[Luker]

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/extension+Hunt+Club+Highway+announced/4852643/story.html

By Joanne Chianello May 27, 2011 5:31 PM Comments (2)

OTTAWA — The provincial Liberal government found $22 million in its budget this year to connect Hunt Club Road to Highway 417 in the southeast section of the city, in addition to a previously released plan to widen the highway from Nicholas Street to the eastern split.

The city will be footing the other half of the bill, money that Mayor Jim Watson said was already in the 2011 capital budget.

The announcement was made Friday by Infrastructure Minister and Ottawa West-Nepean MPP Bob Chiarelli and Ottawa-Orléans MPP Phil McNeely, who said he’s been working on connecting Hunt Club to the highway for more than five years.

Among other things, said McNeely, the new interchange will provide a more direct route to the airport for those living in the southeast quadrant of the city.

Watson and several city councillors also attended the press conference that was held on a dead-end strip of Hunt Club just east of Hawthorne Road, or as Gloucester-Southgate Councillor Diane Deans referred to it, “a road to nowhere.”

Under the infrastructure stimulus fund, which expires in October, Hunt Club Road was extended in a project costing about $20 million, shared equally by the federal, provincial and municipal governments. But the highway interchange was not eligible under the federal part of the program, and so Hunt Club literally goes nowhere east of Hawthorne.

But Friday’s announcement means that work on the interchange will begin as soon as August and is expected to be completed by 2014.

Watson said that the city had put in a request for funding for this project, “and we were hoping that we’d get some funding, and I have to tell you that we are very pleased that we are getting much more than we thought we would get.”

Lisa MacLeod, the Progressive Conservative MPP for Nepean-Carleton called Friday’s announcement “purely political, plain and simple.

“The Liberals have been engaged in a seat-saver program, announcing multi-million-dollar projects in the hope of hanging onto a few seats,” she said.

She charged that Liberals are “having trouble finding candidates,” pointing to another announcement Friday, this one by West Carleton-March Councillor Eli El-Chantiry confirming that he would not seek the Liberal nomination in the Carleton-Mississippi Mills riding.

The provincial Tories are holding their convention in Toronto this weekend. Candidates will receive training for the upcoming election campaign and the party will release its platform on Sunday. MacLeod said the Liberal announcement was “a desperate attempt to try to change the channel” from the attention being given the PC convention.

But Chiarelli deflected any criticism that announcing new money for a new road was a ploy to buy votes.

“We make major announcements throughout the year, every year, and we’re not going to stop because it’s an election year,” Chiarelli told reporters. “This has been in the cards for a long time and it’s coming to fruition now.”

The 2011-12 provincial budget earmarked $12.8 billion for infrastructure over the 12 months. Chiarelli said that “much of that is already allocated to existing projects, but there’s significant room there to announce new projects.”

© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/extension+Hunt+Club+Highway+announced/4852643/story.html#ixzz1LtUdR5kX

P.S. admin please fix title spelling of 'announced'

[Luker]

So, big deal? This effectively complete our Ottawa 'ring road'. Also, it does have the right of way medians to be expanded to a six lane parkway in the future.. (I give it 15yrs tops even with the lightrail going in... aka the first thign to do after it...?) Ohh, other than expand the LRT up bronson, to the airport, college, farhaven, kanata, orleans, maybe throw rideau rideau, vanier, and gatineau too? :shrug:

[MaxHeadroom]

The completion of this roadway is desperately needed. At peak periods, there is often a long line of vehicles queued onto 417 East waiting to exit to Walkley. Walkley is an absolute mess and completely over capacity. The only option south is to take indirect backroads to Anderson Road (which is also under construction.)

[Davis137]

I saw last weekend that Huntclub is built up now to within eyesight of the 417...they have regraded the land so that it can approach an overpass when they build one...

[Sven Casselman]

I'm not very keen on extending Hunt Club to the 417; Traffic along that beginning stretch of it is congested as hell as it is, and having people take it coming right off the 417 will only make it worse. Without the widening of the road first, it will end up funnelling a ton of new traffic into the area.

[Harley613]

i don't find hunt club very busy between hawthorne and bank at all, and i take it every day. the east end of the road is underutilized if anything. if they get cracking and build the alta vista transit corridor from conroy to nicholas this will really expedite traffic flow and relieve the queensway at the split in a huge way. this is so overdue!!!

[gjhall]

i don't find hunt club very busy between hawthorne and bank at all, and i take it every day. the east end of the road is underutilized if anything. if they get cracking and build the alta vista transit corridor from conroy to nicholas this will really expedite traffic flow and relieve the queensway at the split in a huge way. this is so overdue!!!

I agree, but wonder if there's really capacity for cars going onto the Queensway here to go downtown...it's usually blocked up at Walkley Road every day already...

[bobert_d]

i don't find hunt club very busy between hawthorne and bank at all, and i take it every day. the east end of the road is underutilized if anything. if they get cracking and build the alta vista transit corridor from conroy to nicholas this will really expedite traffic flow and relieve the queensway at the split in a huge way. this is so overdue!!!

I for one really do not want the Alta Vista Corridor built, especially the section between Nicholas and Riverside, as that will mean sticking a hugely busy road right on the closest open space for about 4000 people. Not only that, it'll be a huge barrier to get to the next nearest open space on the Oblates land, which is due to be developed shortly (I believe that the plan is for the waterside area to remain as greenfield).

Also, the 417 is going to be widened in this area, although it will not be opening until after the LRT is built. That section will, apparently, be bus only until the LRT opens, then reverting to general traffic.

[Harley613]

it's nice open space for the residents of the area, sure, but it has been put aside for a future road that is desperately needed by most of the city...sorry but i can't wait until they build this...as i'm sure they will eventually! why else would they have left it undeveloped for all these years?

[phil235]

it's nice open space for the residents of the area, sure, but it has been put aside for a future road that is desperately needed by most of the city...sorry but i can't wait until they build this...as i'm sure they will eventually! why else would they have left it undeveloped for all these years?

I'm certainly not keen on another highway heading downtown, slicing up neighbourhoods on the way. That type of city planning has pretty much been discredited at this stage. There may be an argument for using the right-of way for transit though.

[eternallyme]

I agree the Alta Vista corridor is unnecessary, certainly as no more than a collector road in the area for local traffic with no access controls.

As for Hunt Club, that would complete an "inner bypass" which could draw some traffic off of Highway 417. Agreed that Bank eastward operates quite well and can sustain additional traffic, but the central part of Hunt Club is a major bottleneck.

[waterloowarrior]

bidding for construction of phase 1B (Russell to 417 interchange) closes aug 18th.

[MaxHeadroom]

They didn't waste any time getting started on phase 2. Trucks and heavy equipment have been busy grading the roadbed between 417 and Russell for the last two weeks or so. No sign of any work on the new overpass over Russell yet, though.

[MaxHeadroom]

OK, the site is starting to take shape. There is now a substantial road embankment built up between the existing hydro lines and Russell Rd. Given the height of the roadway, it's obvious the power lines will have to be moved. Still no formwork or anything for the overpass yet.

Orange construction signs have gone up on the 417 in both directions establishing a construction zone around the future site of the interchange. These signs are going to be around for a while, given they have been set into the ground!

[Cre47]

Probably one of the rare necessary road expansions as long as it doesn't go past/east of the 417. Walkley Road is a mess and getting most of the trucks (well those coming from Montreal at least and heading in the Hawthorne area though not the Sheffield area) out of there would help.

[MaxHeadroom]

This week, crews began to grade and clear the land along the west side of the 417, probably for ramps and moving a waterway.

[MaxHeadroom]

inside shoulders have been widened slightly, presumably to allow lane shifting. Lots of clearing and earth moving on both sides of the highway now, but still no signs of concrete. Newly erected signs indicate project will be completed fall of 2013. 80 km/h speed limit in construction zone.

[alphachap]

They should also widen the Hunt Club Bridge (near T&T at Riverside).
Traffic is a total mess there.
And OC Transpo 116 Bus has a very poor schedule there.

[bradnixon]

They should also widen the Hunt Club Bridge (near T&T at Riverside).
Traffic is a total mess there.
And OC Transpo 116 Bus has a very poor schedule there.

I'm not sure if I agree about widening the bridge, but I definitely agree about the 116. It was one of the hardest-hit routes of the September service cuts.

I think there needs to be a route like the 402 that runs 7 days/week, not just for Sens games. Route 402 goes directly from South Keys to Baseline via Hunt Club and Woodroofe.

The problem with Hunt Club bridge isn't so much the bridge as the approaches to the bridge. Bus only lanes from Antares to Prince of Wales eastbound, and Canadair to Riverside westbound, with bus priority signals, would largely alleviate the congestion problem from a transit perspective.

[eltodesukane]

It seems the NCC is currently delaying the project...

http://www.orleansstar.ca/News/2011-06-29/article-2621849/Hunt-Club-extension-to-Innes-awaits-the-NCC%3A-McNeely/1

Ottawa-Orléans MPP Phil McNeely is calling on the NCC to add the Hunt Club extension project to its master plan or risk it being heavily delayed.

"It could set the project back five to ten years. It's a city project from this point. But they won't be able to move forward if the NCC doesn't give the go-ahead."

The NCC is currently reviewing the transport portion of its Greenbelt master plan, a process which will last one year. The review of the master plan will finish late next year.
... the project, along with many others that are being proposed to pass through the Greenbelt, need to follow the proper steps.

Any more recent news about the Hunt Club extension project?

[Proof Sheet]

It seems the NCC is currently delaying the project...

http://www.orleansstar.ca/News/2011-...C%3A-McNeely/1

Ottawa-Orléans MPP Phil McNeely is calling on the NCC to add the Hunt Club extension project to its master plan or risk it being heavily delayed.

"It could set the project back five to ten years. It's a city project from this point. But they won't be able to move forward if the NCC doesn't give the go-ahead."

The NCC is currently reviewing the transport portion of its Greenbelt master plan, a process which will last one year. The review of the master plan will finish late next year.
... the project, along with many others that are being proposed to pass through the Greenbelt, need to follow the proper steps.

Any more recent news about the Hunt Club extension project?

Is it the section from Hawthorne/Hunt Club easterly to the 417 that is being delayed or the section from 417 NE to Innes that is being delayed?

[eltodesukane]

$44M extension of Hunt Club, annouced funding of $22M by Province
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/extensi...643/story.html
Under the infrastructure stimulus fund, which expires in October, Hunt Club Road was extended in a project costing about $20 million, shared equally by the federal, provincial and municipal governments. But the highway interchange was not eligible under the federal part of the program, and so Hunt Club literally goes nowhere east of Hawthorne.
But Friday’s announcement means that work on the interchange will begin as soon as August and is expected to be completed by 2014.

"Hunt Club extension to Innes awaits the NCC: McNeely"
I updated the link which wasn't working.
http://www.orleansstar.ca/News/2011-06-29/article-2621849/Hunt-Club-extension-to-Innes-awaits-the-NCC%3A-McNeely/1

[MaxHeadroom]

Project update

Work has started on the foundations for the ramp bridges over the creek on either side of the 417.
Footings for the new Hydro One pylons have been poured.
Some more minor grading work on either side of the 417.
Still no work at all on the big overpasses.

To clarify an earlier post, the Hunt Club extension from Hawthorne to 417 is going ahead. In fact it's already 50% built under the federal stimulus, only the road dead ends at a cliff so it's not open to traffic. The contemplated extension of Hunt Club beyond the 417 up to Innes IS being delayed. Honestly I do not see a need for this to be built at significant environmental expense - just widen the 417 instead!

[MaxHeadroom]

This project is going at what seems like a snail's pace. They finally started digging a hole in the median for footings and started to build up the eastern embankment. Ever. So. Slowly.

[lrt's friend]

Funny how fast work can proceed if there is a deadline. Now that there is no deadline, everything takes an eternity. I bet if there was a deadline involved, they would come up with solutions pronto for the South Keys pedestrian bridge and the Strandherd/Armstrong Bridge. The politicians must have hated the infrastructure program. Things got done without a thousand separate announcements for the same project.

[lrt's friend]

Just remember the Sawmill Creek bike pathway. Part of it got built during the infrastructure program. It will probably be 2030 before the remainder gets built. Of course, it is of almost no value until the missing link gets finished. In the meantime, we have a beautiful paved bike trail that abruptly ends in shrubbery under the Walkley Road bridge. Your city in action.

[McC]

Just remember the Sawmill Creek bike pathway. Part of it got built during the infrastructure program. It will probably be 2030 before the remainder gets built. Of course, it is of almost no value until the missing link gets finished. In the meantime, we have a beautiful paved bike trail that abruptly ends in shrubbery under the Walkley Road bridge. Your city in action.

Good friend of mine found out about that shrubbery the hard way one evening.

[Davis137]

If the Huntclub interchange happens at the 417, it will possibly raise the property values in the Southgate and Greenboro districts, as there will be a more direct way to get to the highway, and the same for getting off of it, and getting home.

I hate to say it, but the congestion on Hunt Club, the Airport Parkway, and other arterial roads is mostly from single occupant vehicles, usually driven by people going to and from riverside south and Barhaven.

[Dado]

Just remember the Sawmill Creek bike pathway. Part of it got built during the infrastructure program. It will probably be 2030 before the remainder gets built. Of course, it is of almost no value until the missing link gets finished. In the meantime, we have a beautiful paved bike trail that abruptly ends in shrubbery under the Walkley Road bridge. Your city in action.

That path was supposed to have been built when the Southeast Transitway was built; naturally it got cut (just as the path along the N-S LRT - some of it the same path, again - got cut when it was approved in ~June 2006) to control the budget. So it's only 15-20 years behind schedule now.

[S-Man]

I can't drive by Baseline Station without thinking of the huge, finished underground station (Stimulus-funded) that's been sitting under the Algonquin construction building for nearly 2 years, but with no road leading into or out of it. And no word that I know of of when the next phases will start.

How long is the shitty "temporary" above ground station suposed to be there?

[Admiral Nelson]

I can't drive by Baseline Station without thinking of the huge, finished underground station (Stimulus-funded) that's been sitting under the Algonquin construction building for nearly 2 years, but with no road leading into or out of it. And no word that I know of of when the next phases will start.

How long is the shitty "temporary" above ground station suposed to be there?

According to the plan (http://ottawa.ca/calendar/ottawa/citycouncil/trc/2008/11-19/ACS2008-ICS-DCM-0007.htm), the temporary station will stop being used by 2013.

[Richard Eade]

I read that report a bit differently; specifically the statement “...the approved strategic initiatives call for the BRT system to be completed by Dec. 2015 and for the LRT service to come to Baseline Station sometime after 2016.”

From what I see, the permanent station is to be built within the 2013-2015 window; so for that period the ‘Temporary’ Baseline Station will still be active. That is why the ‘Temporary’ station was built to ‘Permanent’ standards (with associated cost); it was to last 7 years, 2009-2015.

[MaxHeadroom]

Project Update

- The bridge structure for the EB417 to WB Hunt Club ramp over the creek has girders erected
- Some rebar is in place for the centre overpass columns in the median
- More moving of earth around
- Some pavement for the EB Hunt Club to EB417 ramp and removal of concrete barricades here.
- No new hydro towers yet. HydroOne needs to get going on this because it's holding up the rest of the project.

[MaxHeadroom]

Concrete columns poured in the median.
Now building the base of the berms for each side of the big overpass over the 417. This is going to be a LONG structure!
HydroOne has a couple of construction tracked vehicles on site for the last week.
Move moving of dirt around. The east embankment is slowly getting larger day by day.

[eternallyme]

Not in the same area but same corridor, any idea on how plans for upgrades in the Hunt Club Bridge area are going, or has that begun yet? I know widening is planned...

[Davis137]

Just remember the Sawmill Creek bike pathway. Part of it got built during the infrastructure program. It will probably be 2030 before the remainder gets built. Of course, it is of almost no value until the missing link gets finished. In the meantime, we have a beautiful paved bike trail that abruptly ends in shrubbery under the Walkley Road bridge. Your city in action.

So that's what that path is! If they had it finished from Walkley as far as Heron or all the way over to Riverside, I'd be taking my bike to work. I went looking not too long ago to see where the path from huntclub goes, and you're right...it ends under the Walkley bridge. There seems to be no direct path to downtown from southgate/greenboro for pedestrians or cyclists...as far as I know.

[bradnixon]

So that's what that path is! If they had it finished from Walkley as far as Heron or all the way over to Riverside, I'd be taking my bike to work. I went looking not too long ago to see where the path from huntclub goes, and you're right...it ends under the Walkley bridge. There seems to be no direct path to downtown from southgate/greenboro for pedestrians or cyclists...as far as I know.

The path is supposed to be extended from Walkley to Brookfield within the next couple of years; see http://www.ottawa.ca/en/city_hall/planningprojectsreports/construction/onthemove/cycling/index.html. Basically you would come out by the Brookfield roundabout.

For people in the Greeboro area, the best cycling route downtown is probably along the Alta Vista corridor path; for example: http://maps.google.ca/maps?saddr=conroy+%26+lorry+greenberg,+ottawa,+on&daddr=45.38274,-75.629318+to:45.38308,-75.632247+to:45.4031433,-75.6458596+to:elgin+%26+laurier,+ottawa,+on&hl=en&ll=45.396521,-75.643787&spn=0.066176,0.127201&sll=45.383713,-75.631122&sspn=0.002068,0.003975&geocode=FTVItAIdiBh--ymX9PRz1gjOTDFyje0CANipCg%3BFVR8tAId-vx9-ykB3rCpMQ_OTDHRqeRN8mGFGA%3BFah9tAIdifF9-ynJDZzcMA_OTDGkuDN0BpA9Hg%3BFQfMtAIdXbx9-ymdpOZtZA_OTDFu-IaN3Z9GXw%3BFRsStQId-QN9-ynJY_djqgXOTDGWCJ3n9DpyvA&t=h&dirflg=b&mra=mrv&via=1,2,3&z=13&lci=bike

[Cre47]

Concrete columns poured in the median.
Now building the base of the berms for each side of the big overpass over the 417. This is going to be a LONG structure!
HydroOne has a couple of construction tracked vehicles on site for the last week.
Move moving of dirt around. The east embankment is slowly getting larger day by day.

Indeed, seeing it in person, that is going to be an impressive interchange

[MaxHeadroom]

Noticed today that Hydro One is finally beginning to erect one of the new pylons to relocate the overhead wires.

Twin bridges for the 417WB ramps over the creek are now up.

[MaxHeadroom]

Construction update: the four new hydro towers are up. Getting ready to run new wires. It's now obvious that any work on the southwest side of the EB lanes is being impeded by the current wood hydro towers.

The EB on ramp has been well graded and now has a slot for a short bridge over the creek.

Rebar has gone in for a second set of main overpass columns on the south side of the EB lanes.

It's painfully slow watching this construction poke along every single day. I sure hope they expedite opening the EB ramps to relieve the atrocious congestion at the Walkley exit. There aren't a lot of workers on site whenever I've driven by.

[waterloowarrior]

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7257/8168317207_d3e67e1472_b.jpg

[Davis137]

Sweet...should see the construction crews working on getting things in place for all of the footings and pillars for the bridge in the not too distant future...

[MaxHeadroom]

Sweet...should see the construction crews working on getting things in place for all of the footings and pillars for the bridge in the not too distant future...

For the main overpass structure, one set of pillars in the median are completed, the other set to the south of the EB lanes is under construction, and should be completed within another month.

The hydro lines have been relocated about 10 days ago, and the old wood hydro towers are coming down to make way for the rest of the works.

[MaxHeadroom]

This project has taken a turn for the worse. The earthfill embankment for the east end of the overpass going over the 417 (the black one you can see in the left of the picture in post 41 by Waterloowarrior) has been completely demolished and now piles are being driven into the ground in it's place. Must have been a problem with soil compaction and settling. The same thing occurred today on the short overpass over a creek for the eastbound on ramp from Hunt Club.

[Luker]

Brutal. Talk about incompetent planning. So typical Ottawa.

Who do you think is responsible for this and who would be the party footing the bill? City? Contractor? Sub-contractors?

[Dado]

Brutal. Talk about incompetent planning. So typical Ottawa.

Who do you think is responsible for this and who would be the party footing the bill? City? Contractor? Sub-contractors?

Extremely unlikely to be the sub-contractors. They're just working to someone else's specifications. The same is likely true of the contractor as well, unless they somehow missed the bit about driving in piles first - which seems highly unlikely. Not impossible, but highly unlikely.

Given that the problem is insufficient soil bearing capacity, that's something the City should have been aware of before letting out the contract. Since the City never does anything much itself but rather contracts out its engineering as well, it would fall to the City's engineering consultants and the geotechnical sub-consultants to determine the soil bearing capacity and decide on the requirement for piles and it would be up to the City's specification-writers to ensure that such a requirement was in the contract that was put out for tender.

So the answer is that the City is probably footing the bill, but they may be able to pass it along to their engineering consultants and/or geotechnical subconsultants and whatever insurance they have depending on where the fault lies.

[MaxHeadroom]

Now they are tearing down the east embankment. What a disaster. I can't imagine they did this on purpose.

[rocketphish]

Now they are tearing down the east embankment. What a disaster. I can't imagine they did this on purpose.

Might they just be preloading the site before constructing the overpass approaches to avoid post-construction settling issues that can occur when building heavy structures on softer soils?

[eltodesukane]

Anything new? When is the overpass supposed to be ready?

[MaxHeadroom]

Project signs in the area say the interchange will be completed in Fall 2014. At the glacial pace at which things have been going, that sounds pretty accurate.

They are now building a proper foundation at the east end of the future 417 overpass where the earth filled works used to be.

[MaxHeadroom]

Yesterday the steel spans for the main overpass started to go up. Same style as the Cyrville Rd overpass.

[NOWINYOW]

I really wish the city would give this interchange a much higher priority and just get it done. It's being built with borrowed money. What's the difference if we borrow it now or borrow it later? (Later, the interest rates may be higher)

It's a moot point about where the funding is coming from. The municipal, the provincial and the federal funds are all borrowed money.

[1overcosc]

Looks like the steel span is completely done now.

[NOWINYOW]

Is there a projected completion date set? Will this contractor work over the winter months?