By: Jacob Larsen

Jacob Larsen — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:53:10 +0000

Mark,
Nobody is arguing against rebuilding those parts of the Turcot that are structurally unsound and making sure no one gets hurt. But there's between doing that and rebuilding all the ramps and approaches in a way that actually increases car capacity. This is the crux of the issue

By: Mark

Mark — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:09:27 +0000

The Turcot Interchange is over 40 years old and near the end of its useful life. This huge concrete structure is crumbling. Rebuilding of the interchange as soon as possible must be a priority. Any delays would be potentially dangerous to claim more lives. Do we need to wait for another De La Concorde overpass tragedy to recur before starting construction?

By: kyle

kyle — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:05:33 +0000

I've read Montreal at the Crossroads and am all for decreasing auto use / increasing transit in the corridor and generally improving the Turcot situation, but it's going to be extremely hard to convince people that turning the 20 West of the Turcot into an urban boulevard is a good thing. The 720 into the city, maybe, and the Bonaventure, surely, but the 20 West? It's just such a wasteland at the moment that nobody has an attachment to the area. I personally lean to the extreme of advocating more transit use and density increases in conjunction with traffic calming, but the one thing I can say, is that if the plan is to turn the 20 West into an urban boulevard akin to the 20 West in Dorion, with lights-a-plenty and a mediocre streetscape, I'm not for it, at all. One of the worst streets in Quebec, the 20 through Dorion. Right now the 20 West is a place where you floor it and go as fast as humanly possible, as the landscape is second to none in ugliness. Montreal sure seems to have a fascination with turning freeways into urban boulevards at the moment, but urban boulevards, even with their illustrated crowds of people mingling among shiny new buildings, ain't always the nicest places either. The traffic flows and scale means they're often just as vapid and inhumane as they freeways they replace. The only way to pull off an urban boulevardization of the 20 West will be via an extremely high-quality and fast public transit service to placate West Islanders, and a ultra captivating land use plan to inspire the rest of the city. Otherwise, the public will simply not accept the idea of traffic lights on this bizarre stretch of drive-on-the-left motorway. I'm sure there's still a developer or two left with envelopes full of bribe money for the first politician who'll turn the land along the lachine canal into condo-attracting residental zoning.

Comments on: Turcot activists to Charest: Be coherent!

By: Jacob Larsen

By: Mark

By: kyle