Maps)


Fernwood Rd. to Moss St.
These two streets form a good north-south route through the city by using a short section of Fort St. to connect between them. However, because Fort is one-way the south-bound route requires a detour around the playing field of Central Middle School. If a short 110 meter section of Fort were made to accomodate two-way traffic then travel from Fernwood Rd. to Moss St. would be greatly improved. Fort St. is wide enough to do this and I think this change could realistically be made.

Current south-bound detour route, and the improvement that could be made
. .
 
Short section of Fort St. that could be made two-way



Oak Bay Ave. and Beach Dr.
Oak Bay Avenue is one of the longest east-west streets in the city, but for some reason traffic is routed south to Newport Ave. and the right-of-way that would connect Oak Bay Ave. with Beach Dr. is largely unused. Wouldn't it be neat to push the Avenue right through to Beach Dr. and create a ceremonial square and fountain in the park at the end of it! Realistically I don't think this would ever be done though.



Street View of current intersection - https://maps.google....2,79.74,,0,9.89

[tedward]

Fernwood/Moss - I think that Fernwood and Moss would make a terrible North-South corridor given the narrowness and generally slow speeds possible. You would have to widen Fernwood quite a bit though the village and that would be too expensive IMO.  As well I think it might be too difficult for drivers to deal with a single block of two-way traffic on an otherwise one-way street.

 

Oak Bay Ave - Yes please!  This has never made sense to me.

[Baro]

I'd just love some of our continuous streets that have 3 names to just pick one and go for it.  There's so many cases of streets changing names for no reason other than historical stubbornness, often not even at borders, just randomly within the city of Victoria you'll get this.

[VicHockeyFan]

I'd just love some of our continuous streets that have 3 names to just pick one and go for it.  There's so many cases of streets changing names for no reason other than historical stubbornness, often not even at borders, just randomly within the city of Victoria you'll get this.

 

Tyee, Skinner, Craigflower anyone?  Craigflower ought to run right through to/past Esquimalt Rd. at Songhees.

[Nparker]

Balmoral/Fisgard. Caledonia/Chatham North Park/Herald

[VicHockeyFan]

Balmoral/Fisgard. Caledonia/Chatham North Park/Herald

 

Lochside in 11 parts.

[amor de cosmos]

What about straightening Saanich/Boleskine at Douglas? I guess it might mean moving the overpass slightly to the north of where it is now.

Edited by amor de cosmos, 13 January 2014 - 06:11 PM.

[D.L.]

...I think it might be too difficult for drivers to deal with a single block of two-way traffic on an otherwise one-way street.

That's not giving drivers much credit! With proper curbs and lane markings two-way traffic could easily be managed. Plus, Fort St. becomes a full two-way street half a block from this area.
 
 

I'd just love some of our continuous streets that have 3 names to just pick one and go for it.

Yeah, how about Harriet, Boleskine, Saanich, and Tattersal. We need a road name reformation!

[Bernard]

Do not forget Tattersall turns the corner at the very end and becomes James Heights

[Mike K.]

Wharf -> Store

 

Admirals -> McKenzie

 

Tyee -> Skinner -> Craigflower -> Old Island Highway.

 

Why not rename some of these ever changing streets into boulevards?

[sdwright.vic]

Blanshard one way out of town, Douglas one way into town, huge intersection and exchange just north of Uptown allowing flyover from one to the other.

Edited by sdwright.vic, 13 January 2014 - 06:18 PM.

[VicHockeyFan]

Blanshard one way out of town, Douglas one way into town, huge intersection and exchange just north of Uptown allowing flyover from one to the other.

 

Not bad.  How but we combine this with a counterflow lane system coming in/out on TCH from Uptown to Old Island interchange, 3 lanes in the morning etc.  

[Mike K.]

This is making far too much sense, gentlemen, far too much sense.

[Holden West]

Once you're done joining up contiguous streets can we do the opposite and rename streets that are completely separated? Belmont is one that zigs and zags. Cumberland is intersected by McKenzie and the north side is completely different and inaccessible from the south. Torquay is another one on that drives me crazy. It's separated by the Lambrick school and the Gordon Head rec centre but if you enter Torquay off Shelbourne there is no possible way to access the north part of it.

 

Blanshard one way out of town, Douglas one way into town, huge intersection and exchange just north of Uptown allowing flyover from one to the other.

 

 

This was actually considered briefly, if only a vague conception, back in 1976. A tunnel underneath Town and Country/Uptown would have linked Blanshard and the TC Highway.

[amor de cosmos]

Raymond St is another one that's in multiple pieces.

[VicHockeyFan]

Once you're done joining up contiguous streets can we do the opposite and rename streets that are completely separated? Belmont is one that zigs and zags. Cumberland is intersected by McKenzie and the north side is completely different and inaccessible from the south. Torquay is another one on that drives me crazy. It's separated by the Lambrick school and the Gordon Head rec centre but if you enter Torquay off Shelbourne there is no possible way to access the north part of it.

 

 

And as I said, Lochside.  It actually has 8 parts.  Spanning 3 or 4 municipalities.  Start HERE and just follow the trail north to see bits of actual street that will never ever be re-united.  It's insane.

[VicHockeyFan]

Raymond St is another one that's in multiple pieces.

 

At least some of it is noted as north and south.

[HB]

I bet most people in Victoria have no idea that Douglas street goes north almost to the Quadra overpass on 17 it parallels 17 for a good distance

 

I remember driving on Douglas when it used to cross the bridge at Ravine and carry on northwards this was before Seymour and Blanshard were extended or widened by Save on Food strip mall behind town and country

[Mike K.]

Yup. I used to cycle up "little Douglas" when we had an office in Saanich. It's actually quite neat to find yourself in a neighbourhood that was dissected by a highway and had one if its streets razed at one point in its past.

[VicHockeyFan]

I bet most people in Victoria have no idea that Douglas street goes north almost to the Quadra overpass on 17 it parallels 17 for a good distance

 

I remember driving on Douglas when it used to cross the bridge at Ravine and carry on northwards this was before Seymour and Blanshard were extended or widened by Save on Food strip mall behind town and country

 

Do we all remember the days before the "McKenzie extension"?   I do, but can't remember exactly how we got around it to get from McKenzie onto the TCH.  EDIT:  Oh ya, now I do, left on Glanford, up to Carey/Tillicum, then down Tillicum to the highway.