Speed limits on Trans-Canada

[VIce]

Originally Posted by lubicon

Actually it is 100 now (Ring Road). And to be truly accurate the same applies to the TCH through Edmonton. Lower speed limit on the 'old' original road but 100 on the Ring Road bypass.

In a practical sense that is true, but the 'old' original road is still the only Highway 1.

[eternallyme]

Most of the TCH in Ontario is 2 lanes, and currently posted at 80 or 90 km/h (mostly 90). In Northern Ontario, given the generally sparse landscape, 100 km/h is probably warranted in most sections on highways currently posted at 90.

In the heavier travelled southern sections lower speeds are probably acceptable.

[Nicko999]

Originally Posted by FrAnKs

I was in NB & NS , 2 weeks ago, and 110 km/h was very alright ! ... I don't know what we're waiting for in QC & ON ...

It would be interesting to see how this project goes...

Quebec's transport minister plans to launch a pilot project this fall on two of Quebec's highways to test out variable speed limits.

The speed limit on most Quebec highways is currently 100 km/h. A variable speed limit would mean potentially increasing it to 120 km/h during times when weather conditions permit.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montre...fall-1.2720778

[eternallyme]

In the case of Quebec, many urban Autoroutes do not support a 100 km/h, let alone higher, speed limit. For example, in Montreal, the Decarie, Ville-Marie and central Metropolitaine all are correctly posted at 70 km/h (I could see a case for 80 km/h but no higher) due to their tight designs. Most rural and suburban Autoroutes should be 110 or 120 though (done concurrent with increases in Ontario if at all possible).

[lubicon]

Originally Posted by VIce

In a practical sense that is true, but the 'old' original road is still the only Highway 1.

And Hwy 16. But your point is taken.

[middeljohn]

Originally Posted by eternallyme

In Northern Ontario, given the generally sparse landscape, 100 km/h is probably warranted in most sections on highways currently posted at 90.

Disagree. 17 through Northern Ontario has numerous steep climbs and drops coupled with quite sharp turns. You can't see around corners either due to the trees. A very high percentage of the traffic are semi-trailers, who should most certainly not be going 100+ around those bends. Then on top of that, most people driving there are driving long distances, so awareness is down as well. That's not to mention that increasing the speed to 100 means that people will drive 115.

And regarding speeding, it's worth noting that in Alberta the speed limit is 110, but people here don't speed nearly as much as in Ontario, quite to my surprise. If I'm going 15 over I'm usually the fastest car on the road, and this includes rural areas where speed cameras aren't as prevalent.

[sonysnob]

Originally Posted by middeljohn

Disagree. 17 through Northern Ontario has numerous steep climbs and drops coupled with quite sharp turns. You can't see around corners either due to the trees. A very high percentage of the traffic are semi-trailers, who should most certainly not be going 100+ around those bends. Then on top of that, most people driving there are driving long distances, so awareness is down as well. That's not to mention that increasing the speed to 100 means that people will drive 115.

And regarding speeding, it's worth noting that in Alberta the speed limit is 110, but people here don't speed nearly as much as in Ontario, quite to my surprise. If I'm going 15 over I'm usually the fastest car on the road, and this includes rural areas where speed cameras aren't as prevalent.

Maybe in some sections, but Hwy 17 from Dryden to Shabaqua could certainly handle a higher speed limit, as could a lot of Hwy 11, between Nipigon and Cochrane.

What's really ridiculous is that two sections of Hwy 11/17 northeast of Thunder Bay were recently widened to four lanes on a pretty good alignment... and they left the speed limit as 90! Ridiculous, there is no way a brand new four lane highway (albeit at-grade) is not safer than the old two lane road.

One thing I will say about Ontario, if speed limits were to increase, I think that night speed limits should be introduced in and around the current limits. While the roads can generally handle a higher limit, the treat of moose is pretty serious during the nighttime.

[Dwils01]

On highway 17 from Sault Ste. Marie to North Bay, a lot of people go 110 when the speed limit is only 90. This section could probably handle a speed limit of 100.
But north of the Sault I think 90 is fine because of the steep hills, sharp curves, and the wildlife that comes onto the road.

[Mister F]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

My one issue with raising speed limits is what happens to those who like to drive slower. I don't drive much but when I do drive on the 400-series I always go at 100-105 because it's way more fuel efficient than driving at 120.

The same thing that happens now, people pass them. You have to remember that the speed limit is supposed to be the maximum speed that it's safe to drive in ideal conditions. You can go slower if you want to. Right now we have such low speed limits that drivers treat them as minimums or ignore them altogether, which makes them completely meaningless. Raising freeway speed limits to 120+ wouldn't make people drive much faster, if any, especially if the police keep enforcing the same speeds they do now.

[ssiguy]

100 km/hr is ridiculous for regular traffic.

Personally I think all the freewyas should be 120km/hr including in the city unless the road has a lot of turns or special features like a tunnel or a winding road like the DVP etc.

Transport trucks should stay at 100km. If someone can't drive/merge/exit at 120km/hr then they shouldn't be driving. The minimum speed limit should be 70km/hr for trucks at 80km/hr for cars.

As far as the bleeding hearts go about accidents, the reality is far different from what they want to admit. Freeways are the safest roads ever built. You are FAR more likely to be in an accident or get seriously hurt or killed on a regular road or street than you are on any freeway. There are no pedestrians or bikes at the side of the freeway, no cars coming out of the gas station, no buses to wait for, no traffic lights or stops to contend with, and very importantly, no head on collisions.

We should be encouraging people to get off the regular roads and onto the much faster freeways. As for the greenies, you use much less fuel going 120 on a freeway than 80 on a regular road stopping and starting at every town, and light along the route.

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by Mister F

The same thing that happens now, people pass them. You have to remember that the speed limit is supposed to be the maximum speed that it's safe to drive in ideal conditions. You can go slower if you want to. Right now we have such low speed limits that drivers treat them as minimums or ignore them altogether, which makes them completely meaningless. Raising freeway speed limits to 120+ wouldn't make people drive much faster, if any, especially if the police keep enforcing the same speeds they do now.

You said it yourself... people treat speed limits as minimums, not maximums. And as long as people keep doing that, there needs to be some reassurance from the government that people can still choose to drive at 100 if they want.

[SkydivePilot]

110 km/hr is high enough across the prairies. (Divided highways.)

. . . . and of course, many people go faster than that.

[mcmcclassic]

The stretch of highway between Moncton and Fredericton as well as between Fredericton and the Quebec border should be at least 120.

I remember years ago getting my old beast of a car up to 210 on the TCH west of Fredericton...

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by mcmcclassic

The stretch of highway between Moncton and Fredericton as well as between Fredericton and the Quebec border should be at least 120.

Well, the NB TCH from Salisbury to Woodstock travels for 2.5 hours through nothingness (muskeg, moose and long stretches of forested land aside). There are 5-6 exits in a short stretch at Fredericton and Oromocto, but the rest of the highway is an over-engineered marvel. It's like having a completely divided and grade separated superhighway between Cochrane and Hearst in northern Ontario.

Don't get me wrong, I love the highway - and it certainly is doing it's job of connecting the Maritimes with the rest of the world. I'm grateful we have it - but on this stretch of highway, you could probably make the speed limit 150 km/hr and maintain safety (except in the winter).

[Mister F]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

You said it yourself... people treat speed limits as minimums, not maximums. And as long as people keep doing that, there needs to be some reassurance from the government that people can still choose to drive at 100 if they want.

Okay I didn't mean that people actually think that you have to drive at least 100 by law. That's ridiculous, nobody thinks that. I meant that 100 is treated as the minimum speed that it's reasonable to drive. There's nothing wrong with driving slower than the speed limit, it's just that when limits are posted unreasonably low, it's rarely done. A 120+ speed limit would be a lot closer to the design speed and the speed that most people naturally drive, so the way people think about speed limits would change.

[dmuzika]

Originally Posted by Denscity

BC is the first and only province to have 120km/h speed limits. However not sure how much of our TCH is now rated at 120. They're mostly on the Coquihalla and Island Highway.

BC did 120 km/h on freeways (5, 19, and 97C) that are very rural and a long distance between interchanges. In more built up areas with more frequent interchanges and higher traffic counts, such as the Trans-Canada Highway between Abbotsford and Hope, the highest it goes is 110 km/h. A full list can be found at http://www.newsroom.gov.bc.ca/2014/0...-highways.html.

As for the rest of the Trans-Canada Highway, there aren’t a lot of isolated, freeway sections. For western Canada, the only true rural freeway section (interchanges, no at-grade intersections) is between Calgary and Lake Louise. You could probably get away with a 120 km/h speed limit between Calgary and Canmore, but with an existing 90 km/h speed limit through Banff National Park (waaaay to low), Parks Canada probably wouldn’t go for an increase to 120; at the very least it should be 100 or 110. Through the Prairies (excluding urban areas) would be the perfect place for higher speed limits however there are too many at-grade intersections so until that changes, 110 is probably as high as it will go.

I’m not as familiar with eastern Canada, but maybe 417 between Ottawa and the Ontario/Quebec border or sections in Quebec could be considered?

[dmuzika]

An interesting comparison, I found a list with US interstates; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speed_l..._United_States. A quick conversion from mph to km/h is:

60 mph = 97 km/h
65 mph = 105 km/h
70 mph = 113 km/h
75 mph = 121 km/h
80 mph = 129 km/h
85 mph = 137 km/h

[1overcosc]

417 east of Hunt Club could easily be at 120-130. Through most of urban Ottawa (Highway 174 to Highway 416), 100-110 is the most that can be justified due to very close interchange spacing. A good chunk of it is currently at 80 due to construction (Ontario policy is to lower speed limit to 80 through construction zones).

[Innsertnamehere]

The DVP is probably the only highway in the province that has a correct speed limit, its hard to do much more than 90 on that highway even If you wanted to.

Other than that, most other highways in the province should have their limits changed to 110-130 depending where it is. (407, rural 401 should be 130, 400 to Barrie 120, urban 401 110, etc.)

I'm of the strong opinion that a maximum should be exactly that, a maximum. It should be the maximum speed that you can travel in good weather, with suitable driver discresion on when to drive slower than that.

[harls]

Originally Posted by FrAnKs

I was in NB & NS , 2 weeks ago, and 110 km/h was very alright ! ... I don't know what we're waiting for in QC & ON ...

You're waiting?



You must get honked at a lot in Quebec city... those people are savages!