News:

Thanks to everyone for the feedback on what errors you encountered at https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=33904.0
Corrected several already and appreciate your patience as we work through the rest.

Main Menu

High River, Alberta: Where is the east end of AB 543?

Started by yakra, December 24, 2013, 01:39:24 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

yakra

I'm trying to pin down the east end of AB543 for the Clinched Highway Mapping project.

It looks like in the last couple years, the physical road has been extended from AB543's old end at AB2A, but it's unclear whether the numerical designation has been extended along with it.

GIS shapefiles dated 2011-04-05 show AB543 ending at AB2A, with no road east of there.
GIS shapefiles dated 2013-04-26 show AB543 ending at a realigned 96 Street East, east of the new Highwood River bridge.
498 Avenue East continues onward from there to the new AB2 interchange. The designation extends along the new construction, but not along the existing roadway to the east.

AB MoT's 2011-2012 PDF maps agree with with 2011 shapefile.

What GMSV shows:
AB543 EB at AB2A has imagery from June 2009. The road straight ahead is not built yet.
At AB2, July 2012 imagery shows the interchange under construction.
@AB2A, SB & NB: The road east is open to traffic, but AB543 is signed to the west only. (Maybe the signage just hasn't been updated yet?, or they're waiting on the interchange to be completed, or something.)
At 96 Street East: No signage for 543. LGSes with control cities and KMage. "Closed" orange-out over the arrow to Calgary, which makes sense with the AB2 interchange still U/C.

A blurb from AB MoT
No direct link, as it's behind some Javascript. Click on "Hwy 543", then "Highway 543 Extension".
QuoteHighway 543 Extension — Hwy 2A to Hwy 2

Location: Future Highway 543 extension between Highway 2A and Highway 2 north of High River.

Description: In 2006, Alberta Transportation conducted a functional planning study of the future extension of Highway 543, including an interchange at Highway 2. In the ultimate stage the twinning would occur on the north side of the recommended alignment. In 2011, the Town of High River and the MD of Foothills completed the first phase (2 lanes) of the 498 Avenue connection between Highway 2A and Highway 2 through the Building Canada Fund and the connection currently remains a local road. The constructed alignment differs from the study's recommended alignment in that it predominantly follows the east/west road allowance. In 2012, the municipalities and Alberta Transportation completed the interchange on Highway 2 at 498 Avenue. Future twinning of this roadway is still planned on the north side of the existing alignment.

Schedule: Completed.
The " and the connection currently remains a local road." bit is interesting. Do they mean everything E of AB2A/? Or just the existing 498 Ave east of 96 St and the new construction?

Perhaps the extension was waiting on either the interchange opening or the road getting twinned?

My questions are:
Can anyone who's been to the area comment on what's signed in the field now that the interchange is open?
Does the new AB2 interchange have a signed exit number?
"Officer, I'm always careful to drive the speed limit no matter where I am and that's what I was doin'." Said "No, you weren't," she said, "Yes, I was." He said, "Madam, I just clocked you at 22 MPH," and she said "That's the speed limit," he said "No ma'am, that's the route numbah!"  - Gary Crocker


dmuzika

I haven't been out that way recently, but I took that route in August and IIRC it was signed as 498 Avenue E (I can't remember if there's an exit number), coinciding with the grid system of the MD of Foothills.  Adding additional signage for Hwy 543 was probably delayed as High River suffered catastrophic flooding in June that included wiping out part of the route.


Source: Okotoks Online

I don't know if the signage has been updated since then to reflect Hwy 543, but if I'm out there again I'll post something.

Terry

According to the "TRAFFIC VOLUME, VEHICLE CLASSIFICATION, TRAVEL and ESAL STATISTICS REPORT" for 2018 (uploaded on March 5, 2019), 543 still ends at 2A. I doubt it'll be extended to 2, as High River may annex 498 Ave. one day.

https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/1a5377b0-a898-4b10-b03e-72d6ed28eaaf/resource/f4cf4275-2edc-416b-bc2d-3e61b2c1347c/download/vc2018.pdf



Opinions expressed here on belong solely to the poster and do not represent or reflect the opinions or beliefs of AARoads, its creators and/or associates.