Traffic Congestion and Highway Construction

[dubone]

Do dynamic message signs in the US ever do anything that matters other than silver/amber alerts?

 

They seem completely pointless in my experience.     Even if now they have general travel time, it seems like the same type of audience as wall clocks, for people without smartphones. 

[NCMike1990]

Do dynamic message signs in the US ever do anything that matters other than silver/amber alerts?

 

They seem completely pointless in my experience.     Even if now they have general travel time, it seems like the same type of audience as wall clocks, for people without smartphones. 

Good point. I knew these upgrades were probably planned for this stretch anyway once construction was finished. I'm glad there will be traffic cameras though. This stretch of I-85, along with other areas of Metrolina, need more of them. I still don't understand why the southern and eastern portion of I-485 doesn't have them. The Triad and the Triangle seem to have a larger network of traffic cameras than Charlotte does for some reason.

Edited November 7, 2014 by NCMike1990

[SentioVenia]

Do dynamic message signs in the US ever do anything that matters other than silver/amber alerts?

 

They seem completely pointless in my experience.     Even if now they have general travel time, it seems like the same type of audience as wall clocks, for people without smartphones. 

 

In my experience they also slow down traffic because some people can't read quickly - I'm looking at you, message sign on I-77 North at LaSalle St.

[Nolan]

It seems like Independence will actually be the first HOT facility in the Charlotte area, if the planning and conversion of the busway to HOT goes according plan, it'll be open up by 2016 or 2017. 

 

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/11/16/5319053/state-plans-early-work-on-independence.html#.VGjw2vnF8S8

 

I find the busway severely underused, and it should have been a reversible HOV like it was intended for when the planning started in the late 80s and early 90s.

[Spartan]

Tryon and Trade is usually where the streets in Charlotte switch from North to South or West to East designations. However, East Blvd changing to West Blvd at Camden is another mystery, just like who the heck is Sharon? E. Sugar Creek changes to W. Sugar Creek after it crosses over Tryon, however geographically this makes no sense since W. Sugar Creek is still on the north side of Charlotte. 

 

 

Apropos of nothing: We have an East Blvd that becomes West Blvd... not at the intersection of South Blvd (as would make sense) but a block away... but we have no North Blvd. Anyone have any thoughts about how/why this is the case? Just a little curiosity this morning on my part

 

The reason is because East Blvd used to end at Camden Road. Dilworth and East Blvd were platted and mostly built out prior to the construction Wilmore and West Blvd. The portion of South Tryon Street (formerly York Rd) between Camden and Yancey Rd was built well after Dilworth was built out - probably in the 1920s, and Wilmore started in the 1930s.

 

York Road, formerly Yorkville Rd, used to connect to Pineville Road via Yancey Rd (which in Charlotte fashion was called Old Yorkville Road until at least the 1950s, possibly later).

 

Its a common misconception that South Tryon Street was the historic trading route. Historically (as in prior to Dilworth) South Tryon St, Camden Road, South Blvd (portions of which were formerly called Pineville Road), and Nations Ford Road was one of the primary routes to south of the city, and the east/west naming convention/dividing line follows those streets. You can see most major streets follow the pattern of having a name change along this route (typically east/west but not in all cases).

 

Along Camden Rd: Park Ave, Worthington Ave, Kingston Ave, Tremont Ave 

Along South Blvd: Remount/Ideal Way

Along Nations Ford Rd: Woodlawn, Tyvola, Arrowood, Hebron, Westinghouse (Tylvola doesn't use an 'east' and Westinghouse doesn't use a 'west' for some reason)

 

It's worth noting that Nations Ford Rd was truncated when I-77 was built, so a portion of it is now called Nations Crossing Rd and Marshall Air Dr. Because of I-77, there are only 3 parcels in the city that have an address of West Woodlawn Rd which is why you generally never think of West Woodlawn as being a street name. 

[asthasr]

Usually, if you see "ford" in the name of a road, it indicates that it is aligned with a traditional river crossing, so they are usually quite historically important. Here is an interesting article on Nations Ford from the Catawba Riverkeeper site.

[ah59396]

Usually, if you see "ford" in the name of a road, it indicates that it is aligned with a traditional river crossing, so they are usually quite historically important. Here is an interesting article on Nations Ford from the Catawba Riverkeeper site.

 

Edit: Posted in the wrong thread. 

 

 

Yep.  Same reason we have Beatties Ford and Rozelle's Ferry.  I wonder what Edward Rozell was like.

 

http://www.cmhpf.org/S&Rs%20Alphabetical%20Order/Surveys&rrozzelle.htm

 

 

Sorry this is waayyy off topic, I was a history major, haha.

Edited November 18, 2014 by ah59396

[dubone]

I always crack up when people pronounce it like "Betty's Ford"   

 

[videtur quam contuor]

John Beatty established the ford of the Catawba now named for him, sort of. His name was Beatty.

 

http://sites.davidson.edu/archives/community/under-lkn/beattys-ford

 

There are more locations with the spelling Beatties (no apostrophe) than Beattey's. The West side of the Catawba retains the Beatty spelling.

 

http://www.lincolncounty.org/index.aspx?NID=581

 

I can find no information about why the name change from Beatty to Beattie(s) occurred. Just less informed 18th century documents, I suppose.

[dubone]

Probably changed for the same reason Charlottetowne Blvd got an unnecessary "e" even though the road was attempting to be named after historic Charlottetown mall which wasn't spelled that way.    Some clerk in CDOT assumed it had the "e" because that person likely lives in the suburbs where pretentiousness is en vogue and "towne" is in place names all around them.

 

 

Misspellings by past generation farmers that eventually because a real place name are much more quaint, and so old place names that are spelled wrong or inconsistently for that reason add character rather than remove it.    The same goes with Tyvola, which was a farm incorrectly spelled in honor of Tivoli gardens.  

[jednc]

Probably changed for the same reason Charlottetowne Blvd got an unnecessary "e" even though the road was attempting to be named after historic Charlottetown mall which wasn't spelled that way.    Some clerk in CDOT assumed it had the "e" because that person likely lives in the suburbs where pretentiousness is en vogue and "towne" is in place names all around them.

 

 

Misspellings by past generation farmers that eventually because a real place name are much more quaint, and so old place names that are spelled wrong or inconsistently for that reason add character rather than remove it.

Maybe it was pretentious iPhone users with auto correct who are responsible?

[Third Strike]

The town of Cornelius will be erecting steel cables that resemble sails over the new diverging diamond interchange at I-77 and Catawba Avenue.

 

 

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/11/27/5346770/new-landmark-to-emerge-on-interstate.html#.VHjyTsnqaHM

[ah59396]

The town of Cornelius will be erecting steel cables that resemble sails over the new diverging diamond interchange at I-77 and Catawba Avenue.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/11/27/5346770/new-landmark-to-emerge-on-interstate.html#.VHjyTsnqaHM

That's so Cornelius.

[Matthew.Brendan]

Awesome ^^^

[archiham04]

structurally irrational...

[dubone]

Much of life in Cornelius is faux, especially Thom and his peninsula.    Even the town was created so they could cheat on their cotton weights (instead of going into Davidson to be officially weighed, they made their own town.)

 

 

That said, it is rather funny how engineering in the US often skips on aesthetics so we add things like non-structural brick or stone or suspension wires.    We can actually make bridges (and houses) out of stone, brick, and suspension wires.   Why not just make a more beautiful bridge in the first place. 

[15895]

I love living in Huntersville & by extension Davidson & Cornelius. I'm excited for the bridge design

I just wish they would axe 97, 98 & 99 and just make 77X run until 10:30pm or 11 and maybe some Weekend frequency.

I see 97,98,99 run 100% empty all the time... Even at Gateway, all 3 willbe there zero on all 3.

The pedestrian infrastructure isn't there to support circulator traffic. It's hard enough trying to turn on to a road, much less run across Sam Furr, Catawba or Statesville

Edited December 2, 2014 by AirNostrumMAD

[jednc]

Much of life in Cornelius is faux, especially Thom and his peninsula.    Even the town was created so they could cheat on their cotton weights (instead of going into Davidson to be officially weighed, they made their own town.)

 

 

That said, it is rather funny how engineering in the US often skips on aesthetics so we add things like non-structural brick or stone or suspension wires.    We can actually make bridges (and houses) out of stone, brick, and suspension wires.   Why not just make a more beautiful bridge in the first place. 

 

This bridge looks (looked) basically like every bridge in NC and the rest of the country. Cornelius is seizing upon the opportunity (the state converting this exit to a diverging diamond) to make some aesthetic changes. It was not being rebuilt from scratch, so building it out of stone and brick weren't options. Talk to every civil engineer in America if you want bridges constructed of these materials going forward. Perhaps you'll make some headway.

 

Why bash on something that is being done to create some interest? When Charlotte adds colored lights to an underpass everyone on here has an    o r g a s m.

Edited December 2, 2014 by jednc

[ah59396]

This bridge looks (looked) basically like every bridge in NC and the rest of the country. Cornelius is seizing upon the opportunity (the state converting this exit to a diverging diamond) to make some aesthetic changes. It was not being rebuilt from scratch, so building it out of stone and brick weren't options. Talk to every civil engineer in America if you want bridges constructed of these materials going forward. Perhaps you'll make some headway.

Why bash on something that is being done to create some interest? When Charlotte adds colored lights to an underpass everyone on here has an o r g a s m.

Well, the lights on an underpass serve a purpose to create a safer environment for pedestrians and bridge a gap between uptown and west charlotte.

Making an exit off of I-77 look like a wannabe sail boat is purely for aesthetic purposes. Cornelius wants to be out on Cape Cod oh so badly. This is just another example of their attempt to sell themselves as some bizarre transplanted mid-Atlantic sailing town.

I don't really care what they do, it's just funny to watch. Maybe they'll put a lighthouse in the town center next!

[archiham04]

Cables are a common element of modern bridge design.  Cables are an engineering statement in which the tensile attributes of steel are on exhibit, and used to reduce the amount of steel used in compression (beams under the bridge).  This exhibition of structure not only results in a dramatic aesthetic, but often in a cost neutral or cost savings due to the reduction in structure in compression.  If you look at the picture above, the beams to support the bridge are MASSIVE, making it obvious that the cables serve no real purpose.

 

The nautical aesthetic is a cute and possibly legitimate expression of the feel of the community, but this just blatant in its silliness.  

 

The real shame here is that the influence of qualified and trained designers are not at the table before these embarrassing decisions are made.

[jednc]

The Monroe Bypass was scheduled to be finished this month before it was stopped over environmental and procedural concerns. No point here, I just had it marked on my calendar that this was the month it was expected to be completed.

[dubone]

I do like actions that attempt to improve aesthetics.   Archiham expressed as a pro better than I could as a layman, it just comes across as contrived and fake to me.   But I think it will be liked by a lot of people, and many will just think that is how this bridge is designed without realizing it is a fake structure trying to mimic real structures that are aesthetically pleasing in and off themselves.

 

It is the same for full stone buildings of the old world having charms in and of themselves, and then to try to mimic that aesthetic quality, we make concrete façade materials that are a fake stone to make a house not made of stone look like it.   We do the same with brick.    It is an aspect of our culture to cut out real things and then try to pretend to it will fakery.     

 

It isn't just that Cornelius is trying to have an upgrade to reflect their higher wealth, which is somewhat fine.  It is a problem I have with a lot that goes on in our culture where fake things are considered as good as real.   In food we have tons of fake ingredients slowing taking over real (velveeta, HFCS, faux fruit flavors, margarine) in architecture faux materials are almost the entirety of the façades built now (unmovable plastic shutters, plastic siding, plastic trim, plastic stucco, faux stone or brick veneers).  I'm sure there are other examples in other areas of our lives, but I'll stop at that.  

 

It is a generalized cultural complaint of the US and becomes striking when you go to ancient cultures in Europe and Asia that still seem to operate without much pretense or fakery and end up with charm and quality in abundance. 

 

 

Aesthetic improvements are amazing but "fakeness" and pretense are not.   But it's part of our culture, so fine.   Brick veneer and suspension cables resembling sailing rigging it is!

[Spartan]

I suspect that for the $2m they are adding to the $6.2m project, they could have just built a real cable-stayed bridge. Does anyone out there know what it costs to build something like that?

[dubone]

Now that would have been pretty cool. 

[cowboy_wilhelm]

I suspect that for the $2m they are adding to the $6.2m project, they could have just built a real cable-stayed bridge. Does anyone out there know what it costs to build something like that?

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the DDI retrofit is just throwing up some median barriers, curbs, new traffic signals, and paving to have traffic switch sides at the interchange. The structure itself remains unchanged. Double that number and you might pay for a new bridge.