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[jakeroot]

Going the other way the speed limit is 100, with an 80km/h advsory speed through the interchange -- much like this will be once the rest of the freeway networks open.

The reason that I posted all of those examples is that I found it annoying that you purported that there was somehow something wrong with how speed limit drop was managed without:
(a) actually seeing the interchange configuration; or
(b) being a traffic engineer.

I've not designed a freeway terminus either, but I've seen enough of them to know that what has been designed here is within the realm or normalcy in both Ontario and other locales in North America.

My entire point from the beginning was that I thought it was a little ridiculous for the limit to drop 3 kilometres in advance. It was explained to me that this was due to the end of the freeway, plus the curve for the directional-T interchange (see cbeach40's most recent reply on 10 Jan). I thought that was kind of silly, since advisory limits were supposed to be used for curves, and lowering the limit that far in advance might cause a differential in speeds (some continuing at 100, some lowering to 80). Even you stated above that "the ramps that have opened as part of the 407 extension have been consistently some of the fastest freeway to freeway ramps in Ontario".

I may not have stated it directly, but I would prefer to see the limit remain 100 until about a kilometre before Taunton Road, with an advisory 80 limit through that curve (so an advisory 80 limit, followed by a drop to a limit of 80). I know it seems like splitting hairs, but I don't like freeways with a posted speed so far below the design speed. I totally understand lowering a limit before the end of a freeway, but that far in advance just isn't necessary. Some might even view it as a speed trap.

The one freeway terminus near me that is involved in an extension project, the WA-167 extension from Puyallup to Tacoma, has no limit drop before ending at a half-SPUI. There's no curves or loops involved, granted, but even if there were, the limit wouldn't drop 1.8 miles back. One limit drop I know of off-hand is a drop from 100 to 70 about a mile before the freeway's terminus (WA-512 approaching I-5). It's universally ignored even at just a mile long.

[AsphaltPlanet]

I am going to circle back to my original point.

Prior to the opening of the 407 extension to Taunton Road, a bunch of engineers sat around a table and discussed how best to sign the impending terminus of the highway.  It's pretty safe to assume they were aware of the existence of advisory speed limit signs during this meeting.  Also, this phase of the 407 extension has a radically different approach to speed limit step down than the previous design for the 407 when it ended at Harmony Road.

So my question again is, what specific knowledge about how to sign the terminus of a freeway do you have that the design team didn't have?  To imply that they screwed up infers that you have knowledge that the engineers that sat around that table deciding how best to sign the terminus of the freeway did not have.  Please share this information.

[Alps]

I am going to circle back to my original point.

Prior to the opening of the 407 extension to Taunton Road, a bunch of engineers sat around a table and discussed how best to sign the impending terminus of the highway.  It's pretty safe to assume they were aware of the existence of advisory speed limit signs during this meeting.  Also, this phase of the 407 extension has a radically different approach to speed limit step down than the previous design for the 407 when it ended at Harmony Road.

So my question again is, what specific knowledge about how to sign the terminus of a freeway do you have that the design team didn't have?  To imply that they screwed up infers that you have knowledge that the engineers that sat around that table deciding how best to sign the terminus of the freeway did not have.  Please share this information.

In my state, the engineers do not set speed limits, the DOT does. There is no way to know who decides on the speed limits - it may or may not even be a licensed engineer. What specific knowledge do you have about who decided on this speed limit that we don't have? Please share this information.

[AsphaltPlanet]

I've talked about speed limit policy with two traffic engineers who work for the MTO on many occasion.  Next?

[J N Winkler]

Looking at the drawings, a limit of 80 km/h is appropriate for that curve onto the future 418 alignment (because of course the 407 consortium would design to the barest of minimums *sigh*).

Is there a place (online?) where we may see these drawings?

[cbeach40]

In my state, the engineers do not set speed limits, the DOT does. There is no way to know who decides on the speed limits - it may or may not even be a licensed engineer. What specific knowledge do you have about who decided on this speed limit that we don't have? Please share this information.

Staff in the Regional Traffic section will analyze the highway and make recommendations based on TAC standards. The recommendation and amendment to Ontario Regulation 619: Speed Limits are written up by staff, and is sent up the chain through the Regional Office, signed off by management there. It goes to MTO Legal Services, who make sure the regulation language is properly written. It goes to the Minister's Office, where they review the rationale and if they're good with it, sign off on the amendment. It goes to the Lieutenant-Governor, and is signed into law.

Sorry I don't have a School House Rock tune to go with it.   

My entire point from the beginning was that I thought it was a little ridiculous for the limit to drop 3 kilometres in advance. It was explained to me that this was due to the end of the freeway, plus the curve for the directional-T interchange (see cbeach40's most recent reply on 10 Jan). I thought that was kind of silly, since advisory limits were supposed to be used for curves, and lowering the limit that far in advance might cause a differential in speeds (some continuing at 100, some lowering to 80). Even you stated above that "the ramps that have opened as part of the 407 extension have been consistently some of the fastest freeway to freeway ramps in Ontario".

I may not have stated it directly, but I would prefer to see the limit remain 100 until about a kilometre before Taunton Road, with an advisory 80 limit through that curve (so an advisory 80 limit, followed by a drop to a limit of 80). I know it seems like splitting hairs, but I don't like freeways with a posted speed so far below the design speed. I totally understand lowering a limit before the end of a freeway, but that far in advance just isn't necessary. Some might even view it as a speed trap.

The one freeway terminus near me that is involved in an extension project, the WA-167 extension from Puyallup to Tacoma, has no limit drop before ending at a half-SPUI. There's no curves or loops involved, granted, but even if there were, the limit wouldn't drop 1.8 miles back. One limit drop I know of off-hand is a drop from 100 to 70 about a mile before the freeway's terminus (WA-512 approaching I-5). It's universally ignored even at just a mile long.

Advisory speeds for curves apply for a small sections in isolation surrounded by long sections that meet standard - see 427 at 401 for a good example. From here the design speed of the highway lowers for the curve, but does not return to standard freeway mainline speed beyond it (in fact it gets even lower). Therefore a regulatory speed reduction is the appropriate treatment here.

Is there a place (online?) where we may see these drawings?

The Design Construction Reports include some engineering drawings. These are all well before construction, so there in inevitable be differences between these and the as-built drawings for the highway.
http://www.407eastphase2.ca/community_consultations

[cbeach40]

Looks like Brantford is finally getting moving on finishing the BSAR.
http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/2018/01/26/ea-planned-for-bsar-missing-link

[cbeach40]

GTA West corridor study is dead.
https://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2018/02/ontario-not-moving-forward-with-highway-for-gta-west-corridor.html

[cbeach40]

Some news items:

New KW-Guelph Freeway - Victoria Street bridge demolition coming soon:
https://www.therecord.com/news-story/8135280-victoria-street-bridge-demo-slated-for-end-of-february/

NW Ontario - Study underway for the new Nipigon River Crossing
https://www.tbnewswatch.com/local-news/public-consultation-starts-on-alternate-nipigon-river-crossing-839575

The Carillion spectacle de la merde continues
http://www.theobserver.ca/2018/02/14/whats-ontarios-planb-if-road-maintainer-carillion-canada-run-out-of-cash-asks-ndp-transportation-critic

SW Ontario - Highway 401 median barriers
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/province-to-build-concrete-barrier-along-hwy-401-s-carnage-alley-1.4520711

[Plutonic Panda]

GTA West corridor study is dead.
https://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2018/02/ontario-not-moving-forward-with-highway-for-gta-west-corridor.html

Just curious whether this was needed or not? I have no idea about anything involving the GTA.

[cbeach40]

GTA West corridor study is dead.
https://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2018/02/ontario-not-moving-forward-with-highway-for-gta-west-corridor.html

Just curious whether this was needed or not? I have no idea about anything involving the GTA.

Not now, but if in thirty years it is needed, the time to protect the corridor is now.

[AsphaltPlanet]

Some new photos of the 401/418 interchange.  Most of the structural steel seems to be up now, though there were still signs advertising of night closures later this week:

Looking east:

http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_401_images/401_dv_425-95_east_Feb18_24x16.jpg


http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_401_images/401_dv_426_east_Feb18_24x16.jpg


http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_401_images/401_dv_426-5_east_Feb18_24x16.jpg

Looking west:

http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_401_images/401_dv_426-5_west_Feb18_24x16.jpg


http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_401_images/401_dv_426-25_west_Feb18_24x16.jpg


http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_401_images/401_dv_426_west_Feb18_24x16.jpg

[MisterSG1]

I'm not sure if any of you have took a picture of it.

But they've introduced IMHO a new diagrammatical sign on Hwy 410 approaching the Hwy 403/401 interchange, and this new sign I think creates a case of informational overload. It's something along the lines of (forgive my text drawing):


{403}        ^ />          {401} EAST [AIRPORT]   
Hamilton     l /              Toronto
                 l/               {401} WEST
                 l                London


Is there any reason why this following approach was not used, because if you recall, the old version of that sign had no control cities on the 401 until you actually reached the gore point.

{403}        ^ />          {401} 
Hamilton     l /              Toronto
                 l/               London
                 l               

[AsphaltPlanet]

I had a few hours to kill yesterday afternoon.  This is just a quick photo of the 401 construction through Mavis Road.  Obviously not much has changed since the fall, as the contractor has not yet resumed after the winter shutdown yet:


http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_401_images/401_cl_337_east_EB_t_Mar18_24x16.jpg

[Plutonic Panda]

That’s kind of a weird curve on the right side.

[AsphaltPlanet]

^ That's just to make the geometry of the collector lanes more gradual around the collector to core transfer.  The stub of concrete will be a future collector to core transfer that will feed traffic from the collector lanes back into the express once the collector lanes have been extended further west to west of Mississauga Road.  It's harder to see from this perspective, but the westbound collector lanes kind of bow out behind the pictured transport truck with a red cab also for a future set of transfers.

[Plutonic Panda]

That makes sense. Love seeing this come together and it will be nice when major work resumes.

[Stephane Dumas]

Any recent news about the upgrades of Hwy-11 between Barrie and Orillia? The website about the upgrades of that route had vanished and the Internet Archive recent copy of that site is from May 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140518082344/http://www.highway11study.ca

[cbeach40]

Any recent news about the upgrades of Hwy-11 between Barrie and Orillia? The website about the upgrades of that route had vanished and the Internet Archive recent copy of that site is from May 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140518082344/http://www.highway11study.ca

Expansion along the Highway 11 corridor between Barrie and Washago has been shelved for the time being. It appears in neither the near nor long term programmed projects for the Ministry.

[AsphaltPlanet]

The timing of the Highway 11 project probably doesn't really make sense to do until Highway 400 has been widened north to Barrie anyways.

[AsphaltPlanet]

HOV lane pilot egress/access point on the 400:

The HOV lanes that are under construction on the 400 will feature a pilot project for HOV egress/access at one of the access locations:



https://www.vaughan.ca/council/minutes_agendas/Communications/CW_0404_17_C38.pdf

[cbeach40]

HOV lane pilot egress/access point on the 400:

The HOV lanes that are under construction on the 400 will feature a pilot project for HOV egress/access at one of the access locations:

To clarify, two locations southbound and three northbound within the one project will have the speed change lanes between the GPL and HOT Lanes.

[jakeroot]

Does Ontario use any physical delineation between the HOV and GP lanes? Nothing is used here in Seattle along the 405, and cars seem to love jumping in and out at random.

[7/8]

Does Ontario use any physical delineation between the HOV and GP lanes? Nothing is used here in Seattle along the 405, and cars seem to love jumping in and out at random.

The only delineation is a striped buffer, so there isn't any physical barrier preventing people from changing lanes. I don't drive on HOV roads often enough to know how common it is for people to illegally cross the buffer.

Here's a typical HOV lane setup from the MTO website taken from this webpage:

[AsphaltPlanet]

I had to drive north today, so I took a look at the construction along Hwy 69 between Parry Sound and Sudbury.  Work is progressing nicely on the new Pickerel River Bridge that will carry the future Highway 69/400 over the river.  There isn't much to see at the French River bridge further north as of yet.  I did take a bunch more photos of this bridge, and the construction in general, so if I get a chance over the next few days, I might post a few more images:


http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/hwy_60-69_images/69N_structure_Pickeral_west_May18_24x16.jpg