highway 97 quesnel transportation plan phase ii ......the mobility analysis of the study network...

June 2018 | File: 1961.0384.02

Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan

Phase II – Implementation Strategy – Final Report

Client: BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure

342 – 447 Columbia Street

Kamloops, BC V2C 2T3

Attention: Kathryn Weicker, Senior Regional Transportation Planning Engineer

Prepared by: Urban Systems Ltd.

304 – 1353 Ellis Street

Kelowna, BC V1Y 1Z9

Tel: (250) 762-2517

Prepared by: Kevin Gordon, CTech

Sr. Transportation Lead

Prepared by: Ian Roth, P.Eng.

Transportation Engineer

Reviewed by: James Donnelly, P.Eng., PTOE

Sr. Transportation Engineer

Date issued: March 16, 2018 Draft Report

March 28, 2018 Final Draft Report

June 28, 2018 Final Report

Project No.: 1961.0384.02

This report was prepared by Urban Systems Ltd. for the account of British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and

Infrastructure. The material reflects Urban Systems Ltd.’s best judgement in light of the information available to it at the

time of preparation. Any use which a third party makes of this report, or any reliance on or decisions to be made based

on it, are the responsibility of such third parties. Urban Systems Ltd. accepts no responsibility for damages, if any,

suffered by any third party as a result of decisions made or actions based on this report.

The BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MoTI) retained Urban Systems Ltd (Urban Systems) to

undertake the Phase 2 study of the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan. Subsequent to the Phase 1

Existing Conditions report that was completed in 2016, Phase 2 has focused on understanding future

transportation conditions in Quesnel, explored short and long-term improvement options, and outlines a

recommended implementation strategy of projects and improvements for the corridor.

This report encapsulates the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan including an assessment of future

transportation conditions, the development of improvement options and guiding principles to evaluate the options,

the multiple account evaluation (MAE) of advanced options, and the implementation strategy. This report also

summarizes the community engagement undertaken over the course of the study, identifies potential risks for

recommended improvements and outlines next steps. The study area includes 13.9 kilometres of Highway 97

between Basalt Road to Highway 26 / Barkerville Highway (LKI Segment 1146 km 110.9 to km 124.3). The study

area has been categorized into four study segments as shown in Figure ES-1 to reflect the changing form and

function of the highway through Quesnel.

Figure ES - 1: Highway 97 (Quesnel) Study Area

The future conditions assessment involved the analysis of local economic conditions and growth forecasts, and

analysis of the future traffic conditions on the Highway 97 study corridor. The full future conditions assessment is

provided in Appendix A.

The project team met with the City of Quesnel to understand municipal projects and economic conditions in the

Quesnel area. In addition, Pearson Ellis Consulting Inc. was retained by Urban Systems to complete a socio-

economic assessment entitled Quesnel Socio-Economic Overview For Purposes of Highway Planning (2017).

The socio-economic assessment identified trends across many sectors and aspects of the community and some

of the highlights from the report (provided in Appendix B) are listed as follows:

• The population of the Quesnel area has seen some minor decline, based on Census results. The future

population is forecasted to grow at a low rate.

• Currently, the economy of Quesnel is heavily dependent on the forestry industry and, despite much

uncertainty in the future of this industry, it is expected that this industry will continue to be a major source

of employment and significant contributor to heavy vehicle traffic on Highway 97 in the Quesnel area. The

development of the Blackwater mine and Bonanza Ledge mine presents an opportunity for new sources

of employment for the region in the future.

• G.R. Baker Memorial Hospital continues to grow and develop. This has added pedestrian and traffic

movements to and from the hospital creating new issues and challenges with traffic flows along and

across Front Street, which is one of the most problematic sections of the Highway 97 corridor through

Quesnel.

• Community concerns for Highway 97 relate to access, safety, congestion and emissions through the

Quesnel segment of the highway corridor.

The traffic volumes in the study area of Quesnel were analyzed at the 10 and 25-year horizons. To determine the

future traffic volumes, existing traffic was factored using a background growth rate of 0.5% and a sensitivity

growth rate of 1.5%.

The mobility analysis of the study network intersections was undertaken in accordance with the Ministry’s general

mobility performance criteria and thresholds. The complete mobility analysis for the future horizon years and

growth rate scenarios is provided in Appendix A and the traffic modelling reports are provided in Appendix C. A

summary of the key findings from the future mobility analysis is provided in Table ES-1.

Table ES - 1: Summary of Future Mobility Performance Conditions

0.5% Background Growth 1.5% Background Growth

AM

Peak

• All intersections perform at a LOS A or B.

• None of the study intersection approaches

exceed the v/c threshold of 0.9.

• The eastbound approach at the McNaughton

Avenue intersection with Highway 97 operates at

a LOS E.

• All intersections within the study area

operate at LOS C or better.

• Side-street approaches at the intersections

of McNaughton Avenue, Shepherd

Avenue, and Racing Road operate at LOS

F with v/c ratios above 1.0.


PM

Peak

• All intersections operate at a satisfactory LOS C

or better.

• None of the study intersection approaches


• The eastbound approach at Shepherd Avenue

reaches a LOS F.

• Minor side-street approaches perform at LOS E

at McNaughton Avenue, Laurent Avenue, Carson

Avenue, McLean Street, Marsh Drive (Moffat

Bridge Approach), and Racing Road

intersections.

• Side-street approaches at the intersections


Avenue, and Racing Road reach a LOS F

with v/c ratios above 1.0.

• The northbound side-street approach at

the McLean Street intersection reaches a

LOS F, but with a v/c ratio under 0.9.

Overall, traffic volumes are projected to grow at a slow-to-moderate pace and are not expected to exceed the

highway’s current capacity by the 2042 long-term horizon.

The problem definition summarizes the key challenges and issues along Highway 97 through Quesnel, which has

been established through the technical analysis undertaken in the existing conditions assessment (Phase 1 of the

study), and in the future conditions assessment. Overall, the current alignment of Highway 97 is constrained

through the downtown of Quesnel, which already has mobility and safety challenges that are projected to be

intensified in the future. Side-street movements were found to present a challenge as high delays and poor LOS

are experienced at some intersections at the 10 and 25-year horizons. These challenges are further discussed in

the following problem definition statements, organized by the four highway study segments:

Segment A - South Quesnel Commercial (LKI km 110.9 to km 115.1)

The South Quesnel Commercial area of Highway 97 experiences road safety performance challenges and

geometric challenges at several intersections along this segment. Without improvements along the corridor, the

existing issues with the highway frontage roads will continue be a challenge. Currently the highway frontage roads

provide minimal vehicle queuing storage at highway intersections and can inhibit trucks from making turning

movements without over-tracking into adjacent lanes and the road shoulder. At the 2027 and 2042 horizons,

mobility performance is slightly worse compared to the existing conditions due to higher highway volumes,

however, all approaches and intersections are projected to operate satisfactorily.

Segment B - North Star Area (LKI km 115.1 to km 117.7)

The North Star area of Highway 97 has many geometric design challenges that require significant upgrades and

improvements to adhere to MoTI’s current-day design standards and guidelines. Necessary upgrades include the

Quesnel River Bridge No. 1569, Quesnel Overhead No. 01641, sidewalks on both structures, the off ramps to

Valhalla Road and Dragon Hill Road, and directional signage on North Star Road. In addition to structure and

infrastructure upgrades, side street mobility is projected to worsen at the 10 and 25-year horizons, specifically at

the Racing Road intersection which is expected to experience delays and failing levels of service.

Segment C - Downtown Quesnel (LKI km 117.7 to km 121.0)

The Downtown Quesnel area of Highway 97 currently has safety concerns at several intersections including at

Kinchant Street, McLean Street, Front Street, and St. Laurent Avenue. There are mobility performance challenges

for side-street movements throughout this segment at the 2027 and 2042 projections due to the increase in

highway traffic volumes. Specifically, the intersections of Shepherd Avenue and McNaughton Avenue are

expected to perform poorly with high delays.

There is a horizontal curve with a minimum 90 meter radius just west of the Quesnel Overhead No. 01641 (LKI

km 117.9) in which there is evidence some vehicles may be going off pavement. Lastly, a pedestrian and cycle

connection from Downtown to the Two Mile Flat area would facilitate active modes wishing to travel between

these two destinations.

Segment D - Two Mile Flat (LKI km 121.0 to km 124.3)

In this Two Mile Flat segment, the Highway 97 alignment comes close to the CN Rail alignment and the rail base

abuts the highway shoulder, resulting in an increased risk of vehicle impacts to the railway base and slope. At the

intersection of Brownmiller Road, there is a risk of heavy vehicles tracking off pavement as they make northbound

right turns around a sharp curve onto Brownmiller Road. Access management is also needed to better define

permitted turning movements onto and off the highway to local businesses. No existing or future mobility issues

are expected for the intersections in this segment of the study area.

Fourteen improvement options on the existing Highway 97 alignment and six alternate route option alignments

were identified and developed to a conceptual design level. Several design considerations were accounted for in

the development of the options, which are detailed on the design criteria sheets provided in Appendix D for urban

and rural segments of the Highway 97 study corridor. Further, an environmental review and geotechnical review

was completed for the study area options, which is provided in Appendix E and Appendix F, respectively.

A set of six guiding principles were established based on the existing and future needs of the corridor to help

guide the development and selection of preferred improvement options. These guiding principles were also used

in the evaluation of improvement options to ensure the improvements achieve the objectives of the project.

The guiding principles are summarized as follows:

Enhance the Highway to Support Local and Regional Functions

Improve Intersection and Highway Safety

Support Active Transportation

Improve Intersection and Corridor Mobility

Improve Access and Connectivity with the Local Road Network

Mitigate Heavy Vehicle Impacts

Each option was evaluated by the above guiding principles and one of three following recommendations were

provided for each option:

Advance the option to the Multiple Account Evaluation (MAE) for further evaluation;

Advance the option to the Implementation Strategy;

Screen-out the option from further review;

A list of all the options generated is summarized in Table ES-2 along with the recommendations based on the

guiding principles evaluation.

The conceptual design drawings and planning-level project cost estimates are provided in Appendix G and

Appendix H, respectively. Unit rates for structural costs were provided by Mott MacDonald for this study, as

detailed in the report Highway 97 Quesnel Corridor Study – Structural Considerations provided in Appendix I.

Costs for acquiring property were prepared by Gateway Land Services for options where significant property

impacts were required outside of the existing Highway 97 alignment. Details of the properties impacted and the

costs are outlined in their report Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan Phase II – Improvement Options

Property Impact Study, provided in Appendix J.

Table ES - 2: Summary of Options Developed and Recommendations based on Guiding Principles Evaluation

Study

Segment Option Name Screening Outcome

Alternate

Route

Option AR-1a North-South Interconnector (4-Lane)

Advance to MAE

Option AR-1b: North South Interconnector (2-Lane) Screen-Out

Option AR-2 (a&b):

North South Industrial Connector Screen-Out

Option AR-3: East-West Connector Screen-Out

Option AR-4: North-South Bypass Screen-Out

A

South

Quesnel

Option A1: Basalt Rd. and Gook Rd. Access Management (2-lane) Screen-Out

Option A2: Basalt Rd. and Gook Rd. Access Management (4-lane)

Advance to MAE

Option A3: Juniper Road and Jade Road Network Improvements

Advance to Implementation Plan

Option A4: Signal Optimization of Maple Drive and Cedar Avenue Intersections


Option A5: Racing Rd. and Quesnel-Hydraulic Rd. Access Management


B

North Star

Option B1: Quesnel River Bridge and Quesnel Overhead Replacement

Advance to MAE individually and in combination with Options C1, C2-b

Option B2: Quesnel River Bridge to Nadeau Street Sidewalk Screen-Out

C

Downtown

Quesnel

Option C1: Highway 97 Realignment onto Legion Drive

Advanced to MAE in combination with Options B1, C2-b

Option C2-a: Front Street 4-Laning Reconfiguration Screen-Out

Option C2-b: Front Street 3-Lane Reconfiguration

Advance to Implementation Plan and to MAE in combination with Options B1, C1

Option C3 Relocate Traffic Signal from Reid St. to McLean St.


Option C4: Signalize Sutherland Ave / Highway 97 Screen-Out

D

Two Mile

Flat

Option D1: Two Mile Flat Frontage and Backage Road Network

Advance to MAE

Option D2: Two Mile Flat Highway 97 Reconfiguration to Urban 3-Lane Design

Advance to MAE

Further to the guiding principles evaluation of all the options developed, and further to the multiple account

evaluation of advanced options, Table ES-3 summarizes the recommended options to be included in the

implementation plan. Options that were screened-out after each evaluation do not advance into the

implementation plan. The recommended options were reviewed with the project team`s input and a phasing

strategy has been developed as described in the next section of this report.

Table ES - 3: Summary of Recommended Options and Phasing for the Implementation Plan

Project Phasing Option Name

Short Term

Projects

0 - 5 Years




Option C3: Relocate Traffic Signal from Reid St. to McLean St.

Option AR-1a: North-South Interconnector (4-Lane)

Medium to

Long-Term

Projects

6 - 25 Years





The development of the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan involved significant consultation with the

community of Quesnel including municipal staff, elected officials, First Nations, community stakeholders and the

public. Over the course of the Phase II planning study, there were:

4 x meetings with technical representatives from the City of Quesnel and the Cariboo Regional District

3 x meetings with Elected Officials and Lhtako Dené

2 x Public Open Houses

1 x meeting with Stakeholder Organizations

Meetings with Individual Property Owners

The involvement of these various groups and communities in the planning study and the feedback and input

received is described in Section 3.9 of this report. The Community Engagement Summary Reports which

describe the process, results and findings of both public open houses are provided in Appendix M and Appendix

N.

The development of the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan has involved extensive collaboration and

consultation with organizations and members representing the community of Quesnel. The options identified for

short-term implementation are recommended for further planning and engineering design as the timeline and the

MoTI’s priorities permit.

Of the four options identified in the short-term implementation strategy, three of these options including Option A5

(Racing Road and Quesnel-Hydraulic Road Access Management), Option C2-b (Front Street 3-Laning

Reconfiguration) and Option C3 (Relocate Traffic Signal from Reid Street to McLean Street) are being advanced

into preliminary design, engineering and construction over 2018 and 2019 for immediate implementation.

Option AR-1a (North-South Interconnector) is also recommended to be advanced as a short-term project.

Several next steps are required to advance this project into the design process. Further, the timeline for this

project is constrained by the known ageing and lifespan issues of the existing Quesnel Overhead and Quesnel

River Bridges.

Letters of support from multiple levels of government, industry and community organizations for the short-term

projects including Option AR-1a North-South Interconnector are provided in Appendix O.

Several next steps have been identified for the following recommended improvement options, as detailed in

Section 3.10 of this report:

Option AR-1a: North South Interconnector

Options A2 & A3: South Quesnel Access Management

Options D1 & D2: Two Mile Flat Access Management

.

1.1 Study Background ........................................................................................................................ 2

2.1 Future Travel Demand .................................................................................................................. 3

Quesnel Area Economic Conditions................................................................................ 3

Traffic Forecasts .............................................................................................................. 4

2.2 Future Mobility Performance Analysis ......................................................................................... 4

2.3 Problem Definition Update .......................................................................................................... 5

3.1 Guiding Principles ......................................................................................................................... 7

3.2 Design Criteria Considerations ..................................................................................................... 8

3.3 Environmental Considerations ..................................................................................................... 9

3.4 Geotechnical Considerations ....................................................................................................... 9

3.5 Option Development .................................................................................................................. 11

Cost Estimates .............................................................................................................. 11

Survey Information ....................................................................................................... 12

Alternate Route Options ............................................................................................... 12

Study Segment A – South Quesnel Commercial Options ............................................. 28

Study Segment B – North Star Area Options ................................................................ 37

Study Segment C – Downtown Quesnel Options ......................................................... 41

Study Segment D – Two Mile Flat Options ................................................................... 52

Summary of Options Developed ................................................................................... 56

3.6 Multiple Account Evaluation (MAE) ........................................................................................... 57

Methodology ................................................................................................................ 57

Alternate Route Options Evaluation ............................................................................. 59

Study Segment A – South Quesnel Commercial Options Evaluation ........................... 63

Study Segment B – North star area Options Evaluation ............................................... 66

Study Segment D – Two Mile Flat Options Evaluation ................................................. 69

3.7 Implementation Strategy ........................................................................................................... 74

Short-Term Projects ...................................................................................................... 74

Medium and Long-Term Projects ................................................................................. 76

3.8 Potential Risks ............................................................................................................................ 77

3.9 Community Consultation ........................................................................................................... 80

Technical Representative Consultation ........................................................................ 81

Elected Officials and First Nations ................................................................................ 81

Local Stakeholder Consultation .................................................................................... 82

Public Engagement Phase 1 .......................................................................................... 82

Public Engagement Phase 2 .......................................................................................... 82

3.10 Recommendations ..................................................................................................................... 84

Next Steps – Option AR-1: North-South Interconnector .............................................. 84

Next Steps – Option A2 & A3: South Quesnel Access Management ............................ 84

Next Steps – Option D1 & D2: Two Mile Flat Access Management ............................. 85

Appendix A Future Conditions Assessment

Appendix B Quesnel Socio-Economic Overview Report

Appendix C Future Conditions Synchro Model Reports

Appendix D Design Criteria

Appendix E Environmental and Archaeological Scan Report

Appendix F Terrain Stability (Geohazard) Constraints Report

Appendix G Conceptual Design Drawing Package

Appendix H Conceptual Planning-Level Project Cost Estimates

Appendix I Structural Considerations Report

Appendix J Property Impact Study

Appendix K Traffic Signal Warrants

Appendix L Option D1 Two Mile Flat Evaluation

Appendix M Community Engagement Summary Report – June 2017

Appendix N Community Engagement Summary Report – February 2018

Appendix O Letters of Support

Figure 1.1: Highway 97 (Quesnel) Study Area ............................................................................................................1

Figure 3.1 Environmental Constraints and Considerations ..................................................................................... 10

Figure 3.2: Forecast Usage of the North-South Interconnector (2042 Horizon, 0.5% Background Growth).......... 15

Figure 3.3: Forecast Usage of the North-South Industrial Connector (2042 Horizon, 0.5% Background Growth) . 20

Figure 3.4: Forecast Usage of the East-West Connector (2042 Horizon, 0.5% Background Growth) ..................... 23

Figure 3.5: Forecast Usage of the North-South Bypass (2042 Horizon, 0.5% Background Growth) ....................... 26

Figure 3.6: Option A1 and Option A2 Access Management from Basalt Road to Maple Drive .............................. 28

Figure 3.7: Option A3 Access Management from Cedar Avenue to Juniper Rd ...................................................... 28

Figure 3.8: Ranked Priority of Improvement Options ............................................................................................. 83

Figure 3.9: Results of Option Comparison ............................................................................................................... 83

Table 2.1: Summary of Future Mobility Performance Conditions .............................................................................5

Table 3.1: Highway 97 Physical and Operating Characteristics ..................................................................................8

Table 3.2: Summary of Option Development Recommendations based on Guiding Principles Evaluation ........... 56

Table 3.3: Summary of Options Assessed in the MAE ............................................................................................. 57

Table 3.4: MAE for Option AR-1a in comparison with Options B1, C1, C2-b .......................................................... 60

Table 3.5: Option A2 MAE Evaluation ..................................................................................................................... 64

Table 3.6: Option B1(a&b) MAE .............................................................................................................................. 67

Table 3.7: Option D1 MAE ....................................................................................................................................... 69

Table 3.8: Option D2 MAE ....................................................................................................................................... 71

Table 3.9 Summary of Recommended Options and Phasing for the Implementation Plan ................................... 74

Table 3.10: Summary of Short Term Implementation Projects (0 to 5 Years) ........................................................ 75

Table 3.11: Summary of Medium to Long-Term Implementation Projects (6 to 25 Years) .................................... 76

Table 3.12: Planning-Level Summary of Potential Project Risks for Option AR-1a ................................................. 78

The BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MoTI) retained Urban Systems Ltd (Urban Systems) to

undertake the Phase 2 study of the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan. Subsequent to the Phase 1

Existing Conditions report that was completed in 2016, Phase 2 has focused on understanding future

transportation conditions in Quesnel, explored short and long-term improvement options, and outlines a

recommended implementation strategy of projects and improvements for the corridor. This report encapsulates

the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan including an assessment of future transportation conditions, the

development of improvement options and guiding principles to evaluate the options, the multiple account

evaluation (MAE) of advanced options, and the implementation strategy. This report also summarizes the

community engagement undertaken over the course of the study, identifies potential risks for recommended

improvements and outlines next steps.

The study area includes 13.9 kilometres of Highway 97 between Basalt Road to Highway 26 / Barkerville Highway

(LKI Segment 1146 km 110.9 to km 124.3). The study area has been categorized into four study segments as

shown in Figure 1.1 to reflect the changing form and function of the highway through Quesnel. The study area

also includes intersections in the downtown of Quesnel that interface directly with the corridor.

Figure 1.1: Highway 97 (Quesnel) Study Area

Highway 97 is a major provincial transportation corridor in British Columbia’s interior providing connectivity as far

south as the U.S. Border in Osoyoos to as far north as the Alaska U.S. Border along the Alaska Highway. The

highway passes through many communities and will continue to play a key role in opening BC’s north to

economic development in the province’s natural resource sector. More specifically, the province is currently

experiencing significant investment and expansions in the industries of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), forestry, oil

and gas, mining, and supporting industries.

From a regional perspective, Highway 97 continues south through the communities of Williams Lake, 100 Mile

House and eventually Cache Creek, where Highway 97 intersects with Highway 1. To the north, Highway 97

passes through mostly undeveloped land until it reaches the larger community of Prince George where Highway

97 intersects with Highway 16.

Building upon the existing conditions assessment previously completed in Phase 1 of the study, the future

conditions assessment involves analysis of local economic conditions and growth forecasts, and analysis of the

future traffic conditions on the Highway 97 study corridor. A summary of the future conditions analysis is provided

as follows, and the full future conditions assessment is provided in Appendix A.

Municipal projects and local economic conditions can have a noticeable influence on the projection of various

growth figures including population and traffic. To conduct the traffic forecasts and future mobility assessment,

the project team met with the City of Quesnel to understand municipal projects and economic conditions in the

Quesnel area. In addition, Pearson Ellis Consulting Inc. was retained by Urban Systems to complete a socio-

economic assessment entitled Quesnel Socio-Economic Overview For Purposes of Highway Planning (2017).

The findings of the assessment are provided in Appendix B.

The socio-economic assessment identified trends across many sectors and aspects of the community and some

of the highlights from the report are listed as follows:

The population of the Quesnel area has seen some minor decline, based on Census results. The future

population is forecast to grow at a low rate.

Currently, the economy of Quesnel is heavily dependent on the forestry industry and, despite much

uncertainty in the future of this industry, it is expected that this industry will continue to be a major source

of employment and significant contributor to heavy vehicle traffic on Highway 97 in the Quesnel area. The

development of the Blackwater mine and Bonanza Ledge mine presents an opportunity for new sources

of employment for the region in the future.

G.R. Baker Memorial Hospital continues to grow and develop. This has added pedestrian and traffic

movements to and from the hospital creating new issues and challenges with traffic flows along and

across Front Street, which is one of the most problematic sections of the Highway 97 corridor through

Quesnel.

Community concerns for Highway 97 relate to access, safety, congestion and emissions through the

Quesnel segment of the highway corridor.

The traffic volumes in the study area of Quesnel were analyzed at the 10 and 25-year horizons. To determine the

future traffic volumes, existing traffic was factored using an appropriate background growth rate. The grown traffic

volumes were combined with the volume of traffic expected to be generated by the proposed developments for a

total projected traffic volume on the study network. The new development traffic was estimated using the Institute

of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Trip Generation Manual 9th Edition. Upon estimating the trips generated,

estimates for the distribution and assignment of development traffic were prepared based on an understanding of

existing traffic patterns of the proposed developments. A detailed description of these forecasting assumptions is

provided as follows.

2.1.2.1 Background Growth

To assess future conditions in the road network at the 10 and 25-year horizons, various sources were used to

understand what growth trends the road network in the Quesnel area may be experiencing. These sources

include:

Historical Traffic Volumes;

Historical Population Growth;

Population Forecasts;

Proposed Developments; and

Socio-Economic Assessment (Pearson Ellis Consulting Inc.)

After careful analysis of the available information and resources, a growth rate of 0.5% per annum was

determined to best predicted background growth in the region along Highway 97. This growth rate was applied to

2017 highway traffic volumes to grow them to 2027 and 2042 horizon volumes. Side street traffic was not factored

as it was assumed there would be no background growth.

A second growth scenario was also analyzed based on a 1.5% growth rate for highway traffic. This was run as a

sensitivity scenario to account for potentially higher growth in the Quesnel area.

2.1.2.2 Development Assumptions

The new developments that are proposed in the Quesnel area include a retail centre and drive-through restaurant

on Rita Road, and a bowling alley on Racing Road. Details of these developments and the trip generation

assumptions applied to the future traffic volumes are detailed in Appendix A.

2.1.2.3 Future Network Traffic Volumes

The trips generated by the proposed development and assigned to the study network were superimposed on the

future background volumes to obtain the total network volumes. Future 2027 and 2042 horizons were analyzed

using a 0.5% highway growth rate. A sensitivity scenario was also analyzed at the 2042 horizon using a 1.5%

highway growth rate. The final volumes used in the analysis are provided in Appendix A.

The mobility analysis of the study network intersections was undertaken in accordance with the Ministry’s general

mobility performance criteria and thresholds. The complete mobility analysis for the future horizon years and

growth rate scenarios is provided in Appendix A and the traffic modelling reports are provided in Appendix C. A

summary of the key findings from the future mobility analysis is provided in Table 2.1.

Table 2.1: Summary of Future Mobility Performance Conditions


AM

Peak

All intersections perform at a LOS A or B.

None of the study intersection approaches


The eastbound approach at the McNaughton

Avenue intersection with Highway 97 operates at

a LOS E.

All intersections within the study area

operate at LOS C or better.

Side-street approaches at the intersections


Avenue, and Racing Road operate at LOS

F with v/c ratios above 1.0.

PM

Peak

All intersections operate at a satisfactory LOS C

or better.

None of the study intersection approaches


The eastbound approach at Shepherd Avenue

reaches a LOS F.

Minor side-street approaches perform at LOS E

at McNaughton Avenue, Laurent Avenue, Carson

Avenue, McLean Street, Marsh Drive (Moffat

Bridge Approach), and Racing Road

intersections.

Side-street approaches at the intersections


Avenue, and Racing Road reach a LOS F

with v/c ratios above 1.0.

The northbound side-street approach at

the McLean Street intersection reaches a

LOS F, but with a v/c ratio under 0.9.

Overall, traffic volumes are projected to grow at a slow-to-moderate pace and are not expected to exceed the

highway’s current capacity by the 2042 long-term horizon.

The problem definition summarizes the key challenges and issues along Highway 97 through Quesnel, which has

been established through the technical analysis undertaken in the existing conditions assessment (Phase 1 of the

study), and in the preceding future conditions assessment.

Overall, the current alignment of Highway 97 is constrained through the downtown of Quesnel, which currently

poses challenges identified in the existing conditions review that are projected to be intensified in the future. Side-

street movements were found to present a challenge as high delays and poor LOS are experienced at some

intersections at the 10 and 25-year horizons. These challenges are further discussed in the following problem

definition statements, organized by the four highway study segments:

Segment A - South Quesnel Commercial (LKI km 110.9 to km 115.1)

The South Quesnel Commercial area of Highway 97 experiences road safety performance challenges and

geometric challenges at several intersections along this segment. Without improvements along the corridor, the

existing issues with the highway frontage roads will continue to be a challenge. Currently the highway frontage

roads provide minimal vehicle queuing storage at highway intersections and can inhibit trucks from making turning

movements without over-tracking into adjacent lanes and the road shoulder. At the 2027 and 2042 horizons,

mobility performance is slightly worse compared to the existing conditions due to higher highway volumes,

however, all approaches and intersections are projected to operate satisfactorily.

Segment B - North Star Area (LKI km 115.1 to km 117.7)

The North Star area of Highway 97 has many geometric design challenges that require significant upgrades and

improvements to adhere to MoTI’s current-day design standards and guidelines. Necessary upgrades include the

Quesnel River Bridge No. 1569, Quesnel Overhead No. 01641, sidewalks on both structures, the off ramps to

Valhalla Road and Dragon Hill Road, and directional signage on North Star Road. In addition to structure and

infrastructure upgrades, side street mobility is projected to worsen at the 10 and 25-year horizons, specifically at

the Racing Road intersection which is expected to experience delays and failing levels of service.

Segment C - Downtown Quesnel (LKI km 117.7 to km 121.0)

The Downtown Quesnel area of Highway 97 currently has safety concerns at several intersections including at

Kinchant Street, McLean Street, Front Street, and St. Laurent Avenue. There are mobility performance challenges

for side-street movements throughout this segment at the 2027 and 2042 projections due to the increase in

highway traffic volumes. Specifically, the intersections of Shepherd Avenue and McNaughton Avenue are

expected to perform poorly with high delays.

There is a horizontal curve with a minimum 90 meter radius just west of the Quesnel Overhead No. 01641 (LKI

km 117.9) in which there is evidence some vehicles may be going off pavement. Lastly, a pedestrian and cycle

connection from Downtown to the Two Mile Flat area would facilitate active modes wishing to travel between

these two destinations.

Segment D - Two Mile Flat (LKI km 121.0 to km 124.3)

In this Two Mile Flat segment, the Highway 97 alignment comes close to the CN Rail alignment and the rail base

abuts the highway shoulder, resulting in an increased risk of vehicle impacts to the railway base and slope. At the

intersection of Brownmiller Road, there is a risk of heavy vehicles tracking off pavement as they make northbound

right turns around a sharp curve onto Brownmiller Road. Access management is also needed to better define

permitted turning movements onto and off the highway to local businesses. No existing or future mobility issues

are expected for the intersections in this segment of the study area.

As described in the problem definition statement, the current alignment of Highway 97 becomes constrained

through the downtown of Quesnel mainly due to topography and water bodies, land uses, and the CN Railway. In

addition to regional traffic volumes, the highway serves a significant amount of local traffic needs as it is the only

major north-south arterial route that connects with all the City’s neighbourhoods and other feeder routes (i.e.

Blackwater Road, Quesnel-Hydraulic Road, Anderson Road).

As discussed in the future conditions assessment, traffic volumes are projected to grow at a slow-to-moderate

pace and are not expected to exceed the highway’s current capacity by the 2042 long-term horizon. However,

there are several challenges within each study segment along the corridor that requires different design solutions

to similar issues. These issues include high volumes of heavy vehicles, intersection and segment safety

concerns, geometric design constraints, side-street mobility and access management.

To guide the development of improvement options for each study segment on Highway 97, a set of guiding

principles has been established based on the existing and future needs of the corridor. These guiding principles

were also used in the evaluation of improvement options to ensure the improvements achieve the objectives of

the project. The guiding principles are as follows:

Enhance the Highway to Support Local and Regional Functions – Minimize the highway’s impacts to

the local community and develop a corridor that balances the function of the highway as a provincial

route, and as a route that is frequently travelled by local users.

Improve Intersection and Highway Safety – Improvements to highway geometry, intersection design,

and access management need to be considered to improve safety conditions and reduce currently high

collision and severity rates.

Support Active Transportation - Pedestrian and bicycle movements are significant in the downtown and

consideration should be given to improving the safety of pedestrian and bicycle traffic crossing the

highway. Routes across the Quesnel River, between downtown Quesnel and Two Mile Flat and in the

South Quesnel commercial area have also been identified by the City of Quesnel as important

connections between residential areas and industrial and commercial employment destinations.

Improve Intersection and Corridor Mobility – Some side-street approaches to Highway 97 experience

long delays and/or challenging movements due to geometric constraints. Improvements to intersection

controls, laning and access should be considered in the development of options.

Improve Access and Connectivity with the Local Road Network – There are numerous public and

private accesses that are located directly on the highway and many properties with more than one

access. The Two Mile Flat, Downtown Quesnel, and the South Quesnel areas are where the majority of

public and private accesses are located. Consolidating accesses and identifying connections to the local

network to achieve better controlled access on the highway should be considered to improve safety

conditions and traffic flow.

Mitigate Heavy Vehicle Impacts –Significant heavy vehicle volumes exist on all segments of the corridor

and have the greatest impact in the Downtown Quesnel segment to the safety and mobility of all

transportation users. Improvement options to mitigate heavy vehicle impacts should involve upgrades to

geometric design, safety, access management, and the identification of alternate routes.

The design of the existing Highway 97 alignment through Quesnel varies in different segments based on the

highway standards implemented at the time each section of the highway was constructed or upgraded. Some

sections of Highway 97 that were previously 2 lanes wide with posted speeds of 50 km/h, were upgraded to 4

lanes wide with posted speeds of 70 km/h to 80 km/h (i.e. Two Mile Flat and South Quesnel). Whereas, other

sections through downtown Quesnel and over the Quesnel River Bridge have not seen upgrades due to various

design and project constraints.

The design criteria for improvement options on the highway and for the alternate routes was developed with

careful consideration to addressing the actual transportation problems and needs for improvements within the

context of the existing highway’s design. The criteria adheres to the guidelines and standards outlined in the

Geometric Design Guide for Canadian Roads (TAC, 1998) and in the BC Supplement to TAC Geometric Design

Guide for Canadian Roads (MoTI, 2007). Improvements to the existing highway alignment have been designed

to support current day geometric design standards where possible, and where not possible, alternatives have

been suggested.

The detailed design criteria sheets for Urban and Rural segments of Highway 97 through Quesnel are included in

Appendix D. A summary of the design criteria considerations for the existing rural and urban segments of

Highway 97 in Quesnel is provided in Table 3.1. Overall, the highway Segments A, B, and D are classified as

rural segments and Segment C is classified as an urban segment. .

Table 3.1: Highway 97 Physical and Operating Characteristics

Function Rural Segments &

Alternate Routes Urban Segments

Location North of Rome Avenue and South of Quesnel River Bridge

From Quesnel River Bridge to Rome Avenue

Mobility 70 – 80 km/h 50 km/h

Access

Good access to major centres / destinations

Limited direct property access

Signalized intersection spacing >400m – 800m

Generally at-grade intersections, but some grade-separation at significant access points

Good access to major centres / destinations

Direct property access permitted

Signalized intersection spacing >100m

Generally at-grade intersections

Network Hierarchy

Connects to major municipal streets

Continuous parallel local routes / frontage roads

Connects to major / minor municipal streets

Continuous parallel local routes / frontage roads

Transit

Supports transit on-highway where practical and beneficial

Transit stops located off mainline wherever possible (e.g. frontage roads, side-streets).

Supports transit on-highway where practical and beneficial

Bus stops may be supported on mainline where safety and traffic capacity are not hindered.

Function Rural Segments &

Alternate Routes Urban Segments

Cycling

On shoulders in rural areas

On multi-use pathways or cycle lanes parallel to the corridor

On multi-use pathways or cycle lanes parallel to the corridor

Pedestrians

Safe, comfortable crossings

Grade-separated crossings in high-speed areas

At-grade crossings in lower-speed urban environments

Separated sidewalks

Safe, comfortable crossings

At-grade crossings in lower-speed urban environments

Sidewalks along Highway 97 in more urban / developed areas

A desktop scan was conducted to identify and summarize environmental and archaeological constraints for the

Highway 97 corridor study area. This task involved the review of environmental, archaeological and contaminated

sites information from available reports, literature, maps, photos and databases. Biophysical components

evaluated include: contaminated sites, topography, surficial geology, hydrogeology, surface water, fish and fish

habitat, flora and fauna, species of management concern, and environmentally significant areas. Many of these

environmental constraints are illustrated on an aerial map of Quesnel in Figure 3.1. A detailed account of the

environmental and archaeological planning considerations and constraints is provided in the Environmental and

Archaeological Scan Report in Appendix E.

A desktop scan was conducted to identify and summarize geotechnical conditions, constraints and challenges for

the Highway 97 corridor study area and for the improvement options developed within this study. The desktop

review involved a review of previous studies and use of LiDAR imagery to identify known landslide features and

potentially unstable terrain areas. The complete geotechnical review is detailed in the technical memorandum

Terrain Stability (Geohazard) Constraints – Summary Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan provided in

Appendix F.

Fig

ure

3.1

E

nv

iro

nm

en

tal

Co

ns

train

ts

an

d

Co

ns

ide

rati

on

s

Fourteen improvement options on the existing Highway 97 alignment and six alternate route option alignments

were identified and developed to a conceptual design level. Each improvement option identified is described in

further detail on the following option description sheets from Section 3.5.3 to 3.5.7 of this report. Each sheet

includes a description of the option, an image of the conceptual design1, an evaluation of the option according to

the guiding principles, conceptual level planning cost estimate, and an evaluation summary.

The options are organized accordingly:

Alternate Routes

Study Segment A – South Quesnel Commercial Area

Study Segment B – North Star Area

Study Segment C – Downtown Quesnel Area

Study Segment D – Two Mile Flat Area

The conceptual design drawings including plan view horizontal profiles and vertical profiles for each option are

provided in Appendix G.

Each option has been evaluated against the study`s six guiding principles to determine if the option supports the

study objectives. Based on this evaluation, one of three recommendations are provided for each option:

Screen-Out from Further Review – this means the guiding principles evaluation has found a fatal flaw(s)

with the option and the recommendation is to screen-out the option from further evaluation in the MAE

and to not implement the option.

Advance to Multiple Account Evaluation – this means the guiding principles evaluation has found an

option could provide good benefits, however further evaluation in the MAE is needed to understand if the

benefits outweigh the costs.

Advance to Implementation Plan – this means the guiding principles evaluation has found an option

provides multiple benefits (generally at a low cost) and the option is a high priority for implementation.

Conceptual planning-level project cost estimates have been developed for each option and are provided in

Appendix H for all options. These cost estimates include the capital investment costs for planning, project

management, property acquisition, design and engineering, environmental, construction, First Nations

accommodation and regional recoveries. A contingency of 35% has been applied to each of these cost elements.

Quantities for the cost estimates have been developed from the conceptual designs and items, and unit rates are

based on the MoTI’s Historical Construction Cost Data website. Unit rates for structural costs were provided by

Mott MacDonald for this study, as detailed in the report Highway 97 Quesnel Corridor Study – Structural

Considerations provided in Appendix I.

Costs for acquiring property were prepared by Gateway Land Services for options where significant property

impacts were required outside of the existing Highway 97 alignment. Details of the properties impacted and the

costs are outlined in their report Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan Phase II – Improvement Options

____________

1 Conceptual designs are preliminary drawings that require further preliminary design and engineering analysis prior to construction and do not include input from necessary field investigations such as geotechnical, environmental and archaeological investigations.

Property Impact Study, provided in Appendix J. The property costs are only for fee simple lands. No

assumptions for capacity building for First Nations are included in these conceptual planning-level project costs.

Lastly, Environmental and Archaeological assumptions have not been addressed in the cost estimates prepared

including any work related to investigations, mitigation or alterations.

Various topographical survey information sources were used to develop the conceptual designs for the

improvement options developed. All of the options were developed, at a minimum, using model data from the

Canadian Digital Elevation Model (CDEM) data with an accuracy of plus/minus 20 m. Image files were provided

by the City of Quesnel and are from 2016. Further, LiDAR data was available along the whole length of Highway

97 and was incorporated into the design models to improve the design accuracy where this information was

available. Additional LiDAR survey was taken by McElhanney Consultants in November, 2017 for the north-south

interconnector route alignment with a high level of accuracy of ground surfaces with abnormalities including

weeds, bushes and trees screened out.

A total of six alternate route option alignments were identified and developed to a conceptual design level. The six

options identified correspond to three identified route connections including:

• North-South Interconnector – a 2-lane or 4-lane highway connection around the north side of the

downtown Quesnel peninsula including the replacement of the Quesnel River and Quesnel Overhead

structures. Two options have been conceptualized and evaluated.

• North-South Industrial Connector – a 2-lane or 4-lane highway connection from the North Star

Interchange, through industrial land uses and across a new structure over the Quesnel River to Highway

97 in the Two Mile Flat area. Three options have been conceptualized and evaluated, including a bypass

option.

• East-West Connector – a highway connection from Highway 97 (just north of Pinecrest Road) and across

a new structure over the Fraser River to Blackwater Road.

3.5.

3.1

Opt

ion

AR-1

a: N

orth

-Sou

th In

terc

onne

ctor

(4-L

ane)

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

Man

y tr

ansport

atio

n is

sues o

n th

e s

tud

y se

gm

ent of

Hig

hw

ay

97 o

ccur

in d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesn

el w

here

six

inte

rsectio

ns e

xp

erie

nce h

igh c

olli

sio

n r

ate

s f

or

frequency

and/o

r severity

; and,

where

the

com

bin

atio

n o

f hig

h tra

ffic

volu

mes a

nd a

do

wnto

wn u

rba

n e

nviro

nm

ent in

cre

ases tra

vel tim

e a

nd d

ela

ys.

Furt

her,

hea

vy

vehic

les a

nd tru

cks c

arr

ying d

angero

us g

oods im

pact

perc

eiv

ed c

om

munity

safe

ty a

s tru

cks tra

vel th

rough

the

do

wnto

wn a

rea a

long

Fro

nt

Str

eet.

T

hus, th

ere

is a

ne

ed to

explo

re o

ptions to

move

hig

hw

ay

tra

ffic

out of

do

wnto

wn Q

uesn

el.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

Tw

o o

ptio

ns o

f th

e N

ort

h-S

outh

Inte

rcon

necto

r ro

ute

were

explo

red inclu

din

g a

4-l

ane o

ption a

nd

a 2

-lan

e o

ption.

Both

options c

ross the

Quesne

l Riv

er

nort

h o

f th

e e

xis

ting

brid

ge t

o a

llow

for

the

constr

uctio

n o

f th

e b

ridg

e a

nd a

ppro

ach

es w

hile

main

tain

ing s

erv

ice

on t

he e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y ne

twork

.

This

4-lane o

ption

inclu

des t

wo n

ew

str

uctu

res th

at

would

rep

lace t

he Q

uesne

l R

iver

Bri

dg

e a

nd Q

uesn

el

Ove

rhe

ad s

tructu

re o

n a

n a

lignm

ent th

at

wou

ld d

irect

hig

hw

ay

traff

ic a

round d

ow

nto

wn

Quesne

l. I

t

inclu

des t

wo n

ew

sig

na

lize

d in

ters

ectio

ns tha

t w

ould

pro

vid

e c

onn

ectio

ns o

nto

th

e e

xis

ting H

igh

wa

y 9

7

alig

nm

ent, inclu

din

g F

ront

Str

eet

an

d M

off

at B

ridge

Appro

ach.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

This

4-lane o

ption

allo

ws f

or

the e

xis

ting

hig

hw

ay

to

rem

ain

open t

o tra

ffic

flo

w d

urin

g c

onstr

uction. T

his

4-lan

e o

ption p

rovid

es t

ypic

al 3

.6 m

etr

e la

ne w

idth

s,

2.5

metr

e s

hould

ers

, a 2

.6 m

etr

e m

edia

n, a

nd

hori

zonta

l an

d v

ert

ica

l curv

es to s

up

port

tra

vel

speeds o

f up t

o 6

0 k

m/h

. O

ther

desig

n

consid

era

tions w

ou

ld lik

ely

inclu

de s

oun

d w

alls

,

eith

er

an o

pen s

ho

uld

er

or

curb

and g

utt

er

shou

lder,

and c

lear

zon

e r

eq

uirem

ents

.

New

200 m

ete

r b

rid

ge

ov

er

the Q

uesn

el

Riv

er

New

100 m

ete

r O

verh

ead

of

the C

N R

ailw

ay

New

Tra

ffic

Sig

na

l

New

Tra

ffic

Sig

nal

A n

um

ber

of

pro

pert

y acq

uis

itio

ns w

ou

ld b

e r

equir

ed n

ear

the

loca

tion

of

the n

ew

str

uctu

res a

nd a

lon

g th

e r

oute

alig

nm

ent to

pro

vid

e t

he

necessary

wid

th f

or

cut and

fill

slo

pes a

nd h

igh

wa

y ri

gh

t of

wa

y

requirem

ents

. M

an

y exis

tin

g r

esid

ential str

uctu

res w

ou

ld b

e im

pacte

d

as p

art

of

these

pro

pert

y re

quirem

ents

. T

he p

rop

ert

y acquis

itio

ns

would

mostly

be r

equ

ired

in a

we

ll-esta

blis

he

d d

ow

nto

wn r

esid

entia

l

neig

hb

ourh

ood s

o a

s to a

void

im

pacts

to the C

N r

ailw

ay

locate

d

imm

edia

tely

nort

h o

f th

e p

roposed

alig

nm

ent.

The thro

ugh

move

ments

on this

alte

rnate

route

supp

ort

WB

-24 d

esig

n

veh

icle

s;

ho

wever,

turn

ing m

ove

ments

on / o

ff F

ront S

treet a

nd M

off

at

Brid

ge A

ppro

ach a

t both

inte

rsectio

ns a

re d

ifficu

lt to

accom

modate

with

out

wid

enin

g b

oth

inte

rsectio

ns,

whic

h w

ou

ld r

equir

e m

ore

pro

pert

y

acquis

itio

n.

Op

tion

AR

-1a: E

valu

atio

n S

um

ma

ry

Mo

bilit

y

Local

and

reg

ion

al

netw

ork

connectivi

ty i

s i

mpro

ved

with t

he

add

ition o

f a p

ara

llel r

oute

to H

igh

wa

y 97 in t

he d

ow

nto

wn;

Ben

efits

to h

igh

wa

y m

obili

ty w

ou

ld b

e o

bserv

ed a

s a

n e

stim

ate

of 10,3

00 v

ehic

les p

er

da

y (v

pd)

could

be r

edis

trib

ute

d o

nto

th

e n

ew

ro

ute

by

204

2 u

nder

the

0.5

% b

ackgro

und

gro

wth

rate

, as s

ho

wn in

Fig

ure

3.2

;

Hea

vy

vehic

le tra

ffic

on t

he

exis

ting C

ars

on A

venu

e a

nd F

ront

Str

eet sections o

f H

igh

wa

y 97

could

be c

om

ple

tely

rem

ove

d a

nd

directe

d t

o u

se

this

ne

w a

ltern

ate

ro

ute

alig

nm

ent (a

s c

onfirm

ed thro

ug

h the

orig

in-d

estin

ation a

na

lysis

);

Safe

ty

By

realig

nin

g th

e h

igh

wa

y, a

ppro

xim

ate

ly 1

3 p

ublic

accesses a

nd m

an

y pri

vate

dri

ve

wa

ys c

an b

e e

limin

ate

d f

rom

the h

igh

wa

y;

7 s

ign

aliz

ed inte

rsectio

ns a

re r

em

ove

d f

rom

the e

xis

tin

g h

igh

wa

y alig

nm

ent th

roug

h D

ow

nto

wn Q

uesn

el;

The h

igh

colli

sio

n r

ate

and

seve

rity

issues a

t th

e i

nte

rsectio

ns o

f H

igh

wa

y 97

an

d K

incha

nt

Str

ee

t, M

cLea

n S

tree

t, F

ron

t S

treet,

St.

Laure

nt

Avenu

e, a

nd M

cN

aug

hto

n A

venu

e a

re m

itig

ate

d b

y th

e r

edis

trib

utio

n o

f re

gio

na

l trips a

nd

man

y lo

ca

l tri

ps to t

his

alte

rnate

ro

ute

;

So

cia

l / C

om

mu

nit

y

Hig

hw

ay

97

thro

ugh t

he d

ow

nto

wn i

nclu

din

g t

he s

ections o

n C

ars

on A

venue

an

d F

ront

Str

ee

t cou

ld b

e r

etu

rned t

o t

he C

ity

of

Quesn

el

and

repurp

ose

d a

s p

art

of

an e

xpand

ed /

revita

lize

d d

ow

nto

wn r

oad

netw

ork

;

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

AR

-1a

: $

162

,95

9,8

87

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Oth

er

Based o

n the p

ropose

d a

lignm

ent, the a

mount of

pro

pert

y acqu

isiti

ons r

equ

ired f

or

this

4-l

an

e o

ptio

n is n

ot

sig

nific

antly

more

tha

n f

or

the 2

-lan

e o

ption;

Ped

estr

ian

an

d b

icyc

le f

acili

ties w

ou

ld b

e u

pgra

ded o

n t

he n

ew

str

uctu

res w

ith

incre

ased

tra

vel

wid

th a

nd

im

pro

ved

conn

ectio

ns t

o t

he r

iverf

ront

trail

sys

tem

on

both

sid

es o

f th

e r

iver;

There

are

geote

chnic

al cha

llenges o

n t

he s

lop

es o

f th

e a

lignm

ent

tha

t w

ill r

eq

uir

e

furt

her

geote

chnic

al a

nd

site in

vestiga

tions;

This

optio

n’s

pro

pose

d a

lignm

ent

impro

ves h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic r

elia

bili

ty b

y re

movi

ng

the im

pacts

that th

e d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesne

l fre

shet de

tour

has o

n the

exis

ting

hig

hw

ay

alig

nm

ent.

H

ow

eve

r, th

e f

reshet d

eto

ur

will

still

impact lo

ca

l tra

ffic

.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ptio

n A

R-1

a:

Optio

n A

R-1

a o

ffers

a l

on

g-t

erm

solu

tion t

o ad

dre

ss t

he

hig

hw

ay

traff

ic a

nd h

eavy

vehic

le im

pacts

in th

e Q

uesn

el d

ow

nto

wn b

y div

ert

ing m

ost hea

vy

veh

icle

tra

ffic

and t

raff

ic p

assin

g t

hro

ugh

on

ly t

he

do

wnto

wn

onto

a d

ed

icate

d r

ou

te.

T

his

option

shou

ld b

e c

om

pare

d t

o O

ption

AR

-1b

an

d t

o t

he o

nlin

e c

om

bin

ation

of

Op

tions B

1,

C1 a

nd C

2-b

. T

hus, it is

re

com

mended tha

t th

is o

ption

be a

dva

nced t

o th

e M

AE

for

furt

her

eva

luatio

n.

3.5.

3.2

Opt

ion

AR-1

b: N

orth

-Sou

th In

terc

onne

ctor

(2-L

ane)

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

2-lane a

ltern

ate

route

option c

rosses the Q

uesne

l R

iver

nort

h o

f th

e e

xis

ting b

ridg

e. It

inclu

des tw

o n

ew

4-la

ne s

tructu

res th

at w

ould

re

pla

ce

the Q

uesnel R

iver

Bri

dg

e a

nd Q

uesn

el O

verh

ead

str

uctu

re o

n a

n a

lignm

ent th

at w

ould

dir

ect

hig

hw

ay

traff

ic a

round d

ow

nto

wn

Qu

esnel. It

inclu

des tw

o n

ew

inte

rsectio

ns th

at w

ou

ld p

rovi

de c

onnections o

nto

the e

xis

ting

Hig

hw

ay

97

alig

nm

ent, in

clu

din

g F

ront

Str

eet

an

d M

off

at B

ridge

Appro

ach.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

R-1

a

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n

Fig

ure

3.2

: F

ore

cast U

sag

e o

f th

e N

ort

h-S

outh

Inte

rco

nnecto

r (2

042 H

ori

zon

, 0.5

% B

ackg

round G

row

th)

While

anoth

er

2-l

ane a

lign

ment w

as a

lso investig

ate

d w

ith

the b

rid

ge a

nd

ove

rhead

re

pla

cem

ent lo

cate

d s

ou

th o

f th

e

exis

ting str

uctu

res,

it

was fo

un

d th

rough

th

e str

uctu

ral

revi

ew

th

at

this

a

lignm

ent

vari

ation

would

b

e

too

challe

ng

ing t

o c

onstr

uct

at

the w

est

end o

f th

e Q

uesne

l

Ove

rhe

ad w

hile

keepin

g H

igh

wa

y 9

7 o

pen t

o tra

ffic

.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

This

2-lane

optio

n a

llow

s for th

e e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y to

rem

ain

open

to

tr

aff

ic

flow

duri

ng

constr

uction.

This

op

tion

pro

vid

es typ

ical 3

.6 m

etr

e la

ne w

idth

s, 2.5

metr

e s

hould

ers

and h

ori

zon

tal a

nd v

ert

ica

l curv

es to s

upport

tra

vel s

pe

eds

of u

p to

60

km

/h.

A m

edia

n tr

eatm

ent w

ou

ld b

e c

onsid

ere

d

for

safe

ty

co

nd

itions,

but

not

requ

ired

.

Oth

er

de

sig

n

consid

era

tions w

ou

ld l

ikely

inclu

de s

ou

nd w

alls

, e

ither

an

open

shou

lder

or

curb

and g

utter

sh

ould

er,

and c

lear

zone

requirem

ents

.

Som

e p

ropert

y acq

uis

itio

ns w

ou

ld b

e r

equ

ired n

ear

the

location

of

the

ne

w

str

uctu

res

and

alo

ng

the

route

alig

nm

ent

to p

rovid

e t

he n

ecessary

wid

th f

or

cut

an

d f

ill

slo

pes a

nd h

igh

wa

y ri

ght

of

wa

y re

qu

irem

ents

. H

ow

ever,

the d

iffe

rence o

f im

pacts

to e

xis

ting h

ouses a

nd b

uild

ings

in c

om

parison to

the

4-l

ane

option

is m

inim

al.

The p

rop

ert

y

acquis

itio

ns w

ou

ld m

ostly

be r

equ

ired in

a w

ell-

esta

blis

hed

do

wnto

wn

re

sid

ential

ne

ighbo

urh

ood

so

as

to

avo

id

impacts

to the C

N r

ailw

ay

locate

d im

media

tely

nort

h o

f th

e

pro

pose

d a

lignm

ent.

That

said

, th

is 2

-la

ne o

ption c

ould

serv

e a

s t

he f

irst

phase o

f th

e n

ort

h-s

outh

inte

rconn

ecto

r

where

pro

pert

y and

RO

W is o

bta

ine

d t

o s

up

port

futu

re 4

-

lan

ing

of

a 2

-lane

inte

rconn

ecto

r.

New

4-l

an

e 2

00

me

ter

bri

dg

e

ove

r th

e Q

ue

sn

el R

ive

r

New

10

0 m

ete

r O

ve

rhe

ad

of

the

CN

Ra

ilw

ay

New

Tra

ffic

Sig

nal

New

Tra

ffic

Sig

nal

The thro

ugh

move

ments

on this

alte

rnate

route

supp

ort

WB

-24

desig

n v

eh

icle

s; h

ow

eve

r, t

urn

ing m

ove

ments

onto

an

d o

ff F

ront

Str

eet

an

d M

off

at B

ridge

Appro

ach a

t b

oth

inte

rsectio

ns a

re

difficult

to a

ccom

modate

without

wid

en

ing

out

both

inte

rsectio

ns,

whic

h w

ou

ld a

lso r

equir

e m

ore

pro

pert

y acqu

isitio

n.

Op

tion

AR

-1b: E

valu

atio

n S

um

ma

ry

In a

dd

itio

n t

o t

ho

se l

iste

d f

or

Op

tio

n A

R-1

a:

The

am

ount

of

pro

pert

y acquis

itio

ns

and

impacts

to

str

uctu

res is n

ot

sig

nific

antly

less t

ha

n t

hat

requ

ired f

or

the

4-lan

e o

ption;

A 2

-lan

e a

lignm

ent pro

vid

es d

esira

ble

mobili

ty p

erf

orm

ance

and t

raff

ic f

low

up t

o t

he u

ltim

ate

and b

eyo

nd t

he 2

5-y

ear

hori

zon;

Str

on

g c

onsid

era

tion s

ho

uld

be g

iven t

o p

rovid

e 4

lan

es t

o

ensure

th

e n

ort

h-s

ou

th i

nte

rconnecto

r can p

rovid

e a

long

term

solu

tion i

n t

he r

ange o

f 50 t

o 7

5 y

ears

fro

m p

resent

and

can a

ccom

modate

the

pote

ntia

l fo

r fu

ture

unfo

resee

n

incre

ases in tra

ffic

volu

mes;

The c

onceptu

al pro

ject

cost

estim

ate

for

Optio

n A

R-1

b (

2-

lan

e)

is $

154,5

23

,53

6, or

5.2

% le

ss th

at th

e 4

-lan

e o

ption;

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption A

R-1

b:

Optio

n A

R-1

b o

ffers

a s

olu

tion to

addre

ss th

e h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic a

nd h

ea

vy

vehic

le im

pacts

in t

he

Quesn

el

do

wnto

wn

by

div

ert

ing m

ost

hea

vy

vehic

le t

raff

ic a

nd

tra

ffic

passin

g t

hro

ugh

only

the

do

wnto

wn

onto

a d

edic

ate

d r

ou

te. H

ow

ever,

the c

ost to

constr

uct th

is o

ptio

n is

not sig

nific

antly

less tha

n the c

ost to

constr

uct

the 4

-lane O

ption A

R-1

a,

and it

wou

ld h

ave m

an

y of

the s

am

e im

pacts

to p

ropert

y as t

he 4

-lane o

ption.

In t

he f

ar

lon

g-t

erm

(25 to 7

5 y

ears

), the 4

-lan

e N

ort

h-S

outh

Inte

rconnecto

r w

ill p

rovid

e a

more

relia

ble

an

d c

onsis

tent de

sig

n

and d

river

experi

ence w

ith the a

dja

ce

nt 4

-lane s

ections o

f H

igh

wa

y 9

7. T

hus, it

is r

ecom

mended that th

is 2

-la

ne o

ptio

n b

e s

cre

en

ed

-ou

t fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

and f

rom

imple

menta

tion

.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

AR

-1b

: $

154

,52

3,5

36

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

R-1

b

S

cre

en

-out fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

an

d

from

imple

menta

tion.

3.5.

3.3

Opt

ions

AR-

2(a

& b

): No

rth-

Sout

h In

dust

rial

Con

nect

or

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

Pre

vio

us p

lann

ing s

tud

ies inclu

din

g T

he Q

uesne

l H

igh

way 9

7 L

ocal Im

pro

vem

ent

Stu

dy (

Reid

Cro

wth

er,

199

8)

an

d T

he Q

uesne

l N

ort

h-S

outh

Industr

ial C

onn

ecto

r F

easib

ility

Stu

dy (

Urb

an

Sys

tem

, 200

4)

ha

ve lo

oked a

t o

ptions to p

rovid

e a

n a

ltern

ate

route

for

hea

vy

trucks a

nd

hig

hw

ay

traff

ic to b

ypass d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesnel betw

ee

n the N

ort

h S

tar

Inte

rcha

nge

and T

wo M

ile

Fla

t are

a. T

wo o

ptions f

or

this

nort

h-s

outh

in

dustr

ial c

onnecto

r ro

ute

ha

ve b

ee

n r

evi

sited t

o

unders

tand t

he d

esig

n c

on

sid

era

tions,

ben

efits

and

dra

wbacks a

s a

pote

ntial s

olu

tion

.

Ove

rvie

w a

nd

Desig

n D

escrip

tion

:

Se

vera

l cro

ssin

g locations in the

vic

inity

of

the p

revi

ou

sly

stu

die

d im

pro

vem

ent op

tions w

ere

inve

stigate

d a

nd f

oun

d th

at

the g

rades c

ould

not

be a

chie

ved to m

eet th

e d

esig

n c

rite

ria

. T

o

support

the o

rig

ina

l alig

nm

ent (s

ho

wn

belo

w),

a t

unn

el und

er

the C

N r

ailw

ay

wou

ld b

e r

equ

ired

.

This

is b

oth

a c

ostly

and d

ifficult

optio

n to b

uild

un

der

an a

ctive

ra

ilwa

y. F

or

this

re

ason,

we

inve

stigate

d a

locatio

n w

he

re the g

rades a

nd c

rossin

g t

he r

ailr

oad c

ou

ld b

e a

ccom

modate

d t

o

meet th

e d

esig

n c

rite

ria.

Optio

ns A

R-2

a a

nd A

R-2

b u

tiliz

e t

he e

xis

ting N

ort

h S

tar

Inte

rcha

nge

an

d r

un

nort

h a

lon

g t

he

exis

ting N

ort

h S

tar

Ro

ad a

nd

Sw

ord

Ave

nue w

hic

h a

llow

s f

or

an inte

rsection a

t S

word

Ave

nu

e

eastb

ound. T

his

alig

nm

ent m

ain

tain

s a

ll exis

ting a

ccess p

oin

ts a

nd c

rosses th

e e

xis

ting o

verp

ass

on N

ort

h S

tar

Ro

ad.

The Q

uesne

l R

iver

Bri

dg

e is loca

ted a

t a p

oin

t o

n t

he r

iver

that

is n

arr

ow

and s

tra

ight

to m

inim

ize i

ssues t

o t

he s

tructu

re a

nd m

inim

ize t

he l

ength

. T

he a

lignm

ent

the

n

curv

es u

p t

hro

ugh t

he lo

g s

tora

ge y

ard

to g

ain

an a

cce

pta

ble

gra

de

to t

he h

igh

wa

y.

Origin

al N

-S I

ndustr

ial

Conn

ecto

r A

lignm

ent

(Adapte

d f

rom

Quesnel N

ort

h-

South

Industr

ial C

onnecto

r

Fe

asib

ility

Stu

dy (

2004,

Urb

an

Syste

ms L

td.)

Uti

lize e

xis

tin

g N

ort

h S

tar

Inte

rch

an

ge

On

/Off

Ram

ps

New

400 m

ete

r b

rid

ge

ov

er

the Q

uesn

el

Riv

er

Opt

ion

AR-2

a: N

orth

-Sou

th In

dust

rial

Con

nect

or

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n:

This

optio

n c

urv

es u

p t

o th

e n

ort

h c

rossin

g u

nder

the p

ow

er

lines a

nd o

ver

Barl

ow

Cre

ek a

nd t

he C

N

railw

ay,

tyi

ng to H

igh

wa

y 2

6 e

ast

of

the e

xis

ting

Hig

hw

ay

97 a

nd H

igh

wa

y 2

6 inte

rsectio

n.

A 2

-la

ne r

ura

l

art

eria

l undiv

ide

d r

oa

d s

tan

dard

was in

vestigate

d w

ith

vert

ica

l and h

ori

zonta

l curv

es that

wou

ld s

upport

veh

icle

spee

ds u

p t

o 7

0-8

0 k

m/h

. In a

dditio

n to t

he 4

00 m

ete

r bridge

str

uctu

re r

equire

d to c

ross th

e

Quesnel R

iver,

a s

econ

d o

verh

ead s

tructu

re o

f appro

xim

ate

ly 1

00 m

ete

rs in

len

gth

wou

ld c

ross B

arlo

w

Cre

ek a

nd th

e C

N r

ailw

ay.

A m

edia

n tre

atm

ent

wou

ld b

e c

onsid

ere

d f

or

safe

ty c

onditio

ns, but

not

requ

ired

.

Sig

nific

an

t pro

pert

y acqu

isitio

ns w

ould

be r

eq

uire

d a

s t

his

rou

te f

ollo

ws a

n a

lignm

ent th

roug

h th

e industr

ial

site

of

Cari

boo

Pu

lp a

nd P

aper

(on s

om

e e

xis

ting inte

rnal r

oads)

an

d thro

ug

h indu

str

ial la

nds o

n t

he n

ort

h

sid

e o

f th

e Q

uesn

el r

iver.

G

ive

n th

e inte

rnal r

oad n

etw

ork

on the C

aribo

o P

ulp

and P

aper

site

serv

es a

vari

ety

of

pri

vate

tra

nsp

ort

atio

n f

unctio

ns (

e.g

. hea

vy

equip

ment and m

achin

ery

move

ments

), there

is

pote

ntial t

hat

a th

ird s

tructu

re w

ou

ld b

e r

eq

uire

d to

main

tain

gra

de s

epara

tion

betw

een a

public

rig

ht of

wa

y

and p

rivate

uses.

This

alig

nm

ent, a

long w

ith O

ptio

n A

R-2

b s

up

port

s turn

ing m

ove

ments

for

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

eh

icle

s.

Opt

ion

AR-2

b: N

orth

-Sou

th In

dust

rial

Con

nect

or

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n:

This

optio

n r

uns w

est cro

ssin

g B

arl

ow

Cre

ek, C

N

railw

ay

an

d u

nder

the p

ow

er

lines t

yin

g to H

igh

wa

y

97 a

t th

e F

innin

g R

oad/Q

uesnel-

Hix

on R

oad

inte

rsection.

A 2

-la

ne r

ura

l art

eria

l undiv

ide

d r

oa

d

sta

ndard

was investig

ate

d w

ith v

ert

ical an

d

hori

zonta

l curv

es t

hat

wou

ld s

upp

ort

veh

icle

sp

eeds

up to

70-8

0 k

m/h

. In a

dditio

n to

the

40

0 m

ete

r

bridg

e s

tructu

re r

equir

ed t

o c

ross the Q

uesne

l

Riv

er,

up

to t

wo a

dd

itiona

l ove

rhea

d s

tructu

res, o

ne

250 m

ete

rs in

len

gth

and

one 5

0 m

ete

rs in

length

would

be n

eed

ed t

o c

ross B

arl

ow

Cre

ek a

nd the

CN

railw

ay.

A m

edia

n tre

atm

ent w

ou

ld b

e c

onsid

ere

d

for

safe

ty c

on

ditio

ns, but

no

t re

qu

ired.

New

10

0 m

ete

r b

rid

ge

ove

r C

N R

ailw

ay a

nd

Ba

rlo

w C

reek

New

25

0 m

ete

r b

rid

ge

ove

r

Ba

rlo

w C

reek

Va

lle

y

New

50

me

ter

bri

dg

e

ove

r C

N R

ailw

ay

Qu

esn

el

Hix

on

Rd

Sim

ilar

to O

ption A

R-2

a, sig

nific

ant

pro

pert

y acqu

isitio

ns w

ou

ld b

e r

eq

uire

d a

s t

his

route

follo

ws a

n a

lignm

ent th

rou

gh the

industr

ial s

ite o

f C

ari

boo P

ulp

and P

ap

er

(on s

om

e

exis

ting inte

rnal r

oads)

an

d thro

ug

h ind

ustr

ial la

nds o

n the n

ort

h s

ide o

f th

e Q

uesnel r

iver.

Giv

en th

e inte

rnal r

oad n

etw

ork

on the C

aribo

o P

ulp

and P

aper

site

serv

es a

vari

ety

of

private

tra

nsport

ation f

unctions (

e.g

. hea

vy

equ

ipm

ent and m

achin

ery

move

ments

), there

is

pote

ntial t

hat

a th

ird s

tructu

re w

ou

ld b

e r

eq

uire

d to

main

tain

gra

de s

epara

tion

betw

een a

pub

lic r

ight

of

wa

y and p

rivate

uses.

This

alig

nm

ent, a

lon

g w

ith O

ptio

n A

R-2

a s

up

port

s

turn

ing m

ove

ments

for

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

ehic

les.

Op

tion

AR

-2(a

& b

): E

valu

atio

n S

um

ma

ry

Mo

bilit

y

Both

o

ptions

main

ly

sup

port

a

re

gio

nal

con

nection

to

m

ove

th

rou

gh

tr

aff

ic

on

Hig

hw

ay

97

aro

und t

he c

ore

are

a o

f Q

uesne

l;

Ben

efits

to h

igh

wa

y m

obili

ty w

ou

ld b

e o

bserv

ed a

s a

n e

stim

ate

of

betw

een 8

,100 t

o

9,8

00 vpd co

uld

be

re

dis

trib

ute

d o

nto

th

e ne

w ro

ute

b

y 20

42 und

er

the 0.5

%

backgro

und g

row

th r

ate

, as s

ho

wn in F

igu

re 3

.3;

Hea

vy

veh

icle

traff

ic o

n H

igh

wa

y 97 in

Do

wnto

wn Q

uesnel w

ould

be p

art

ially

re

duced

assum

ing a

ppro

priate

gu

ide s

ignag

e a

nd

hea

vy

veh

icle

s w

ould

be

requ

ired

to

use

eith

er

altern

ate

ro

ute

Op

tion A

R-2

a o

r A

R-2

b;

Hig

hw

ay

97

thro

ugh

th

e d

ow

nto

wn w

ou

ld c

ontinu

e to

be r

eq

uire

d a

nd

main

tain

ed a

s

a h

igh

wa

y in

add

itio

n to e

ither

altern

ate

ro

ute

option;

The n

um

ber

of

public

and p

riva

te a

ccesses o

n t

he H

igh

wa

y w

ould

be u

nch

ang

ed;

Optio

n A

R-2

a p

rovi

des a

n a

lignm

ent aro

un

d T

wo M

ile F

lat, w

hic

h m

ay

be p

erc

eiv

ed

to b

e m

ore

of

a b

ypass r

oute

th

an a

conn

ection b

etw

een S

outh

Qu

esne

l an

d t

he

ind

ustr

ial l

and u

ses in

Tw

o M

ile F

lat;

Safe

ty

Road

safe

ty o

n t

he

exis

tin

g h

igh

wa

y netw

ork

wo

uld

be s

om

ew

hat

impro

ved b

y a

part

ial r

edis

trib

utio

n o

f tr

aff

ic v

olu

mes to th

is in

dustr

ial c

onnecto

r ro

ute

; h

ow

eve

r, this

would

lik

ely

be t

em

pora

ry d

ue to

futu

re tra

ffic

volu

me g

row

th;

So

cia

l / C

om

mu

nit

y

This

optio

n i

s n

ot

favo

ure

d b

y th

e C

ity

of

Quesne

l as i

t does n

ot

eff

ectiv

ely

div

ert

ind

ustr

ial t

raff

ic fro

m W

est of

the d

ow

nto

wn (

West Q

uesnel) o

ff o

f F

ront S

tree

t;

Fig

ure

3.3

: F

ore

cast U

sag

e o

f th

e N

ort

h-S

outh

Ind

ustr

ial

Conn

ecto

r (2

04

2 H

ori

zon,

0.5

% B

ackgro

und G

row

th)

If the M

inis

try

were

to im

ple

ment th

is o

ptio

n a

nd

seek to r

elo

cate

the

Hig

hw

ay

97 r

oute

onto

the N

ort

h S

outh

In

dustr

ial C

onn

ecto

r, the C

ity

would

lik

ely

be u

nw

illin

g t

o t

ake o

wners

hip

of

the e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y

assets

inclu

din

g t

he Q

uesn

el O

verh

ead a

nd Q

uesne

l R

iver

Bri

dg

e;

Oth

er

Reha

bili

tation a

nd/o

r re

pla

cem

ent

of

the Q

uesne

l R

iver

Brid

ge a

nd

Quesnel

Ove

rhea

d bri

dge

w

ou

ld still

be

re

qu

ired

, despite th

ese

alte

rnate

route

optio

ns;

Ne

w o

pera

tion

an

d m

ain

ten

ance c

osts

for

both

options w

ould

be

sig

nific

an

tly

hig

h, consid

eri

ng th

at b

oth

ro

ute

s w

ou

ld b

e in

ten

ded t

o

pro

vid

e a

secon

dary

route

to H

igh

wa

y 97 a

nd t

he e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y

alig

nm

ent

wou

ld s

till

need t

o b

e m

ain

tain

ed

;

The a

lignm

ent

of

both

op

tions t

rave

rses t

he Q

uesne

l R

iver

Slid

e

Com

ple

x t

hat

is lo

cate

d o

n t

he n

ort

h s

ide

of

the

Quesne

l R

iver

cro

ssin

g;

whic

h

is

a

kno

wn

geote

chnic

al

ha

zard

.

Thus,

constr

ucta

bili

ty o

f th

is o

ptio

n m

ay

be s

eve

rely

restr

icte

d;

The g

eote

chn

ical

co

nditio

ns o

f th

is r

oute

are

challe

ngin

g as t

his

route

tra

vers

es t

he Q

uesn

el

Riv

er

Slid

e C

om

ple

x,

as d

escribed

in

Am

ed F

oste

r W

heele

r E

nvironm

ent

and I

nfr

astr

uctu

re’s

Technic

al

Mem

ora

ndum

inclu

de

d in A

pp

en

dix

F;

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

AR

-2(a

&b

)

Optio

n A

R-2

(a&

b)

pre

sents

a long

-term

solu

tion t

o r

ed

uce h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic o

n the e

xis

ting c

orr

idor

and t

o m

ove

som

e h

eavy

veh

icle

s o

ff o

f F

ront S

tre

et.

Ho

we

ver,

this

option d

oes n

ot pro

vid

e a

so

lution t

o r

em

ovi

ng a

ll pass-t

hro

ug

h h

eavy

veh

icle

s f

rom

Fro

nt S

treet as h

ea

vy

trucks fro

m W

est Q

uesne

l are

unlik

ely

to u

se t

his

alte

rnate

route

. F

urt

her,

th

is o

ptio

n h

as s

om

e m

ajo

r geote

ch

nic

al challe

nges t

hat co

uld

furt

her

incre

ase c

onstr

uctio

n c

osts

pen

din

g

furt

her

site

investig

ations. W

hile

these c

halle

nges c

ou

ld b

e a

ddre

ssed,

this

ro

ute

is n

ot su

pport

ed b

y th

e C

ity

of

Quesnel and

it w

ou

ld n

ot be p

ossib

le f

or

the M

oT

I to

de

volv

e t

he e

xis

ting Q

uesne

l Riv

er

Bri

dge,

Quesne

l Overh

ea

d a

nd h

igh

wa

y a

lignm

ent th

rou

gh d

ow

nto

wn a

nd T

wo

Mile

Fla

t are

a. T

hus, th

e

MoT

I w

ould

incur

respo

nsib

ility

for

rep

lacin

g t

he e

xis

tin

g b

rid

ges,

and f

or

bu

ildin

g a

ne

w a

ltern

ate

rou

te w

ith a

t le

ast tw

o a

dditio

nal str

uctu

res. T

he c

ost of

these c

ap

ital im

pro

vem

ents

wou

ld b

e p

rohib

itiv

e c

om

pare

d to

the

be

nefits

th

at

wo

uld

be a

chie

ved.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

R-2

a a

nd

AR

-2b

:

S

cre

en o

ut fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

an

d im

ple

menta

tion.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

AR

-2a:

$191

,59

9,6

47

Op

tio

n A

R-2

b:

$220

,03

9,9

45

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

3.5.

3.4

Opt

ion

AR-3

: Eas

t-W

est C

onne

ctor

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

The E

ast W

est connecto

r o

ptio

n h

as b

ee

n p

revio

usly

stu

die

d w

ith

the

ori

gin

al purp

ose o

f pro

vid

ing

a n

ew

cro

ssin

g o

ver

the F

raser

Riv

er

to s

erv

e t

ruck

log

gin

g tra

ffic

com

ing f

rom

the B

lackw

ate

r / N

azk

o la

nds w

est of

Quesne

l to

indu

str

y in

Tw

o M

ile F

lat.

P

revi

ous s

tud

ies inclu

ded a

Que

snel E

ast-

West

Conn

ecto

r B

usin

ess C

ase

(P

riceW

ate

rhouseC

oop

ers

, 2003),

a Q

uesnel E

ast-

West C

onn

ecto

r B

usin

ess C

ase

(N

ort

hern

Re

gio

n a

nd C

arib

oo D

istr

ict,

MoT

I, 2

00

3)

and

th

e E

ast

West C

onnecto

r Q

uesn

el –

Mob

ility

Bene

fits

(U

rba

n S

yste

ms, 2014).

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

2-lane o

ption

runs f

rom

Hig

hw

ay

97 just sou

th o

f th

e L

ear

Road

/Ke

is R

oad inte

rsectio

n w

est th

rou

gh t

he in

dustr

ial are

a d

ropp

ing d

ow

n into

the

agricu

ltura

l are

a a

nd a

cro

ss the F

raser

Riv

er.

It th

en r

ais

es u

p o

n t

he b

en

d a

bo

ve the

riv

er

an

d t

ies to B

lackw

ate

r R

oad n

ear

its inte

rse

ctio

n w

ith Y

arg

ea

u

Road.

The E

ast-

West connecto

r is

not consid

ere

d to

pro

vid

e a

n a

ltern

ate

route

to th

e e

xis

ting H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

lignm

ent th

roug

h Q

uesnel.

Ho

we

ver,

it

wou

ld

pro

vid

e a

n a

ltern

ate

route

for

all

traff

ic, nota

bly

logg

ing

tru

ck tra

ffic

, tr

ave

lling

betw

een B

lackw

ate

r R

oad a

nd

the T

wo M

ile F

lat

are

a w

itho

ut usin

g t

he

Moff

at B

ridg

e a

nd H

igh

wa

y 97 a

lon

g F

ron

t S

treet

in D

ow

nto

wn Q

uesnel.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

This

alte

rna

te r

oute

wou

ld a

dhere

to a

2-l

ane

rura

l art

erial

und

ivid

ed r

oa

d s

tan

dard

with v

ert

ical an

d h

ori

zonta

l

curv

es tha

t w

ould

supp

ort

vehic

le s

pe

eds u

p to 7

0-

80km

/h. G

iven

the

wid

th o

f th

e F

raser

Riv

er

at

the

cro

ssin

g lo

ca

tion, a

sig

nific

ant bri

dg

e s

pa

n o

f 600

mete

rs

in len

gth

wou

ld b

e r

eq

uire

d. In a

dd

ition,

the s

lop

es o

n

eith

er

sid

e o

f th

e F

raser

Riv

er

are

ste

ep

an

d w

ould

require

sig

nific

ant cuts

and

fill

s to a

chie

ve g

rad

es tha

t fa

ll

with

in t

he a

ccepta

ble

desig

n c

rite

ria. S

till,

a m

axim

um

gra

de o

f 7.0

% w

ould

be r

eq

uired o

ver

a d

ista

nce o

f 50

0 –

700 m

ete

rs o

n b

oth

sid

es o

f th

e r

iver

to s

upport

this

alig

nm

ent.

This

route

do

es n

ot

use a

ny

exis

ting

road

alig

nm

ents

, and

thus,

will

req

uire p

ropert

y a

cquis

itio

n f

rom

main

ly

ind

ustr

ial a

nd a

gricultura

l la

nd u

ses.

This

alig

nm

ent,

alo

ng w

ith O

ption A

R-2

b s

upport

s turn

ing m

ove

ments

for

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

ehic

les.

New

600 m

ete

r b

rid

ge

ov

er

the

Fra

ser

Riv

er

New

Tra

ffic

Sig

na

l at

inte

rsecti

on

wit

h H

igh

wa

y 9

7

New

Sto

p C

on

tro

l o

n

Bla

ckw

ate

r R

oa

d

Op

tion

AR

-3: E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

Mo

bilit

y

While

this

option

pro

vide b

etter

local c

onn

ectivi

ty b

etw

een T

wo M

ile F

lat a

nd

Bla

ckw

ate

r R

oad,

it a

lso h

as the e

ffect of

addin

g a

dditio

n n

ort

hb

oun

d tra

ffic

from

loggin

g a

nd ind

ustr

ial site

s s

outh

of

Quesne

l to u

se F

ront

Str

eet to

access the E

ast-

West C

onnecto

r (a

s o

pposed

to u

sin

g the

Moff

at B

rid

ge);

As s

ho

wn in F

igu

re 3

.4,

ap

pro

xim

ate

ly 3

,70

0 v

pd w

ou

ld u

se t

he E

ast W

est

Conn

ecto

r, b

ut m

an

y of

the

se v

ehic

les w

ou

ld c

ontinue

to/f

rom

their

destin

ation s

outh

of

do

wnto

wn Q

uesn

el in

ste

ad o

f usin

g the

Moff

at B

rid

ge

cro

ssin

g;

By

204

2, th

e v

olu

mes o

n F

ront

Str

eet

could

incre

ase f

rom

a f

utu

re b

ase le

vel

of

15,3

00 v

pd t

o 1

7,5

00 v

pd, re

sultin

g in w

ors

en

ed c

onditio

ns o

n H

igh

wa

y 9

7

in d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesne

l;

Som

e h

ea

vy

vehic

le tra

ffic

on F

ront

Str

eet

would

be r

educed;

ho

wever,

th

is

would

only

inclu

de tru

cks tra

velli

ng b

etw

een B

lackw

ate

r R

oad

an

d T

wo M

ile

Fla

t;

There

are

man

y oth

er

he

avy

truck m

ove

ments

betw

ee

n S

outh

Quesne

l and

Nort

h Q

uesn

el th

at

wo

uld

continue

to u

se H

igh

wa

y 97 in t

he d

ow

nto

wn t

o

access in

dustr

ial s

ites in a

nd a

rou

nd T

wo M

ile F

lat an

d C

arib

oo P

ulp

and

Pap

er;

The n

um

ber

of

public

and p

riva

te a

ccesses o

n t

he H

igh

wa

y w

ould

mostly

go

unchan

ged

, except fo

r th

e a

dd

ition o

f a n

ew

inte

rsection a

t H

igh

wa

y 97 in

Tw

o M

ile F

lat

to s

upport

this

route

;

Safe

ty

Hig

hw

ay

safe

ty m

ay

observ

e s

om

e m

odera

te im

pro

vem

ents

as this

connection w

ou

ld r

educe m

an

y of

the h

ea

vy

veh

icle

s t

hat tr

ave

l betw

een

West Q

uesnel a

nd th

e T

wo

Mile

Fla

t are

a;

ho

wever

this

benefit m

ay

be

off

set

by

the incre

ase in p

assen

ger

vehic

le tra

ffic

that m

ay

choose t

o take F

ront

Str

eet

to a

ccess B

lackw

ate

r R

oad f

rom

are

as s

outh

of

do

wnto

wn Q

uesne

l;

So

cia

l / C

om

mu

nit

y

The C

ity

of

Quesne

l revie

wed th

is o

ptio

n a

nd s

up

port

s it

s d

eve

lopm

ent w

hen t

he v

olu

me o

f in

dustr

ial t

raff

ic justif

ies the

cost;

Fig

ure

3.4

: F

ore

cast U

sag

e o

f th

e E

ast-

West C

onnecto

r (2

042

Hori

zon,

0.5

% B

ackgro

und

Gro

wth

)

Oth

er

Reha

bili

tation a

nd/o

r re

pla

cem

ent of

the Q

uesne

l Riv

er

Brid

ge a

nd Q

uesne

l Overh

ead b

rid

ge w

ould

still

be

require

d, d

espite th

is a

ltern

ate

rou

te o

ption;

Opera

tion a

nd m

ain

tena

nce c

osts

wou

ld incre

ase

substa

ntially

to m

ain

tain

ap

pro

xim

ate

ly 3

.5km

of

new

road

wa

y surf

ace a

nd th

e 6

00

-mete

r-lo

ng b

ridg

e d

eck

surf

ace a

rea;

the g

eote

chnic

al c

onditio

ns o

f th

is r

oute

are

ch

alle

ngin

g,

as d

escribe

d A

med F

oste

r W

heele

r E

nvironm

ent an

d

Infr

astr

uctu

re’s

Technic

al M

em

ora

ndum

inclu

de

d in

Ap

pen

dix

L;

Optio

n A

R-3

tra

vers

es f

ive k

now

n g

eoh

aza

rd c

onstr

ain

ts

inclu

din

g t

he G

rave

l Pit

Slid

e, G

arb

age D

um

p S

lide, W

est

Bank o

f F

raser

Riv

er,

Upp

er

Fra

ser

Riv

er

Va

lley

Slo

pe,

and t

he T

err

ace S

lop

e A

lon

g Y

arg

ea

u R

oad

;

Each k

no

wn g

eo

ha

zard

re

quires f

urt

her

site

investig

ation

;

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

AR

-3

Ove

rall,

Op

tion A

R-3

is a

sig

nific

ant

infr

astr

uctu

re p

roje

ct

with a

sig

nific

an

t cost th

at pro

vid

es f

ew

be

nefits

to h

igh

wa

y u

sers

and w

ould

be

used

by

a s

mall

volu

me o

f lo

cal users

tra

velli

ng

betw

ee

n B

lackw

ate

r R

oad a

nd t

he

Tw

o M

ile F

lat

are

a. T

his

optio

n d

oes n

ot ad

dre

ss the e

xis

ting c

ha

lleng

es o

n

Hig

hw

ay

97

such a

s th

e n

eed to

repla

ce t

he Q

uesnel R

iver

Bri

dg

e a

nd Q

uesn

el

Ove

rhe

ad,

nor

does it

ad

dre

ss the s

afe

ty issues thro

ugh d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesne

l.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

AR

-3:

$163

,29

5,8

71

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

R-3

:

S

cre

en o

ut fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

an

d im

ple

menta

tion.

3.5.

3.5

Opt

ion

AR-4

: Nor

th-S

outh

Byp

ass

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

The p

revi

ous p

lan

nin

g s

tud

y T

he

Quesne

l H

ighw

ay 9

7

Local Im

pro

ve

me

nt S

tudy (

Reid

Cro

wth

er,

1998)

looked a

t

the o

ption

to p

rovid

e a

full

byp

ass o

f do

wnto

wn Q

uesnel

and T

wo M

ile F

lat fo

r H

igh

wa

y 97 tra

ffic

. T

his

byp

ass

option w

as r

evis

ite

d t

o f

urt

her

und

ers

tand t

he d

esig

n

consid

era

tions, be

nefits

an

d d

raw

backs a

s a

pote

ntia

l

solu

tion.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n b

ypasses the c

ity

with

a 4

-lan

e h

igh

wa

y fr

om

the N

ort

h S

tar

Inte

rchan

ge t

o th

e H

igh

wa

y 26 inte

rsectio

n.

Hig

hw

ay

97

thro

ugh d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesnel an

d T

wo M

ile F

lat

could

be c

onvert

ed t

o t

he C

ity’s

local ro

ad n

etw

ork

, and

this

con

nection w

ou

ld b

e b

ecom

e the n

ew

alig

nm

ent fo

r

Hig

hw

ay

97

.

The o

ptio

n r

ep

laces t

he N

ort

h S

tar

inte

rchan

ge w

ith a

round

abo

ut in

terc

ha

nge

tha

t allo

ws f

or

the h

igh

wa

y to

have

free f

low

move

ment and

avoid

s t

he e

xis

ting c

ity

wa

ter

infr

astr

uctu

re.

Up

on f

urt

her

desig

n, th

e e

xis

ting

inte

rch

ange

may

be a

ble

to b

e incorp

ora

ted

.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

The a

lignm

ent w

ill r

equir

e a

n e

xte

nsio

n t

o t

he e

xis

ting

ove

rpass o

n N

ort

h S

tar

Ro

ad f

rom

the m

ill. T

he Q

uesnel

Riv

er

bri

dge c

rossin

g is

at

2.5

% g

rade a

nd

the

hill

up

tow

ard

s H

igh

wa

y 26

is a

t 6.1

%. T

he a

lignm

ent cro

ss

Barl

ow

Cre

ek, C

N r

ailw

ay

and H

igh

wa

y 26 o

n a

n

appro

xim

ate

ly 2

00 –

30

0 m

ete

r lo

ng s

tructu

re into

a r

ou

nda

bou

t in

terc

ha

nge.

Co

nsid

era

tio

n w

ill n

eed t

o b

e t

aken in

to a

ccount fo

r th

e p

roxim

ity

of

the

airport

and

the

requ

ired

cle

ara

nces w

ith r

eg

ard

s to t

he

str

uctu

re a

nd lig

htin

g h

eig

hts

.

Rep

lacem

en

t o

f N

ort

h S

tar

Inte

rch

an

ge w

ith

new

In

terc

ha

ng

e

an

d R

ou

nd

ab

ou

t R

am

p In

ters

ecti

on

s

New

In

terc

ha

ng

e w

ith

Ro

un

da

bo

ut

Ram

p In

ters

ecti

on

s a

nd

a 2

00

-300 m

ete

r

str

uctu

re o

ver

Barl

ow

Cre

ek a

nd

CN

Railw

ay.

New

400 m

ete

r B

rid

ge o

ver

the

Qu

esn

el R

iver

Sig

nific

an

t pro

pert

y acqu

isitio

ns w

ould

be r

eq

uire

d a

s t

his

route

follo

ws a

n a

lignm

ent th

roug

h

the ind

ustr

ial s

ite o

f C

arib

oo P

ulp

an

d P

aper

(on s

om

e e

xis

ting inte

rnal r

oads)

an

d thro

ugh

ind

ustr

ial l

ands o

n th

e n

ort

h s

ide

of

the Q

uesne

l riv

er.

G

iven t

he inte

rnal ro

ad n

etw

ork

on the

Carib

oo P

ulp

and P

ap

er

site s

erv

es a

variety

of

private

tra

nsport

atio

n f

unctio

ns (

e.g

. he

avy

equ

ipm

ent and

machin

ery

move

ments

), there

is p

ote

ntia

l th

at a t

hird

str

uctu

re w

ould

be

require

d to

main

tain

gra

de s

epara

tion b

etw

een

a p

ub

lic r

ight of

wa

y a

nd p

riva

te u

ses.

This

alig

nm

ent, a

long w

ith O

ptio

n A

R-2

b s

up

port

s turn

ing m

ove

ments

for

WB

-24 d

esig

n

veh

icle

s.

Op

tion

AR

-4: E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

Mo

bilit

y

This

optio

n s

up

port

s r

eg

ion

al c

on

nectivity

an

d w

ould

reduce tra

vel t

imes f

or

drive

rs

passin

g t

hro

ugh Q

uesne

l w

itho

ut sto

ppin

g;

ho

wever,

only

a s

mall

perc

enta

ge o

f tr

ips

are

actu

ally

pass-t

hro

ug

h tri

ps;

Ben

efits

to h

igh

wa

y m

obili

ty w

ould

be

observ

ed

as a

n e

stim

ate

of

8,1

00 v

pd d

ay

could

be r

ed

istr

ibute

d o

nto

th

e n

ew

ro

ute

by

20

42 u

nd

er

the 0

.5%

backgro

und g

row

th r

ate

,

as s

ho

wn in F

igu

re 3

.5;

While

this

altern

ate

route

would

becom

e the n

ew

Hig

hw

ay

97 a

lignm

ent, o

nly

a p

ort

ion

of

the e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic in

the

do

wnto

wn w

ould

be r

edis

trib

ute

d t

o th

is n

ew

route

;

Safe

ty

Safe

ty issues a

t in

ters

ectio

ns in

do

wn

tow

n Q

uesn

el a

nd a

ccess m

anagem

ent is

sues in

the T

wo

Mile

Fla

t are

a w

ou

ld b

e p

art

ially

alle

via

ted; b

ut

not com

ple

tely

elim

inate

d;

Hea

vy

vehic

le tra

ffic

ente

ring Q

uesn

el f

rom

west of

the F

raser

Riv

er

would

still

require

usin

g F

ront

Str

eet

an

d/o

r th

e Q

uesne

l Riv

er

an

d Q

uesnel O

verh

ead

brid

ges; th

us n

ot

all

he

avy

veh

icle

impacts

in the d

ow

nto

wn

could

be e

limin

ate

d;

So

cia

l / C

om

mu

nit

y

There

are

no n

ota

ble

impro

vem

ents

or

chang

es to p

ed

estr

ian a

nd b

icyc

le c

ond

itio

ns

with

this

option

;

This

optio

n is

not su

pport

ed b

y th

e C

ity

of

Quesnel as it

does n

ot d

ivert

industr

ial tr

aff

ic fro

m W

est of

the d

ow

nto

wn

(W

est

Quesnel) o

ff o

f F

ront

Str

eet;

Fig

ure

3.5

: F

ore

cast

Usag

e o

f th

e N

ort

h-S

outh

Bypass (

2042

Hori

zon,

0.5

% B

ackgro

und

Gro

wth

)

If the M

inis

try

were

to im

ple

ment th

is o

ption a

nd s

eek to

relo

cate

the

Hig

hw

ay

97 r

oute

onto

the N

ort

h-S

outh

Byp

ass,

the C

ity

wo

uld

be u

nw

illin

g t

o take o

wn

ers

hip

of

the e

xis

ting

hig

hw

ay

assets

inclu

din

g t

he Q

uesne

l Ove

rhe

ad a

nd Q

uesne

l

Riv

er

Bri

dg

e;

Oth

er

While

this

option

wou

ld r

ealig

n H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

round

the

east

sid

e o

f Q

uesn

el,

the Q

uesn

el R

iver

Bri

dg

e a

nd Q

uesn

el

Ove

rhe

ad s

tructu

res w

ou

ld n

eed

to b

e r

eta

ined f

or

loca

l road

netw

ork

connectivity;

th

us,

rehab

ilita

tio

n o

r re

pla

cem

ent of

the

exis

ting s

tructu

res w

ould

still

be r

eq

uire

d;

Sim

ilar

to O

ption A

R-2

(a&

b),

the g

eote

chn

ical c

onditio

ns o

f

this

route

are

challe

ng

ing,

as d

escribe

d f

urt

her

within

the

geote

chnic

al r

evi

ew

com

ple

ted b

y A

med F

oste

r W

heele

r

En

viro

nm

ent and I

nfr

astr

uctu

re,

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

F;

The a

lignm

ent of

this

op

tion tra

vers

es the Q

uesne

l Riv

er

Slid

e

Com

ple

x that

is lo

ca

ted o

n t

he n

ort

h s

ide o

f th

e Q

uesn

el R

iver

cro

ssin

g;

wh

ich is

a k

now

n g

eote

chnic

al h

aza

rd. T

hus,

constr

ucta

bili

ty o

f th

is o

ptio

n m

ay

be s

eve

rely

restr

icte

d;

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

AR

-4

The N

ort

h-S

outh

Byp

ass is

a r

evis

ited s

olu

tion t

hat

has b

ee

n e

xp

lore

d m

an

y tim

es p

rior

to th

is s

tud

y. T

his

op

tion

do

es n

ot

pro

vid

e a

so

lutio

n to r

educin

g

all

pass-t

hro

ugh h

ea

vy

veh

icle

s f

rom

Fro

nt S

treet

as h

eavy

trucks f

rom

West Q

uesnel a

re u

nlik

ely

to u

se th

is a

ltern

ate

route

. T

his

op

tion h

as s

om

e m

ajo

r

geote

chnic

al c

ha

llen

ges th

at cou

ld f

urt

her

incre

ase c

onstr

uctio

n c

osts

pen

din

g f

urt

her

site

inve

stig

ations. W

hile

these

challe

nges c

ould

be a

ddre

ssed,

this

route

is n

ot su

pp

ort

ed b

y th

e C

ity

of

Quesnel and

it w

ould

not

be p

ossib

le f

or

the

MoT

I to

de

volv

e t

he e

xis

ting Q

uesne

l Riv

er

Bri

dg

e, Q

uesnel O

verh

ead

and h

igh

wa

y a

lignm

ent th

rough d

ow

nto

wn

an

d T

wo M

ile F

lat

are

a. T

hus, th

e M

oT

I w

ou

ld incur

respo

nsib

ility

for

repla

cin

g the

exis

ting b

ridges, a

nd f

or

build

ing t

his

byp

ass r

oute

that a

lrea

dy

has a

conceptu

al p

roje

ct cost

of

$426

Mill

ion. A

s a

resu

lt, t

he c

ost

of

this

pro

ject

wou

ld b

e p

rohib

itive

com

pare

d t

o

the b

enefits

that co

uld

be a

chie

ved.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

AR

-4:

$425

,97

9,4

19

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

R-4

:

S

cre

en o

ut fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

an

d im

ple

menta

tion.

A s

et of

6 im

pro

vem

ent

options w

ere

identified f

or

Hig

hw

ay

97

within

Stu

dy

Segm

ent A

– S

outh

Quesnel, a

s p

revio

usly

defined

fro

m the

inte

rsection o

f B

asalt R

oad

/ H

igh

wa

y 9

7 to

Racin

g

Road /

Hig

hw

ay

97. T

hese

options w

ere

de

velo

ped t

o

addre

ss the

exis

ting

transport

atio

n c

ha

lleng

es

and issues id

entified f

rom

the e

xis

ting c

ond

itio

ns

assessm

ent and a

s d

efine

d in

the p

roble

m d

efiniti

on

sta

tem

ent. In

sum

mary

, th

e is

sues inclu

de d

ifficult

geom

etr

ic c

onstr

ain

ts w

ith t

he inte

rface o

f fr

onta

ge r

oa

ds

and inte

rsectio

ns w

ith H

igh

wa

y 97,

and

hig

her

tha

n

ave

rage c

olli

sio

n r

ate

s a

t ke

y in

ters

ectio

ns inclu

din

g M

ap

le

Drive

, C

edar

Avenu

e, a

nd R

acin

g R

oa

d.

Ov

era

ll S

ou

th Q

uesn

el

Acces

s M

an

ag

em

en

t S

olu

tio

n

A s

um

mary

gra

phic

of

impro

vem

ent

Options A

1,

A2

, A

3

and A

4 is p

rovi

ded in F

igu

re 3

.6 a

nd

Fig

ure

3.7

(at ri

ght)

,

and is a

lso

pro

vided in A

pp

en

dix

G. T

hese ind

ivid

ual

options f

orm

an o

vera

ll access m

anagem

ent

solu

tio

n f

or

the S

outh

Quesn

el are

a a

nd s

hou

ld b

e d

evelo

pe

d in

colla

bora

tio

n w

ith t

he C

ity

of

Quesnel. T

hese o

ptions m

ay

be p

hased a

nd

imple

mente

d o

ver

time.

In a

dditio

n to t

he a

ccess m

anag

em

ent options, th

e C

ity

of

Quesne

l has id

entified a

ne

ed f

or

an o

ff-h

ighw

ay

truck p

ark

ing a

rea in t

he S

ou

th Q

uesn

el are

a

to r

em

ove

he

avy

vehic

les f

rom

park

ing o

n t

he h

igh

wa

y should

er.

T

he C

ity

ma

y pu

rsue this

pro

ject

and

seek to c

olla

bora

te w

ith th

e M

oT

I as the p

riori

ty f

or

this

pro

ject

incre

ases.

Fig

ure

3.6

: O

ption A

1 a

nd

Optio

n A

2 A

ccess M

anag

em

ent

from

Basa

lt R

oad t

o M

ap

le D

rive

F

igure

:

Option A

1 a

nd

Optio

n A

2 A

ccess M

anag

em

ent

from

Basa

lt R

oad t

oM

ap

le D

rive

Fig

ure

3.7

: O

ption A

3 A

cce

ss M

anag

em

ent fr

om

Ce

da

r A

venu

e to J

unip

er

Rd

3.5.

4.1

Opt

ion

A1: B

asal

t Roa

d an

d Go

ok R

oad

Acce

ss M

anag

emen

t (2-

Lane

)

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

There

are

know

n d

esig

n issues tha

t exis

t on H

igh

wa

y 9

7 b

etw

ee

n B

asalt

Road a

nd

Ma

ple

Dri

ve.

The h

igh

wa

y fr

onta

ge r

oads p

rovi

de m

inim

al

veh

icle

qu

euin

g s

tora

ge a

t hig

hw

ay

inte

rsections a

nd inhib

its tru

cks fro

m

makin

g turn

ing m

ove

ments

with

out

over-

trackin

g in

to a

dja

cent la

nes a

nd

the r

oa

d s

ho

uld

er.

F

urt

her,

the h

igh

wa

y is

4 lanes w

ide o

n t

he s

egm

ents

both

nort

h a

nd s

outh

of

this

stu

dy

segm

ent, w

hic

h th

is o

ption d

oes n

ot

addre

ss.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n m

ain

tain

s a

2-la

ne m

ain

line c

ross-s

ectio

n o

n H

igh

wa

y 97 a

nd

invo

lves a

ccess m

anagem

ent

impro

vem

ents

inclu

din

g the f

ollo

win

g:

Inte

rse

cti

on

Im

pro

vem

en

ts:

Hig

hw

ay

97

an

d B

asalt R

oad (

Agate

Ave

) -

Pro

tecte

d ‘T

’

configura

tion s

erv

ing left

tu

rnin

g m

ove

ments

on e

ast le

g, a

nd r

ight-

in / r

ight-

out

only

move

ments

on w

est

leg; a

nd,

Hig

hw

ay

97

/ G

ook R

oa

d (

Lust R

oad)

– L

eft

-in t

urn

re

str

ictio

n

configura

tion s

erv

ing left

tu

rn-in m

ove

ments

and r

ight-

in / r

ight-

ou

t

only

move

ments

on b

oth

sid

e s

treet

legs;

Lo

cal C

on

necti

on

Im

pro

vem

en

ts:

Incre

ase thro

at sto

rage len

gth

betw

een t

he f

ronta

ge r

oad / s

ide

str

eet in

ters

ectio

ns a

nd th

e s

ide

-str

eet

/ H

igh

wa

y 97 in

ters

ectio

ns

to s

upp

ort

desig

n v

ehic

le t

urn

ing m

ove

ments

;

Conn

ect F

lint R

oad

to B

ery

l S

tree

t to

im

pro

ve b

ackage r

oad

connection;

Clo

se J

ade F

ron

tag

e R

oad a

ccess a

t G

ook R

oad to

use M

aple

Heig

hts

Dri

ve a

s b

ackage r

oad c

onnecting t

o M

ap

le D

rive;

Clo

se s

ub

-sta

nd

ard

fro

nta

ge r

oad a

ccess a

t H

igh

wa

y 97 / R

ed

Will

ow

Ro

ad (

Flin

t R

oad)

inte

rsectio

n;

Hig

hw

ay 9

7

Pro

tecte

d T

Inte

rse

cti

on

Jad

e R

oad

Left

-in

On

ly

Restr

icti

on

Bery

l S

treet

New

Backag

e R

oad

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n:

The p

rote

cte

d ‘T

’ in

ters

ection a

t B

asa

lt R

oa

d / H

igh

wa

y 9

7 h

as b

ee

n s

ele

cte

d t

o s

upport

the h

igher

turn

ing v

olu

mes a

ccessin

g the e

ast le

g o

f th

e

inte

rsection w

ith m

inim

al i

mpacts

to t

he lo

w t

urn

ing v

olu

mes a

ccess

ing th

e w

est

leg. L

eft

turn

-out

vehic

les o

n the

west le

g a

re r

ed

istr

ibu

ted a

lon

g th

e

fronta

ge r

oa

d c

on

nections t

o the

tra

ffic

sig

nal at M

ap

le D

rive

. T

he f

ronta

ge r

oad

inte

rsections o

n B

asalt R

oa

d c

onsis

ting o

f Jade R

oad w

est of

Hig

hw

ay

97 a

nd

Jasper

Roa

ds e

ast of

Hig

hw

ay

97 a

re r

ea

ligne

d 2

5 m

ete

rs b

ack f

rom

the s

ide

-

str

eet / fr

onta

ge r

oa

d inte

rsectio

ns t

o s

up

port

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

ehic

le turn

ing

move

ments

.

The le

ft-i

n turn

restr

ictio

n a

t G

ook R

oad / H

igh

wa

y 9

7 s

upport

s h

igher

left

turn

-in

volu

mes a

ccessin

g b

oth

legs o

f th

e inte

rsection. L

eft

turn

-out

vehic

les o

n t

he

west le

g a

re r

edis

trib

ute

d a

long t

he M

ap

le H

eig

hts

Dri

ve b

ackage r

oa

d

connection t

o th

e tra

ffic

sig

nal at M

ap

le D

rive. L

eft

turn

-out

veh

icle

s o

n t

he e

ast

leg a

re r

ed

istr

ibute

d o

n the

fro

nta

ge r

oa

d n

etw

ork

to th

e P

rote

cte

d ‘T

’ in

ters

ectio

n

at B

asalt

Roa

d. T

he f

ronta

ge r

oa

d inte

rsections o

n G

ook R

oad a

t Jade R

oa

d

west of

Hig

hw

ay

97 a

nd J

asper

Roa

ds e

ast of

Hig

hw

ay

97 a

re r

ealig

ned 2

5

mete

rs b

ack

fro

m the e

xis

ting s

ide

-str

eet / fr

onta

ge r

oad inte

rsections to

supp

ort

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

ehic

le t

urn

ing m

ove

ments

.

Op

tion

A1 E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

:

Sup

port

s turn

ing m

ove

ments

for

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

eh

icle

s;

Main

tain

s n

etw

ork

connectivi

ty w

hile

im

pro

vin

g a

ccess m

anagem

ent;

Access r

estr

ictio

ns a

nd a

ccele

ratio

n / d

ecele

ration im

pro

vem

ents

incre

ase inte

rse

ctio

n s

afe

ty;

Left

-out an

d le

ft-in turn

s c

an

be m

ade for

at le

ast on

e in

ters

ectio

n, w

ith th

e fro

nta

ge

road n

etw

ork

support

ing r

edis

trib

ute

d le

ft turn

s w

here

necessary

;

Desirab

le m

obili

ty s

erv

ice c

an b

e m

ain

tain

ed

with th

e 2

-lane o

ptio

n o

ver

the 2

5 y

ear

hori

zon w

itho

ut th

e n

eed

for

additio

nal th

rou

gh la

ne

s;

Wid

enin

g the

thro

at le

ng

th b

etw

een f

ronta

ge r

oad / s

ide s

treet

inte

rsections a

nd t

he h

igh

wa

y re

quires p

ropert

y acq

uis

itio

n;

Does n

ot supp

ort

4-l

an

ing

as the f

ronta

ge r

oads w

ould

ne

ed t

o b

e r

elo

cate

d a

nd w

ould

req

uire s

ubseq

uent

reconstr

uctio

n;

Does n

ot ad

dre

ss e

xis

ting s

afe

ty is

sue w

ith H

igh

wa

y 97 tra

ffic

tra

velli

ng f

rom

adja

cent 4

-lan

e w

ide s

egm

ents

to th

is s

hort

2-l

ane

segm

ent;

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

A1:

Optio

n A

1 p

rovi

des a

pote

ntia

l solu

tion t

o a

ddre

ss the e

xis

ting a

ccess m

anagem

ent is

sues in t

he s

tud

y are

a.

Ho

we

ver,

the f

ata

l fla

w w

ith this

option is tha

t it d

oes a

ddre

ss the e

xis

ting s

afe

ty issues o

f hig

hw

ay

traff

ic

trave

llin

g o

n a

4-l

an

e h

igh

wa

y do

wn

to a

2-l

ane

hig

hw

ay,

and b

ack to a

4-l

ane h

igh

wa

y in

bo

th d

irections. T

his

flaw

co

ntr

ibute

s t

o s

afe

ty issues in

clu

din

g v

ehic

le w

ea

ving, sp

eed d

iffe

rentia

ls a

nd p

oor

dri

ver

exp

ecta

ncy

/

beha

vio

ur.

T

hus,

it re

com

mended that

this

option

be s

cre

ened

-out.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

A1:

$14,4

87,2

16

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

1:

S

cre

en

-Out

3.5.

4.2

Opt

ion

A2: B

asal

t Roa

d an

d Go

ok R

oad

Acce

ss M

anag

emen

t (4-

Lane

)

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

The s

am

e is

sues id

entif

ied f

or

Optio

n A

1 a

re c

onsis

ten

t w

ith O

ption A

2.

In

add

ition, H

igh

wa

y 9

7 is

alre

ad

y 4

-la

ne

d to t

he s

outh

at

Dra

gon L

ake R

oa

d a

nd

to th

e n

ort

h a

t M

aple

Dri

ve;

thus, a

ny

impro

vem

ents

to

this

section o

f H

igh

wa

y

97 s

ho

uld

co

nsid

er

4 lan

es a

s p

art

of

a lon

g-t

erm

solu

tion.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n w

ide

ns the e

xis

ting

2-la

ne m

ain

line c

ross-s

ectio

n o

n H

igh

wa

y 97 t

o

a 4

-la

ne s

ection

betw

ee

n M

aple

Dri

ve a

nd

Basalt

Roa

d. It a

lso inclu

des th

e

access m

anagem

ent im

pro

vem

ents

as d

escribe

d in O

ptio

n A

1 inclu

din

g t

he

follo

win

g:

Inte

rse

cti

on

Im

pro

vem

en

ts:

Hig

hw

ay

97

an

d B

asalt R

oad (

Agate

Ave

) -

Pro

tecte

d ‘T

’ configura

tion

serv

ing left

turn

ing m

ove

ments

on

east

leg

, an

d r

ight-

in / r

ight-

ou

t on

ly

move

ments

on w

est

leg

; an

d,

Va

rian

t 1:

Hig

hw

ay

97 / G

ook R

oad (

Lust

Roa

d)

– L

eft

-in turn

restr

ictio

n c

onfigura

tio

n s

erv

ing left

turn

-in m

ove

ments

and r

ight-

in /

right-

out o

nly

move

ments

on b

oth

sid

e s

treet

legs;

Or,

Vari

an

t 2:

Hig

hw

ay

97

/ G

ook R

oad (

Lust R

oad)

– T

raff

ic s

ignal w

ith

full

turn

ing m

ove

ments

onto

an

d o

ff H

igh

wa

y 97 t

o s

ide

-str

eets

;

Lo

cal C

on

necti

on

Im

pro

vem

en

ts:

Incre

ase thro

at sto

rage len

gth

betw

een t

he f

ronta

ge r

oad / s

ide s

tree

t

inte

rsections a

nd t

he s

ide

-str

eet / H

igh

wa

y 9

7 inte

rsections t

o s

upp

ort

desig

n v

eh

icle

tu

rnin

g m

ovem

ents

;

Conn

ect F

lint R

oad

to B

ery

l S

tree

t to

im

pro

ve b

ackage r

oad

connection;

Clo

se J

ade F

ron

tag

e R

oad a

ccess a

t G

ook R

oad to

use M

aple

He

igh

ts

Drive

as b

ackage r

oad c

on

nectin

g to

Ma

ple

Dri

ve;

Hig

hw

ay 9

7

Jad

e R

oad

Pro

tecte

d T

Inte

rse

cti

on

Left

-in

On

ly

Restr

icti

on

Hig

hw

ay 9

7

Fu

ll M

ov

em

en

t

Tra

ffic

Sig

nal

Hig

hw

ay 9

7

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n:

In a

dditio

n to t

he inte

rsectio

n a

nd a

ccess m

anagem

ent desig

n c

onsid

era

tio

ns

liste

d u

nder

Optio

n A

1, th

is 4

-lan

e d

esig

n w

as d

evelo

ped in c

onsid

era

tio

n o

f th

e

regio

na

l Cari

bo

o C

onnecto

r 4-lan

ing p

roje

ct th

at

will

eventu

ally

pro

vid

e f

our

contin

uous tra

vel la

nes o

n H

igh

wa

y 97

betw

ee

n C

ach

e C

reek a

nd P

rince

Georg

e. T

his

option inclu

des a

varia

nt im

pro

vem

ent a

t G

ook R

oad / H

igh

wa

y 9

7.

Inste

ad

of

a left

-in turn

restr

ictio

n, a f

ull

move

ment tr

aff

ic s

igna

l w

as in

vestigate

d

follo

win

g f

ee

dback r

eceiv

ed b

y th

e C

ity

of

Quesnel an

d the

Cari

boo

Reg

ional

Dis

tric

t th

at le

ft turn

outs

ou

t of

Gook R

oad n

eed t

o b

e m

ain

tain

ed to

supp

ort

busin

esses a

nd r

esid

ences. A

tra

ffic

sig

na

l is

warr

ante

d b

ased o

n p

rese

nt d

ay

traff

ic v

olu

mes, as d

ocum

ente

d in A

pp

en

dix

K.

4-lan

ing o

f H

igh

wa

y 9

7 b

etw

een M

aple

Dri

ve a

nd B

asalt

Road

requ

ires th

at th

e

fronta

ge r

oa

ds a

dja

ce

nt to

Hig

hw

ay

97

inclu

din

g J

ade

Road,

Jasper

Ro

ad,

and

Che

w R

oad

be p

ush

ed o

utw

ard

to m

ain

tain

the

exis

tin

g d

itch d

rain

age a

rea a

long

the h

igh

wa

y corr

idor.

F

urt

her,

the c

onceptu

al d

esig

n f

or

this

option d

oes n

ot

inclu

de a

cle

ar

zone,

wh

ich

wou

ld r

equire

an a

dditio

n 3

-4 m

ete

rs o

f offset

betw

een t

he h

igh

wa

y sh

ould

er

an

d f

ronta

ge r

oa

d.

Op

tion

A2 E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

:

This

optio

n e

xte

nds th

e e

xis

ting 4

-la

nin

g f

rom

Maple

Drive

to t

he r

ece

ntly

com

ple

ted 4

-lan

ed s

ection a

t D

rag

on L

ake R

oad;

Tra

ffic

volu

mes u

p to the 2

5-y

ear

hori

zon d

o n

ot re

quire

4 la

nes o

f tr

aff

ic to m

ain

tain

desirab

le m

obili

ty p

erf

orm

ance; ho

we

ver,

with 4

lanes p

rovid

ed

to th

e s

outh

an

d n

ort

h o

f th

is o

ption,

4 lanes is s

upp

ort

ed to

pro

vid

e a

consis

tent d

esig

n t

o m

ain

tain

safe

dri

ve

r expecta

tions a

nd b

eh

avio

ur;

Wid

enin

g t

he

hig

hw

ay

to 4

lan

es a

nd

wid

en

ing t

he

thro

at

length

betw

ee

n f

ron

tage

roa

d /

sid

e s

treet

inte

rsectio

ns a

nd t

he

hig

hw

ay

requ

ires

sig

nific

an

tly

more

pro

pert

y acquis

itio

n f

rom

adja

cent pro

pert

ies;

The in

cre

ased s

etb

ack b

etw

een t

he h

igh

wa

y and

fro

nta

ge r

oads s

up

port

s turn

ing

move

ments

for

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

eh

icle

s;

The c

om

bin

ation o

f tu

rnin

g m

ove

ment contr

ols

main

tain

s n

etw

ork

connectiv

ity

wh

ile im

pro

ving a

ccess m

anag

em

ent;

Incre

ased s

afe

ty w

ith t

he t

ypes o

f in

ters

ectio

n d

esig

ns s

ele

cte

d a

nd p

rovi

sio

n o

f decele

ratio

n a

nd a

cce

lera

tio

n la

nes;

The le

ft-in r

estr

iction v

ari

an

t fo

r G

ook R

oad / H

igh

wa

y 97 m

ain

tain

s h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic f

low

; ho

wever,

it r

educes d

irect con

nectivity

onto

th

e h

igh

wa

y;

The tra

ffic

sig

na

l option for

Gook R

oad / H

igh

wa

y 97 m

ain

tain

s d

irect conn

ectivi

ty o

nto

the

hig

hw

ay,

but a

dds s

om

e tra

ffic

de

lay

to h

igh

wa

y th

rou

gh

traff

ic.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

A2:

Optio

n A

2 o

ffers

a 4

-la

ne s

olu

tion

to a

ddre

ss t

he s

am

e e

xis

ting a

ccess m

anagem

ent

issues a

s O

ption

A1

pro

poses t

o a

ddre

ss.

Giv

en t

he s

imila

rities a

mong t

hese t

wo o

ptions,

it is r

ecom

mended t

hat

this

optio

n b

e

advanced

to t

he M

AE

for

furt

her

eva

luation

.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved S

om

ew

ha

t

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

A2 V

ari

an

t 1:

$22,2

60,0

23

Op

tio

n A

2 V

ari

an

t 2:

$22,2

98,2

85

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

2:

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n

3.5.

4.3

Opt

ion

A3: J

unip

er a

nd Ja

de F

ront

age

Road

Net

wor

k Im

prov

emen

ts

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

Junip

er

Roa

d inte

rsects

with L

arc

h A

venu

e a

nd p

rovid

es m

inim

al v

ehic

le

sto

rage f

or

vehic

les turn

ing

onto

the

hig

hw

ay

and

tru

cks o

ver-

track o

n

the s

ho

uld

er

and into

adja

cent

lan

es. S

imila

rly,

veh

icle

sto

rage

an

d tru

ck

ove

r-tr

ackin

g o

ccurs

on t

he

west sid

e o

f th

e inte

rsectio

n w

ith A

sh

Avenu

e inte

rsecting C

edar

Avenu

e b

efo

re H

igh

wa

y 9

7. T

hese is

sues

may

contr

ibute

to t

he h

ighe

r th

an a

vera

ge

colli

sio

n r

ate

an

d c

olli

sio

n

seve

rity

sta

tistic

s a

t th

e C

edar

Ave

nue /

Hig

hw

ay

97 in

ters

ectio

n.

The

right-

in / r

ight-

out access to

Junip

er

Ro

ad d

oes n

ot h

ave a

decele

ration

lan

e (

on

ly a

tap

er)

and r

eq

uires d

rive

rs t

o d

rastic

ally

reduce s

peed t

o

turn

off

the h

igh

wa

y.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n inclu

des n

ew

ro

ads, im

pro

vem

ents

to th

e f

ronta

ge r

oad

netw

ork

betw

een M

ap

le D

rive

and J

unip

er

Ro

ad a

nd t

he c

losure

of

the

Junip

er

Roa

d r

ight-

in / r

ight-

out access to H

igh

wa

y 97

. T

he

impro

vem

ents

inclu

de:

Clo

sure

of

the s

ub

-sta

ndard

rig

ht-

in /

rig

ht-

out

access a

t Jun

iper

Road

/ H

igh

wa

y 97

;

Clo

sure

of

the n

ort

h leg a

t th

e J

un

iper

Roa

d / L

arc

h A

venue

(C

ed

ar

Ave

nue)

inte

rsection w

ith a

ham

merh

ead

co

nfigura

tion

;

Clo

sure

of

Ash A

venue

at

Cedar

Avenu

e;

Realig

nm

ent of

Junip

er

Ro

ad w

ith a

ne

w r

oa

d b

ehin

d e

xis

ting b

usin

esses to f

orm

a n

ew

inte

rsection w

ith L

arc

h A

venue (

Ce

dar

Avenu

e);

Cul-d

e-s

ac J

ade R

oad o

n t

he w

est sid

e o

f H

igh

wa

y 9

7 b

efo

re M

aple

Dri

ve (

in s

up

port

of

the b

ackage r

oad c

onnection o

n M

aple

He

ights

Dri

ve).

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n:

The c

losure

of

the r

ight-

in / r

ight-

out access a

t Jun

iper

Road /

Hig

hw

ay

97 a

lso a

ssum

es the

rem

ova

l of

the s

ub

-sta

nd

ard

rig

ht-

turn

decele

ration t

ap

er.

C

onsid

era

tion s

ho

uld

be g

ive

n to

whe

ther

to r

em

ove

the a

ccess c

om

ple

tely

and r

ep

lace w

ith

sta

ndard

ditc

h d

rain

age,

or

to m

ain

tain

th

e e

xis

ting

pa

ved a

ccess f

or

em

erg

ency

situations a

nd/o

r oth

er

specia

l uses (

e.g

. sp

eed r

adar)

only

. W

hic

heve

r

New

Backag

e R

oad

Ham

me

rhead

Clo

su

re

New

Cu

l-

de-S

ac

desig

n c

onsid

era

tion

is m

ade, th

e c

oncre

te r

ais

ed m

edia

n s

hou

ld b

e r

em

ove

d f

or

safe

ty a

nd a

ph

ysic

al barr

ier

pro

vid

ed t

o s

epara

te H

igh

wa

y 97

fro

m

Junip

er

Roa

d w

ith e

ither

a d

itch o

r concre

te r

oadsid

e b

arr

ier.

Clo

sin

g t

he n

ort

h leg

of

the J

unip

er

Roa

d / L

arc

h A

ven

ue inte

rsection a

nd

realig

nin

g J

unip

er

Road w

ith a

ne

w r

oa

d c

on

nection b

ehin

d t

he e

xis

ting

busin

esses w

ill r

ed

uce turn

ing m

ove

ment conflic

ts, im

pro

ve s

afe

ty a

nd s

up

port

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

ehic

le t

urn

ing m

ove

ments

. W

hile

a c

ul-

de-s

ac c

onfigura

tion

was e

xplo

red f

or

the

clo

se

d e

nd o

f Junip

er

Roa

d, th

is t

ype

of

desig

n w

ould

have

impacts

to the p

ropert

y a

nd

the larg

e w

are

house b

uild

ing o

n th

e n

ort

heast

corn

er

of

the inte

rsection.

The c

losure

of

the n

ort

h le

g o

f th

e A

sh

Ave

nue /

Ce

dar

Avenu

e inte

rsection

rem

ove

s the s

ub

-sta

ndard

access d

esig

n t

hat curr

ently

results in

turn

ing

conflic

ts a

nd o

ver

trackin

g o

f heavy

vehic

les. T

his

clo

sure

wou

ld h

ave

a

min

imal i

mpact on c

onn

ectivi

ty a

s r

esid

ential pro

pert

y o

wners

can c

ontinue

to

use A

sh A

ven

ue,

Sh

ort

Ave

nue a

nd/o

r E

lm S

treet to

co

nnect to

Ce

dar

Ave

nue

and o

nto

Hig

hw

ay

97.

Op

tion

A3 E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

:

Impro

ves s

afe

ty c

ond

itions a

t C

edar

Avenu

e / H

igh

wa

y 97, a k

now

n h

igh

colli

sio

n r

ate

an

d h

igh c

olli

sio

n s

everity

locatio

n,

by

reducin

g t

urn

ing

move

ment conflic

ts w

ith m

inim

ally

spaced f

ronta

ge r

oad inte

rsections;

Access m

anagem

ent allo

ws turn

ing m

ove

ments

and n

etw

ork

connectivi

ty t

o b

e m

ain

tain

ed;

Impro

ved s

afe

ty o

n H

igh

wa

y 9

7 w

ith r

em

ova

l of

sub

-sta

ndard

rig

ht-

in/r

ight-

out

at

Junip

er

Roa

d / H

igh

wa

y 9

7;

Ham

merh

ead tre

atm

ent on J

unip

er

Roa

d is

less d

esir

able

for

em

erg

ency

vehic

le m

ove

ments

;

The in

cre

ased s

etb

ack b

etw

een t

he h

igh

wa

y and

fro

nta

ge r

oads s

up

port

s turn

ing

move

ments

for

WB

-24 d

esig

n v

eh

icle

s.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

A3:

Optio

n A

3 o

ffers

a g

ood lo

ng

-term

solu

tion f

or

impro

vin

g a

ccess a

nd s

afe

ty in t

he v

icin

ity

of

the C

edar

Avenu

e /

Hig

hw

ay

97 inte

rsectio

n. It is

recom

mended th

at th

is o

ption b

e a

dva

nced t

o th

e im

ple

menta

tion p

lan a

s a

long

-term

impro

vem

ent in

conju

nctio

n w

ith e

ither

Op

tion A

1 o

r O

ptio

n A

2.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

A3:

$1,7

26,8

37

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

3:

A

dva

nce t

o Im

ple

menta

tion

Pla

n

3.5.

4.4

Opt

ion

A4: S

igna

l Opt

imiz

atio

n at

Map

le D

rive

and

Ced

ar A

venu

e In

ters

ectio

ns

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

The in

ters

ection o

f M

aple

Drive

and

Ce

dar

Ave

nue

with H

igh

wa

y 97 e

xp

erie

nce

hig

her

than a

vera

ge

colli

sio

n r

ate

s th

an o

ther

locatio

ns in

the p

rovin

ce

. M

ore

specific

ally

, le

ft turn

co

llisio

n t

ypes a

re m

ore

pro

nounced a

t th

e t

wo inte

rsectio

ns.

The d

esig

n o

f th

ese inte

rsectio

ns c

urr

ently

meets

th

e r

ura

l desig

n c

rite

ria f

or

Hig

hw

ay

97

in the

South

Quesn

el A

rea. B

oth

inte

rsectio

ns h

ave

advance

d w

arn

ing

flashers

(A

WF

) lig

hts

in a

dvance o

f both

inte

rsections a

nd in b

oth

directions o

f tr

avel.

Pro

tective p

lus p

erm

issiv

e p

hasin

g f

or

the

left

turn

move

ments

is p

rovi

ded,

wh

ich

giv

en t

he h

igh r

ate

s o

f ve

hic

le s

pee

ds o

n t

he h

igh

wa

y, m

ay

be

contr

ibuting

to t

he

hig

her

colli

sio

n r

ate

s.

Add

ition

ally

, m

ore

than 4

00

stu

den

ts a

nd

teach

ers

at

Quesnel Junio

r S

ch

oo

l are

relo

cating

to t

he M

ap

le D

rive M

idd

le S

choo

l in

Marc

h o

f 2018. G

iven t

he p

roxim

ity

of

the c

om

merc

ial s

erv

ices o

n the e

ast sid

e o

f H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

nd th

e s

choo

l on

the

we

st

sid

e o

f th

e h

igh

wa

y, a

n incre

ase in c

ross-h

igh

wa

y pe

destr

ian tra

ffic

is e

xpecte

d.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n involv

es r

e-t

imin

g th

e tra

ffic

sig

na

ls a

t b

oth

inte

rsectio

ns t

o p

rovi

de h

ighe

r le

vels

of

safe

ty w

hile

main

tain

th

e g

ood m

obili

ty le

vels

of

serv

ice.

Re-t

imin

g m

easure

s m

ay

inclu

de

Incre

asin

g th

e y

ello

w a

nd

all-

red t

imin

gs f

or

each p

hase

;

Optim

izin

g th

e tim

e d

ela

y b

etw

ee

n th

e A

WF

lights

and t

he tra

ffic

sig

na

ls;

Rem

ovi

ng t

he p

erm

issiv

e p

hase o

f le

ft turn

move

ments

off

the h

igh

wa

y an

d p

rovi

din

g o

nly

a p

rote

ctive p

hase f

or

the left

turn

s;

Optim

ize p

edestr

ian p

hase

s a

cro

ss H

igh

wa

y 97 a

nd s

ide

-str

eets

(M

aple

Dri

ve a

nd C

ed

ar

Ave

nue);

Op

tion

A4 E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

:

Impro

ves h

igh

wa

y an

d loca

l sid

e-s

treet tr

aff

ic c

onditio

ns;

Main

tain

s e

xis

ting

mobili

ty leve

ls w

hile

pro

vided

incre

ase tim

e-s

epara

tion o

f ty

pic

ally

hig

her-

seve

rity

turn

ing

move

ments

;

Sup

port

s incre

ase in p

edestr

ian tra

ffic

cro

ssin

g H

igh

wa

y 97 a

t M

aple

Dri

ve.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

A4:

This

optio

n p

rovi

des a

short

-term

solu

tion a

s p

art

of

ge

nera

l on

goin

g tra

ffic

sig

na

l optim

izatio

n im

pro

vem

ents

on

pro

vin

cia

l hig

hw

ays

. T

his

optio

n im

pro

ves s

afe

ty c

ond

itio

ns f

or

the

inte

rsectio

ns o

f M

ap

le D

rive a

nd C

edar

Avenue

with

Hig

hw

ay

97 in th

e S

ou

th Q

uesn

el are

a. T

hese im

pro

vem

ents

shou

ld b

e a

dvanced f

or

imple

menta

tion.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

4:

A

dva

nce t

o Im

ple

menta

tion

Pla

n

3.5.

4.5

Opt

ion

A5: R

acin

g Ro

ad a

nd Q

uesn

el-H

ydra

ulic

Roa

d Ac

cess

Man

agem

ent

Op

tio

n A

5(i

): S

ign

alize R

acin

g R

oad

In

ters

ecti

on

Op

tio

n A

2(i

i):

Sig

nalize Q

uesn

el-

Hyd

rau

lic R

oad

Op

tio

n A

3(i

ii):

Ac

ce

ss L

eft

-Ou

t T

urn

Restr

icti

on

s

Ba

ckgro

und:

Thre

e v

ari

ant

desig

ns w

ere

consid

ere

d t

o im

pro

ve a

ccess

managem

ent and s

afe

ty a

t th

e R

acin

g R

oa

d a

nd Q

uesnel-

Hyd

raulic

Roa

d inte

rsection

s.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

: O

pti

on

A5-i

: S

igna

lize t

he R

acin

g R

oa

d inte

rsection a

nd

restr

ict access a

t th

e Q

uesnel H

ydra

ulic

Ro

ad inte

rsectio

n.

Op

tio

n A

5-i

i: S

igna

lizatio

n o

f th

e Q

uesn

el-

Hyd

rau

lic R

oad

inte

rsection a

nd

restr

ict access a

t th

e R

acin

g R

oad

inte

rsection

Op

tio

n A

5-i

ii:

Rem

ove

left

-out tu

rnin

g m

ove

ments

at b

oth

Racin

g R

oa

d a

nd Q

uesne

l-H

ydra

ulic

Roa

d inte

rsection

s

and r

equ

ire left

turn

ing tra

ffic

to d

eto

ur

to in

ters

ectio

ns

furt

her

south

inclu

din

g C

ed

ar

Ave

nue.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

A5*

This

optio

n h

as b

ee

n a

dva

nced f

or

furt

her

deta

iled d

esig

n

as a

short

-term

priority

pro

ject*

to a

ddre

ss the h

igh

colli

sio

n s

everity

and r

oad s

afe

ty c

oncern

s a

t th

ese

inte

rsections. T

he p

refe

rred d

esig

n v

ari

ant

will

be

ide

ntif

ied a

fter

the c

om

ple

tion o

f a r

oa

d s

afe

ty a

udit

by

a

third p

art

y re

tain

ed b

y th

e M

oT

I.

Hig

hw

ay 9

7

Hig

hw

ay 9

7

Hig

hw

ay 9

7

*Refe

ren

ce:

Refe

r to

Hig

hw

ay 9

7 –

Racin

g R

oa

d a

nd

Quesne

l-H

ydra

ulic

Ro

ad

Inte

rsectio

n I

mpro

vem

ents

mem

ora

ndum

(M

ay,

20

17,

Urb

an S

yste

ms)

for

furt

her

deta

iled e

valu

ation t

hat

wa

s u

ndert

aken o

f th

ese thre

e im

pro

vem

ent options.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n A

5:

A

dva

nce t

o Im

ple

menta

tion

Pla

n

A s

et of

two

impro

vem

ent o

ptio

ns w

ere

id

entified f

or

Stu

dy

Se

gm

ent B

on H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

rou

nd t

he N

ort

h S

tar

Are

a a

nd Q

uesne

l Riv

er

Bri

dge

. A

s iden

tifie

d

in t

he e

xis

ting c

ond

itio

ns r

evi

ew

, th

e Q

uesnel R

iver

Bri

dge a

nd t

he Q

uesne

l O

verh

ead

requ

ires s

ignific

ant

an

d c

ha

llengin

g r

ehab

ilita

tion o

r fu

ll bri

dg

e

repla

cem

ent in

th

e n

ext

5 t

o 1

0 y

ears

. T

he Q

uesne

l O

verh

ead

in p

art

icu

lar

is r

anked a

s a

hig

h p

riori

ty f

or

impro

vem

ent am

ong s

tructu

res a

cro

ss the

pro

vin

ce d

ue t

o its

po

or

bri

dge c

onditio

n r

ating

. T

he Q

uesnel R

iver

Brid

ge is in

slig

htly

better

co

nditio

n; h

ow

ever,

th

is b

rid

ge h

as k

now

n c

onstr

ain

ts

inclu

din

g t

hat

it can

not sup

port

ove

rsiz

e o

r o

verw

eig

ht

hea

vy

veh

icle

move

ments

; th

e lan

es a

re n

arr

ow

than c

urr

ent desig

n s

tandard

s a

nd th

ere

are

no

should

ers

. T

here

is a

hori

zonta

l curv

e just

west

of

the Q

uesnel O

verh

ea

d in w

hic

h there

is e

vide

nce s

om

e v

ehic

les m

ay

be g

oin

g o

ff p

ave

ment.

3.5.

5.1

Opt

ion

B1(a

&b)

: Que

snel

Ove

rhea

d an

d Q

uesn

el R

iver

Bri

dge

Repl

acem

ent

1

Ba

ckgro

un

d

Str

uctu

ral c

on

ditio

n a

ssessm

ents

for

the Q

uesne

l Riv

er

Bridg

e a

nd t

he Q

uesne

l Ove

rhe

ad w

ere

re

vie

we

d to d

ete

rmin

e th

e c

ond

itio

n a

nd life e

xpecta

ncy

of

the s

tructu

res,

wh

ich f

ou

nd th

at th

e Q

uesnel O

verh

ead is in

po

or

cond

ition w

ith a

rep

lacem

ent of

the b

rid

ge o

r sig

nific

ant

reh

ab

ilita

tion r

eq

uire

d in th

e

next 5 t

o 1

0 y

ears

. T

he Q

uesnel R

iver

Brid

ge a

lso p

oses s

afe

ty c

ha

llenge

s d

ue

to

its d

esig

n a

nd

ag

e. T

wo s

ub

-optio

ns w

ere

explo

red. O

ptio

n B

1-a

consis

ts o

f tw

o 4

-lane

str

uctu

res a

nd

Option B

1-b

consis

ts o

f tw

o 2

-lane s

tructu

res, w

hic

h is

consid

ere

d th

e d

o-m

inim

um

impro

vem

ent fo

r th

ese b

ridg

es.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n e

xp

lore

s r

ep

lacin

g th

e Q

uesn

el R

iver

Brid

ge a

nd Q

uesn

el O

verh

ead s

tructu

re w

ith e

ither

4-la

ne o

r 2

-lan

e w

ide

str

uctu

res w

hile

main

tain

ing

the a

lignm

ent of

Hig

hw

ay

97 o

n e

ither

sid

e o

f th

e r

iver

cro

ssin

g. T

wo n

ew

brid

ge s

tructu

res w

ould

be c

onstr

ucte

d p

ara

llel to

the e

xis

ting s

tructu

res to

min

imiz

e p

ropert

y im

pacts

and lan

d r

eq

uire

d. T

he n

ew

cro

ssin

g w

ould

pro

vide a

n im

pro

ved p

ed

estr

ian a

nd b

icyc

le c

on

nection u

p t

o th

e J

ohnsto

n

Neig

hbo

urh

ood a

rea e

ast o

f th

e N

ort

h S

tar

Inte

rcha

ng

e.

New

200 m

ete

r F

ou

r-L

an

e

Bri

dg

e o

ver

the Q

uesn

el

Riv

er

New

100 m

ete

r F

ou

r-L

an

e

Ov

erh

ead

of

the C

N R

ailw

ay

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n:

As d

iscussed, th

is o

ption in

volv

es t

wo s

tructu

res w

ith

the b

ridg

e o

ver

the Q

uesnel

Riv

er

com

ing to a

length

of

appro

xim

ate

ly 2

00 m

ete

rs a

nd t

he s

tructu

re o

ver

the

rail

cro

ssin

g c

om

ing to a

le

ngth

of

appro

xim

ate

ly 1

00 m

ete

rs. T

he o

ver-

he

ad

str

uctu

re s

ho

wn w

ith a

tang

ent, s

piral, a

nd c

urv

e o

f hig

hw

ay

alig

nm

ent is

more

challe

ng

ing to d

esig

n a

nd c

onstr

uct th

an a

sta

nd

ard

hig

hw

ay

curv

e.

The e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y str

uctu

res w

ou

ld r

em

ain

open

to t

raff

ic d

uring c

onstr

uction

of

the n

ew

str

uctu

res a

nd t

ie-ins to t

he e

xis

ting a

lignm

ent. T

raff

ic w

ould

be

rero

ute

d o

nto

th

e n

ew

str

uctu

res o

nce c

om

ple

te, fo

llow

ed b

y d

ecom

mis

sio

nin

g o

f

the e

xis

ting s

tructu

res. A

pedestr

ian a

nd b

icyc

le f

acili

ty c

ou

ld b

e p

rovid

ed o

n th

e

bridg

e to p

rovi

de c

on

nectio

ns to th

e r

iverf

ront tr

ail

sys

tem

on b

oth

sid

es o

f th

e

Quesnel R

iver,

and

to t

he J

ohnsto

n N

eig

hbo

urh

oo

d a

rea o

n th

e e

ast sid

e o

f th

e

rive

r.

Op

tion

B1(a

&b

): E

valu

atio

n S

um

ma

ry:

The 4

-lane b

ridg

e r

ep

lacem

ent w

ould

incre

ase tra

ffic

capacity

and le

vel o

f

serv

ice w

here

as a

2-l

ane

str

uctu

re w

ou

ld n

ot;

Hig

hw

ay

safe

ty w

ou

ld i

mpro

ve g

iven

man

y pro

pert

y dam

age a

nd i

nju

ry

rela

ted c

olli

sio

ns h

ave

occu

rred o

n t

his

segm

ent;

Hig

hw

ay

ge

om

etr

y w

ou

ld im

pro

ve w

ith t

he r

em

ova

l and r

ep

lacem

ent of

the t

ight

hori

zonta

l curv

e just

west o

f th

e Q

uesne

l Overh

ead

;

Com

pare

d to the a

ltern

ate

route

optio

ns, th

is o

ptio

n w

ould

be lo

wer

in r

ela

tive c

ost sin

ce th

e s

tructu

res w

ou

ld c

onnect back in

to the

exis

tin

g h

igh

wa

y

alig

nm

ent

with less p

ropert

y acq

uis

itio

n a

nd im

pacts

;

This

optio

n d

oes n

ot re

duce h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic v

olu

mes o

r tr

ucks a

nd d

angero

us g

oo

ds f

rom

movi

ng thro

ugh

do

wnto

wn Q

uesn

el;

This

optio

n h

elp

s t

o m

itig

ate

he

avy

veh

icle

im

pacts

on t

he e

xis

ting Q

uesn

el

Riv

er

Brid

ge,

in w

hic

h t

he t

russ s

tructu

re i

s o

cc

asio

na

lly s

cra

ped,

impacte

d a

nd

dam

aged b

y hea

vy

vehic

les tra

velli

ng t

hro

ugh t

he n

arr

ow

passage o

ver

the e

xis

ting s

tructu

re;

This

optio

n w

ould

rem

ove

the h

ea

vy

vehic

le r

estr

iction

s in

pla

ce o

n t

he e

xis

ting b

ridg

es f

or

ove

rsiz

ed

veh

icle

s;

This

optio

n c

ou

ld b

e p

aire

d w

ith O

ption C

1 to

elim

inate

hig

hw

ay

traff

ic f

rom

Cars

on A

ven

ue

.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

B1(a

&b

):

Optio

n B

1 o

ffers

the d

o-m

inim

um

solu

tion t

o r

ep

lace t

he e

xis

ting a

ge

d s

tructu

res o

ver

the Q

uesn

el R

iver

and t

he Q

uesne

l Overh

ea

d. T

his

option s

hou

ld b

e c

om

pare

d w

ith O

ptio

n A

R-1

Nort

h S

outh

Inte

rconn

ecto

r R

oute

, an

d a

s p

art

of

an o

nlin

e c

om

bin

atio

n o

f O

ptions B

1, C

1 a

nd C

2-b

. T

hus, it

is

recom

mended th

at th

is o

ption b

e a

dva

nced t

o th

e M

AE

for

furt

her

evalu

ation.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

B1 (

2-l

an

e):

$41,3

89,6

00

Op

tio

n B

1 (

4-l

an

e):

$62,3

71,0

00

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n B

1(a

&b

):

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n

as in

div

idua

l option.

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n in

Com

bin

ation w

ith O

ptions C

1 a

nd C

2-b

3.5.

5.2

Opt

ion

B2: Q

uesn

el R

iver

Bri

dge

to N

adea

u St

reet

Sid

ewal

k Im

prov

emen

t

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

The C

ity

of

Quesne

l ha

ve indic

ate

d t

he a

spha

lt sid

ew

alk

exte

nd

ing

south

fro

m the Q

uesne

l Riv

er

Bri

dge

to N

ad

eau

Str

eet

has d

ete

riora

ted a

nd

is in

ne

ed o

f up

gra

de. T

he

City

als

o e

xpre

ssed s

afe

ty c

oncern

s f

or

pedestr

ians u

sin

g

this

route

and h

as indic

ate

d a

ne

ed f

or

bett

er

sep

ara

tio

n

betw

een p

ed

estr

ians a

nd v

ehic

les.

Tw

o s

hort

-term

options h

ave b

een d

eve

lop

ed th

at

impro

ve p

edestr

ian

facili

ties a

long

th

is s

egm

ent of

Hig

hw

ay

97.

Concre

te L

ow

Barr

ier

with A

sphalt

Sid

ew

alk

Curb

& G

utt

er

with C

oncre

te S

idew

alk

Optio

n B

2-ii

Optio

n B

2-i

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

Op

tio

n B

2-i

– C

on

cre

te L

ow

Barr

ier

wit

h A

sp

halt

Sid

ew

alk

: T

o in

cre

ase p

ede

str

ian

safe

ty a

nd s

epara

tion f

rom

the h

igh

wa

y it is

pro

pose

d t

hat a

low

concre

te b

arr

ier

be

insta

lled a

lon

g th

e s

egm

ent.

To e

nsure

th

e b

arr

ier

sits

flu

sh o

n th

e r

oa

dw

ay,

the e

xis

ting

rais

ed a

spha

lt is

pro

posed t

o b

e r

em

ove

d, a

nd a

road

wa

y s

hould

er

be c

onstr

ucte

d that

is

leve

l w

ith th

e e

xis

ting

road

surf

ace.

Op

tio

n B

2-i

i – C

urb

& G

utt

er

wit

h C

on

cre

te S

idew

alk

: T

o f

orm

alis

e the p

edestr

ian

facili

ties a

long

the

hig

hw

ay,

it is

pro

pose

d th

at th

e s

outh

roadsid

e b

e u

rban

ised w

ith c

urb

and g

utt

er,

with a

n a

dja

cen

t concre

te s

ide

walk

.

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n:

Op

tio

n B

2-i

- C

on

cre

te L

ow

Barr

ier

wit

h A

sp

halt

Sid

ew

alk

:

o

Barr

ier

sh

ould

be insta

lled t

o a

lignm

ent w

ith e

xis

ting d

rain

age s

yste

m;

o

Repla

ced g

ranu

lar

base h

as b

een a

ssum

ed;

o

100m

m a

sphalt

sid

ew

alk

is p

ropose

d, consid

era

tio

ns c

ould

als

o inclu

de

concre

te;

Op

tio

n B

2-i

i -

Cu

rb &

Gu

tter

wit

h C

on

cre

te S

idew

alk

:

o

Exis

ting c

atc

h b

asin

s p

rop

osed to b

e inte

gra

ted w

ith f

ace o

f curb

;

o

100m

m c

oncre

te s

ide

wa

lk is

pro

posed,

consid

era

tions c

ould

als

o inclu

de

aspha

lt.

City

Tra

il C

onn

ectio

n:

Consid

era

tions t

o c

onn

ect th

e s

ide

wa

lk f

rom

the Q

uesnel R

iver

Brid

ge t

o th

e C

ity’s

tra

il netw

ork

south

of

the h

igh

wa

y h

ave a

lso b

een e

valu

ate

d. H

ow

ever,

this

has b

ee

n d

eem

ed c

ostly

due t

o th

e s

ignific

ant

gra

de d

iffe

rence th

at exis

ts b

etw

een t

he t

wo f

acili

ties. T

o c

onstr

uct a c

onn

ection a

t th

e a

ppro

pri

ate

gra

de w

ou

ld r

equ

ire a

ram

p in

excess o

f 100 m

ete

rs, w

ith c

om

ple

x g

rad

ing, p

ath

wa

y la

ndin

g a

reas, a

nd p

ossib

le r

eta

inin

g w

alls

.

Eva

luatio

n S

um

ma

ry:

The c

urr

ent

roadsid

e c

onfig

ura

tion o

ffers

litt

le p

rote

ctio

n f

or

pedestr

ians f

rom

the a

dja

cent h

igh

wa

y tr

ave

l lane

;

Form

aliz

ing

and

impro

ving

the

sep

ara

tion

alo

ng

th

is

roadsid

e w

ill c

reate

a s

afe

r environm

ent fo

r both

ro

ad u

sers

;

Althou

gh

gre

ate

r sh

ould

er

wid

th can

be

ach

ieve

d w

ith

in

Optio

n B

2-i

i, O

ption B

2-i p

rovi

des t

he g

reate

st

separa

tion

and s

afe

ty f

or

ped

estr

ians;

Optio

n B

2-i is a

lso p

rop

ose

d to b

e r

ela

tively

cost eff

ectiv

e.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

B2

While

the t

wo s

ub

-optio

ns c

ould

be

imple

mente

d w

ith

in a

short

timefr

am

e a

nd a

t a lo

w c

ost,

it is a

kno

wn issue th

at th

e Q

uesne

l

Riv

er

Bri

dg

e a

nd Q

uesn

el O

verh

ead

will

req

uire

rep

lacem

ent

within

the n

ext five

to t

en y

ears

. R

epla

cem

ent of

the b

ridg

e w

ill r

eq

uire

substa

ntial re

constr

uction w

ork

s o

f th

e a

ppro

aches t

o the r

iver

cro

ssin

g. T

hus, th

is o

ption m

ay

ha

ve a

short

lifespa

n a

nd w

ould

need

to b

e r

eco

nstr

ucte

d o

nce the

brid

ge r

epla

cem

ent pro

ject is

advanced

to c

onstr

uctio

n.

Thus, th

is o

ption

pro

vides lim

ited v

alu

e

for

the p

ote

ntia

l investm

ent th

at

wou

ld b

e r

equire

d.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

B2

-i:

$134

,76

1

Op

tio

n B

2-i

i:

$247

,43

0

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n B

2:

S

cre

en o

ut fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

an

d im

ple

menta

tion.

A s

et of

four

main

impro

vem

ent optio

ns w

ere

ide

ntif

ied f

or

Stu

dy

Segm

ent C

on H

igh

wa

y 97

thro

ugh t

he d

ow

nto

wn o

f Q

uesne

l as d

efined b

y th

e Q

uesne

l

Ove

rhe

ad

(w

est

end)

to t

he

Suth

erl

and A

ven

ue /

Hig

hw

ay

97 inte

rsectio

n. T

hese o

ptions w

ere

iden

tifie

d to a

ddre

ss the issues identifie

d in

the p

roble

m

definitio

n s

tate

ment in

clu

din

g s

afe

ty c

oncern

s a

t do

wn

tow

n inte

rsectio

ns,

and

sid

e-s

treet tr

aff

ic d

ela

ys o

n a

ppro

aches to

th

e h

igh

wa

y.

3.5.

6.1

Opt

ion

C1: H

ighw

ay 9

7 Re

alig

nmen

t ont

o Le

gion

Dri

ve

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

Tra

ffic

volu

mes o

n H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

re a

t th

eir h

ighest e

nte

ring t

he d

ow

nto

wn o

nto

Cars

on A

venue a

nd

Fro

nt

Str

eet, o

f w

hic

h a

sig

nific

ant

port

ion c

onsis

ts o

f

hea

vy

vehic

les. A

s a

resu

lt, colli

sio

n r

ate

s a

t in

ters

ections a

re h

igher

than a

vera

ge a

nd c

om

munity

concern

s e

xis

t aro

und t

he a

mount an

d t

ype o

f tr

aff

ic

passin

g t

hro

ugh t

he d

ow

nto

wn.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n e

xp

lore

s th

e p

ossib

ility

of

main

tain

ing

Hig

hw

ay

97

in the

do

wnto

wn p

enin

su

la o

f Q

uesne

l,

but re

alig

nin

g to t

he s

outh

of

the d

ow

nto

wn’s

core

busin

ess a

rea t

o r

educe c

olli

sio

n r

ate

s a

t do

wn

tow

n

inte

rsections a

nd m

itig

ate

heavy

vehic

le im

pacts

on

Cars

on A

venue

. T

his

optio

n p

rop

oses to c

lose th

e

east en

d o

f C

ars

on A

ven

ue

to H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

nd

bri

ng

traff

ic d

ow

n t

he M

off

at B

rid

ge A

ppro

ach r

oute

and

connect d

irectly

to th

e F

ron

t S

tre

et bri

dge

loop v

ia

Leg

ion D

rive

with

an inte

rsectio

n c

onn

ectin

g th

e

Johnsto

n B

ridge a

nd th

e M

off

at B

ridge t

o W

est

Quesnel. A

multi

-la

ne r

ou

ndabo

ut

is p

rop

ose

d a

t th

e

inte

rsection o

f th

ese s

treets

due t

o t

he b

ala

nced

am

ount of

traff

ic e

nte

ring t

he r

oun

dab

out fr

om

each

appro

ach. H

ow

eve

r, a

tra

ffic

sig

nal is

als

o a

feasib

le

option.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

This

optio

n w

ould

involv

e s

ignific

ant

chan

ges to t

raff

ic p

attern

s in t

he d

ow

nto

wn b

y re

str

icting h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic f

rom

usin

g C

ars

on A

venu

e,

and inste

ad r

e-

directing s

outh

of

the d

ow

nto

wn a

nd o

nto

Fro

nt

Str

ee

t.

This

optio

n o

ffers

opport

un

ities f

or

the C

ity

of

Quesne

l to

re

-incorp

ora

te C

ars

on

Ave

nue into

its

local do

wnto

wn s

treet

netw

ork

and p

rovid

e a

dditio

nal on

-str

eet p

ark

ing, pe

destr

ian a

nd c

ycle

am

eniti

es a

nd local s

erv

ices.

New

Mu

lti-

Lan

e

Ro

un

da

bo

ut

Clo

se

Hig

hw

ay 9

7 /

Ca

rso

n A

ve

nu

e

Inte

rse

cti

on

New

50

m R

ail

Ove

rpa

ss

Co

nve

rt M

off

at

Bri

dg

e A

pp

roa

ch

to

Do

wn

tow

n S

tre

et

Ne

two

rk

Giv

en th

e u

rban location

in t

he d

ow

nto

wn,

this

optio

n s

hou

ld f

ollo

w t

he u

rban

desig

n

crite

ria w

ith s

pee

ds b

etw

ee

n 5

0 t

o 6

0 k

m/h

. A

multi

-la

ne r

ou

nda

bou

t te

mpla

te a

nd a

4-lan

e c

onfig

ura

tion is r

eco

mm

ended to p

rovi

de d

esira

ble

mobili

ty p

erf

orm

ance u

p

to th

e 2

5 y

ear

hori

zon.

Nort

h o

f th

e r

ound

abo

ut, t

he M

off

at B

ridge o

verp

ass o

f F

ront

Str

eet

constr

ain

s the h

igh

wa

y to

red

uce f

rom

4 la

nes w

ide

to 2

lanes w

ide.

Follo

win

g f

urt

her

mobili

ty p

erf

orm

ance a

ssessm

ent of th

is o

ption,

it m

ay

be

dete

rmin

ed t

hat

a m

ulti

-la

ne r

oun

dab

out

is r

eq

uired

. If

the tra

ffic

dem

and e

xceed

s

the c

ap

acity

for

a m

ulti

-la

ne

round

abo

ut, a

tra

ffic

sig

nal option w

ill b

e in

vestig

ate

d.

This

optio

n p

roposes a

ne

w s

tructu

re o

ver

the C

N r

ail

that

would

con

nect to

the

Johnsto

n B

ridge L

oop R

oa

d a

nd J

ohnsto

n N

eig

hb

ourh

ood

subd

ivis

ion o

n th

e e

ast

sid

e o

f th

e Q

uesn

el R

iver.

C

urr

ently,

the s

pri

ng

fre

shet on t

he Q

uesne

l Riv

er

flo

ods

the J

oh

nsto

n B

ridge L

oop R

oad f

or

up

ward

s o

f th

ree m

onth

s e

ach y

ear.

D

rive

rs

trave

llin

g b

etw

ee

n d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesn

el and t

he J

ohnsto

n n

eig

hbo

urh

ood m

ust use a

tem

pora

ry d

eto

ur

on

to D

avie

Str

eet a

nd a

cro

ss the C

N g

rade r

ail

cro

ssin

g.

The

pro

pose

d s

tructu

re w

ould

off

er

a p

erm

anent solu

tion t

o p

rovid

e a

ccess b

etw

een t

he

do

wnto

wn a

nd

Johnsto

n n

eig

hbourh

ood

are

as,

and

miti

gate

th

e p

roble

ms a

nd

challe

ng

es a

ssocia

ted w

ith t

he e

xis

ting f

reshet de

tour.

Op

tion

C1:

Eva

luatio

n S

um

mary

Local a

nd r

eg

ion

al tr

aff

ic p

attern

s a

re im

pro

ved b

y co

nsolid

ating t

hem

to a

n im

pro

ved

hig

hw

ay

alig

nm

ent

with f

ew

er

accesses a

nd w

ith

out

two 9

0

degre

e turn

s a

s c

urr

en

tly

exis

ts o

n th

e C

ars

on

Ave

nue

and F

ront

Str

eet

alig

nm

ent;

Safe

ty c

ond

itions a

t th

e e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y in

ters

ections o

n C

ars

on A

venue w

ou

ld b

e im

pro

ved w

ith r

ed

uced tra

ffic

volu

mes;

Tra

vel c

ond

itio

ns f

or

pe

destr

ians a

nd b

icyc

lists

usin

g C

ars

on A

venue

wo

uld

impro

ve w

ith lo

wer

vehic

le tra

ffic

volu

mes a

nd turn

ing c

onflic

ts;

The n

ew

alig

nm

ent w

ith r

ed

uced a

ccesses w

ou

ld im

pro

ve c

orr

idor

mobili

ty a

nd tra

vel t

imes;

Hea

vy

vehic

le tra

ffic

wo

uld

not b

e r

em

ove

d f

rom

Fro

nt S

treet;

Hea

vy

vehic

le tra

ffic

wo

uld

be r

em

ove

d f

rom

Cars

on A

ven

ue a

nd o

ffer

som

e r

elie

f to

local m

oto

rists

an

d th

e d

ow

nto

wn b

usin

ess c

om

munity;

This

optio

n c

ou

ld b

e p

aire

d w

ith O

ption B

1 t

o p

rovid

e m

ore

eff

icie

nt tr

avel t

hro

ug

h the

do

wnto

wn;

The n

ew

rail

ove

rpass s

tructu

re a

nd r

oa

d c

on

nection e

limin

ate

s the a

nnua

l Fre

she

t deto

ur

route

;

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

C1:

Optio

n C

1 o

ffers

a s

olu

tion t

o p

art

ially

addre

ss t

he h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic a

nd h

ea

vy

veh

icle

im

pacts

in t

he Q

uesne

l

do

wnto

wn. T

his

op

tion s

hould

be c

om

pare

d a

s p

art

of an o

nlin

e c

om

bin

atio

n o

f O

ptio

ns B

1, C

1 a

nd C

2-b

to

Optio

n A

R-1

Nort

h S

outh

In

terc

onnecto

r R

oute

. T

hus, it is

recom

mended th

at th

is o

ption b

e a

dva

nce

d to

the

MA

E f

or

furt

her

evalu

ation.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

C1:

$34,3

19,2

97

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n C

1:

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n in

Com

bin

ation w

ith O

ptions C

1 a

nd C

2-b

3.5.

6.2

Opt

ion

C2 (a

& b

): F

ront

Str

eet (

Hig

hway

97)

Lan

ing

Reco

nfig

urat

ion

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

Safe

ty is th

e p

redom

inant

concern

with

Hig

hw

ay

97 o

n F

ront S

treet

with h

igh

er

than a

vera

ge c

olli

sio

n r

ate

s a

t ke

y in

ters

ectio

ns a

nd t

he

consis

tent fe

edback r

eceiv

ed f

rom

the p

ublic

an

d th

e C

ity

ab

out

hea

vy

veh

icle

s c

arr

yin

g d

ang

ero

us g

oods p

ast G

.R. B

aker

Mem

ori

al H

ospita

l

and t

hro

ugh t

he d

ow

nto

wn.

Op

tion

s D

escriptio

n:

Tw

o im

pro

vem

ent optio

ns o

n F

ront

Str

eet

were

iden

tifie

d t

o im

pro

ve m

obili

ty a

nd s

afe

ty c

ond

itions. O

ptio

n C

2-a

explo

res th

e p

ote

ntia

l for

4-la

ne

configura

tion o

f F

ront S

tree

t and

Option C

2-b

ide

ntif

ies a

3-l

ane c

onfigura

tio

n c

on

sis

ting o

f tw

o thro

ug

h tra

vel la

nes a

nd a

ce

ntr

e t

wo-w

ay

left

turn

lane.

As d

escribe

d in t

he f

ollo

win

g o

ption

description a

nd

eva

luatio

n, th

ere

is lim

ited r

oom

on F

ront

Str

ee

t to

accom

mo

date

the

4-l

an

e

Optio

n C

2-a

, an

d f

urt

her

de

sig

n is n

ecessary

to d

ete

rmin

e if

pro

pert

y acq

uis

itio

n is r

equir

ed. I

f pro

pe

rty

is r

eq

uired,

it co

uld

be s

ignific

ant

giv

en

num

ero

us p

riva

te s

tructu

res a

nd b

uild

ings r

esid

e im

media

tely

adja

cent

to t

he c

orr

idor.

O

ptio

n C

2-b

pro

vide

s g

reate

r flexib

ility

as it fits

with

in t

he

exis

ting tra

vel s

urf

ace w

idth

an

d w

ould

not

requ

ire p

ropert

y acqu

isitio

n.

3.5.

6.3

Opt

ion

C2-a

: Fro

nt S

tree

t Lan

ing

Reco

nfig

urat

ion

(4-L

ane)

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n

This

optio

n inclu

des u

sin

g t

he e

xis

ting

tra

vel surf

ace o

n F

ront

Str

ee

t an

d

pote

ntially

requ

ires w

iden

ing the

road r

igh

t of

wa

y to

accom

modate

4

lan

es o

f tr

ave

l. T

he e

xte

nts

of

this

option

are

fro

m n

ort

h o

f th

e M

off

at

Brid

ge s

tructu

re t

o n

ort

h o

f S

uth

erla

nd A

ven

ue w

here

Hig

hw

ay

97

curr

ently

retu

rns t

o 4

la

nes.

The o

ptio

n to

4-l

ane F

ront

Str

eet

off

ers

som

e p

ote

ntial ad

vanta

ges a

nd

challe

ng

es; ho

we

ver,

4-l

an

ing is

not re

qu

ired t

o p

rovi

de d

esira

ble

mobili

ty

serv

ice u

p to

25 y

ear

hori

zon. C

apacity

wou

ld b

e incre

ased in

the

nort

hb

oun

d d

irection o

nly

, sin

ce 2

lan

es a

re c

urr

en

tly

pro

vid

ed

south

boun

d. B

ased

on t

he c

adastr

al in

form

atio

n, th

ere

are

som

e s

ectio

ns

where

it a

ppe

ars

4-la

nin

g w

ill f

it w

ithin

th

e e

xis

ting

rig

ht

of

wa

y;

ho

we

ver,

this

co

uld

stil

l re

quire m

ovi

ng th

e c

urb

, gutt

er,

sid

ew

alk

, str

eet

lighting,

and

str

eet fu

rniture

to f

it th

e c

ross-s

ectio

n w

ith

in a

n a

lrea

dy

constr

ain

ed c

orr

idor.

In

so

me c

ases, th

e 4

-lan

e c

ross-s

ectio

n w

ould

require

pro

pert

y acqu

isitio

n a

nd c

ould

ha

ve m

ajo

r im

pacts

to a

dja

ce

nt

build

ings a

nd s

tructu

res.

The p

edestr

ian h

alf s

ignal at S

hep

herd

Ave

nue w

ould

be m

ain

tain

ed;

ho

we

ver

full

sig

na

lizatio

n o

f th

e h

alf s

ignal at

McN

au

gh

ton A

venu

e h

as

been

consid

ere

d t

o p

rovid

e im

pro

ved a

ccess f

or

em

erg

ency

vehic

les,

pedestr

ians a

nd loca

l cro

ss-h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic in

to t

he G

.R. B

aker

Mem

orial

Hospital.

This

inte

rsectio

n w

as a

ssessed w

ith a

tra

ffic

sig

na

l w

arr

ant,

whic

h f

oun

d th

at a

full

sig

nal is

not

warr

ante

d d

ue t

o lo

w s

ide

-str

eet

appro

ach v

olu

mes (

see A

pp

en

dix

K).

Giv

en th

e im

port

ance o

f th

is

access, fu

rther

consid

era

tio

n f

or

a tra

ffic

sig

nal is

reco

mm

ended.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

C2-a

:

$11,5

44,2

07

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Fro

nt

Str

eet

(Hig

hw

ay 9

7)

Op

tion

C2-a

: E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

This

optio

n p

rim

arily

pro

vid

es in

cre

ase

d c

apacity

to th

e h

igh

wa

y th

rou

gh d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesn

el,

whic

h im

pro

ves c

onditio

ns for

loca

l and r

egio

nal t

raff

ic

usage;

ho

wever,

4-l

an

ing is n

ot re

quir

ed t

o s

erv

e tra

ffic

dem

ands;

Safe

ty c

onditio

ns w

ou

ld b

e u

nlik

ely

to c

hang

e,

an

d p

edestr

ian c

ond

itions w

ould

be i

mpacte

d g

ive

n t

he p

ed

estr

ian c

rossw

alk

dis

tances w

ould

be

lon

ger

and t

here

is a

kno

wn is

sue o

f pedestr

ian

-rela

ted

colli

sio

ns a

lon

g th

is c

orr

idor;

This

optio

n lea

ves n

o r

oom

to p

rovi

de a

media

n p

ed

estr

ian c

rossw

alk

refu

ge a

rea

;

Hea

vy

vehic

le im

pacts

could

wors

en w

ith m

ore

lanes b

ringin

g tru

cks c

loser

to th

e s

ide

wa

lk a

nd b

usin

ess f

ronta

ges a

long F

ron

t S

treet.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

C2-a

While

this

option

ma

y pro

vid

e a

va

lid s

olu

tion t

o im

pro

ve tra

ffic

capacity

alo

ng F

ront S

treet, t

his

option w

ou

ld n

ega

tive

ly i

mpact pedestr

ian s

afe

ty,

whic

h is

a k

ey

issue f

or

com

munity

mem

bers

in Q

uesne

l. O

f n

ote

, th

ere

was a

ped

estr

ian

fata

lity

in N

ovem

ber,

2016 w

here

the p

ed

estr

ian w

as u

sin

g t

he

cro

ssw

alk

. In a

dd

ition,

hea

vy

vehic

le tra

ffic

is a

no

ther

sig

nific

an

t com

munity

concern

an

d r

econfig

urin

g F

ront

Str

ee

t to

4 lanes w

ide

wo

uld

ha

ve a

notic

eab

le e

ffect of

shiftin

g h

ea

vy

vehic

les to t

he o

uts

ide lane

tha

t is

clo

sest to

th

e s

ide

walk

and a

dja

cen

t bu

sin

esses a

nd

land u

ses. 4

lan

es w

ou

ld a

lso

be e

xp

ecte

d t

o incre

ase s

peeds, n

ois

e,

an

d r

ed

uce s

afe

ty.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n C

2-a

:

S

cre

en o

ut fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

an

d im

ple

menta

tion.

3.5.

6.4

Opt

ion

C2-b

: Fro

nt S

tree

t Lan

ing

Reco

nfig

urat

ion

(3-L

ane)

De

sig

n C

on

sid

era

tio

n

This

optio

n involv

es r

eco

nfigurin

g th

e lan

ing o

n t

he

exis

ting tra

vel s

urf

ace o

n F

ront S

treet

with

out

the n

ee

d f

or

road w

ide

nin

g,

as is

th

e c

ase w

ith O

ption C

2-a

. T

he

exte

nts

of

this

option

are

fro

m n

ort

h o

f th

e M

off

at B

rid

ge

str

uctu

re to n

ort

h o

f S

uth

erl

and A

ven

ue w

here

Hig

hw

ay

97 c

urr

ently

retu

rns t

o 4

lan

es.

The o

ptio

n to

con

vert

the e

xis

ting 2

-la

ne s

outh

boun

d a

nd

1-lan

e n

ort

hbo

un

d c

onfigura

tion to

1-la

ne n

ort

hbou

nd,

1-

lan

e s

outh

bo

und a

nd

a c

en

tre turn

lan

e o

ffers

man

y

advanta

ges in c

om

parison t

o the

challe

nges n

ote

d f

or

Optio

n C

2-a

. T

he e

xis

ting insid

e s

outh

bou

nd lan

e a

lre

ad

y

acts

as a

turn

la

ne f

or

south

bou

nd tra

ffic

, so p

rovi

din

g a

centr

e turn

lane w

ou

ld n

ot

sig

nific

an

tly

red

uce s

outh

bou

nd

thro

ug

h tra

ffic

level of

serv

ice,

whic

h c

arr

ies th

e s

am

e

volu

me a

s n

ort

hb

oun

d tra

ffic

. A

centr

e turn

la

ne a

llow

s f

or

left

turn

move

ments

to b

e m

ade in

both

directions into

pub

lic a

nd p

riva

te a

ccess w

ithout

impedin

g thro

ugh t

raff

ic. T

he c

entr

e turn

lan

e a

lso p

rovid

es

opport

un

ities f

or

pedestr

ian

refu

ge a

reas t

o b

e insta

lled,

wh

ich w

ould

impro

ve p

edestr

ian

an

d s

afe

ty c

ond

itio

ns a

long F

ront S

treet

The p

edestr

ian h

alf s

ignal at S

hep

herd

Ave

nue w

ould

be m

ain

tain

ed; h

ow

eve

r fu

ll sig

naliz

ation o

f th

e h

alf s

ignal at M

cN

aug

hto

n A

venue

has b

een

consid

ere

d to

pro

vide im

pro

ved a

ccess f

or

em

erg

ency

vehic

les, pe

destr

ians a

nd local c

ross-h

igh

wa

y tr

aff

ic in

to t

he G

.R.

Baker

Mem

orial H

ospital.

This

inte

rsection w

as a

ssessed w

ith a

tra

ffic

sig

na

l w

arr

an

t, w

hic

h f

ou

nd t

hat

a f

ull

sig

nal is

not

warr

ante

d d

ue t

o lo

w s

ide

-str

eet a

ppro

ach

volu

mes (

see

Ap

pen

dix

K).

Giv

en th

e im

port

ance o

f th

is a

ccess, fu

rther

consid

era

tion f

or

a t

raff

ic s

igna

l is r

ecom

mended.

Fro

nt

Str

eet

(Hig

hw

ay 9

7)

Op

tion

C2-b

: E

valu

atio

n S

um

mary

Local and

reg

ion

al t

raff

ic c

ontin

ues to

be s

upport

ed w

ith im

pro

ved

access f

or

traff

ic turn

ing into

the

do

wnto

wn;

Safe

ty c

ond

itions a

re e

xpe

cte

d to im

pro

ve w

ith b

ett

er

separa

tion o

f

turn

ing m

ove

ments

fro

m tra

vel la

nes;

Opport

un

ity

to im

pro

ve p

ed

estr

ian c

rossw

alk

s w

ith r

efu

ge a

reas to

serv

e h

ospital and

senio

r p

opu

lations c

rossin

g the

hig

hw

ay;

Hea

vy

vehic

le im

pacts

wou

ld n

ot see

a s

ignific

an

t cha

nge f

rom

the

sta

tus q

uo, except

tha

t tr

ucks w

ou

ld b

e r

estr

icte

d t

o tra

velli

ng in 2

lan

es o

n F

ront S

treet fr

om

3 la

nes c

urr

ently;

Sin

ce

th

is o

ptio

n c

onsis

ts o

f re

configuring t

he lan

ing w

ithin

the

exis

ting p

ave

d r

ight

of

wa

y on F

ront

Str

eet, o

pera

tio

n a

nd

main

tenance c

osts

are

not

expecte

d t

o c

ha

nge

fro

m e

xis

ting

;

This

optio

n is

str

on

gly

sup

port

ed b

y th

e C

ity

of

Quesn

el a

s a

sh

ort

-

term

optio

n t

hat ca

n h

elp

im

pro

ve p

edestr

ian s

afe

ty a

nd tra

ffic

conditio

ns;

Furt

her,

th

e C

ity

identified t

his

op

tion a

s a

hig

h p

riori

ty s

afe

ty

impro

vem

ent pro

ject th

at can o

ccur

in th

e s

hort

-term

to m

itigate

exis

ting s

afe

ty a

nd m

obili

ty c

oncern

s a

long t

his

do

wn

tow

n s

ectio

n

of

Hig

hw

ay

97

.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

C2-b

This

optio

n p

rovi

des a

short

-term

solu

tion t

o im

pro

ving

ve

hic

le a

nd p

edestr

ian s

afe

ty a

long F

ront

Str

eet

witho

ut sig

nific

ant

ph

ysic

al chan

ges t

o t

he e

xis

ting

geom

etr

ic d

esig

n o

f th

e c

orr

idor.

F

urt

her,

this

option c

an p

air w

ith a

ny

of

the

oth

er

options d

evelo

ped

in the

stu

dy

inclu

din

g O

ptions B

1,

C1, A

R-1

, C

3, a

nd

C4.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

C2

-b:

$9,3

76,8

01 (

ori

gin

al p

lan

nin

g e

stim

ate

only

)

No

te:

Cost is

bein

g r

efine

d in p

relim

inary

desig

n.

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n C

2-b

:

A

dva

nce t

o Im

ple

menta

tion

Pla

n

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n in

Com

bin

ation w

ith O

ptions C

1 a

nd C

2-b

3.5.

6.5

Opt

ion

C3: R

eloc

ate

Traf

fic S

igna

l fro

m R

eid

Stre

et to

McL

ean

Stre

et

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

A tra

ffic

sig

nal exis

ts a

t th

e R

eid

Str

eet /

Hig

hw

ay

97 (

Cars

on A

venue)

inte

rsectio

n a

nd

is u

nd

eru

tiliz

ed. I

t serv

es o

nly

on

e-w

ay

traff

ic n

ort

hbo

und o

n R

eid

Str

eet, a

nd t

wo

-wa

y

traff

ic to o

nly

a f

ew

busin

esses lo

cate

d s

outh

of

the inte

rsectio

n.

The M

cLe

an S

treet

inte

rsection f

urt

her

east

is s

top c

on

trolle

d o

n t

he s

ide

-str

eet a

ppro

ach

es; ho

we

ver,

this

inte

rsection o

bserv

es h

igh

er

turn

ing v

olu

mes a

nd p

rovi

des a

ccess to th

e M

off

at B

ridg

e

and s

ubsequ

ently

to W

est Q

uesnel fo

r drivers

tra

velli

ng o

n H

igh

wa

y 9

7 s

outh

bou

nd.

Op

tion

C3 D

escriptio

n:

This

short

term

optio

n in

volv

es d

ecom

mis

sio

nin

g th

e tra

ffic

sig

nal a

t R

eid

Str

eet

and

insta

lling a

ne

w s

igna

l at

McLean S

tree

t to

bett

er

serv

e lo

ca

l and r

egio

na

l tra

ffic

pattern

s.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

The tra

ffic

sig

nal at R

eid

Str

eet shou

ld b

e c

onsid

ere

d f

or

rem

ova

l and c

on

vert

ed b

ack

to a

tw

o-w

ay

sto

p-c

ontr

olle

d in

ters

ectio

n o

n th

e s

ide s

treet ap

pro

ach

es. A

tra

ffic

sig

nal

at M

cLe

an S

tree

t in

ters

ection a

nd is w

arr

ante

d a

s d

ocum

ente

d in

Ap

pen

dix

K. A

round

abo

ut o

ption w

as c

on

sid

ere

d;

ho

we

ver,

due t

o th

e p

resence o

f str

uctu

res o

n the

south

and n

ort

h s

ides o

f th

e in

ters

ectio

n inclu

din

g a

n a

ctiv

e g

as s

tation,

a tra

ffic

sig

na

l

is a

more

feasib

le s

olu

tio

n.

Relo

cation w

ould

resu

lt in

tw

o c

lose

ly s

paced s

ign

als

(100m

) at M

cLean a

nd

Kin

chant.

New

Tra

ffic

Sig

nal

at

McL

ean

Str

eet

Sto

p C

on

tro

l In

ters

ecti

on

at

Reid

St

Op

tion

C3:

Eva

luatio

n S

um

mary

A tra

ffic

sig

nal w

ou

ld p

rovi

de im

pro

ved c

onnectivity

an

d

leve

l of

serv

ice f

or

local t

raff

ic a

nd s

om

e r

egio

nal hig

hw

ay

traff

ic that is

destined

for

West Q

uesne

l;

Safe

ty c

ond

itions w

ould

impro

ve a

s turn

ing m

ove

ments

at

the inte

rsection w

ou

ld b

e s

upport

ed b

y sig

nal phasin

g a

nd

contr

ols

;

This

optio

n d

oes n

ot ap

pea

r to

ha

ve s

ign

ific

ant

eff

ects

on

pedestr

ian,

bic

ycle

and

he

avy

vehic

le c

on

ditio

ns;

Sig

na

l coord

ination w

ould

be r

ecom

mended b

etw

een

the

clo

sely

space

d s

igna

ls a

t M

cLean a

nd K

incha

nt;

Opera

tion a

nd m

ain

tena

nce c

osts

wou

ld n

ot

incre

ase a

s the

O&

M c

osts

for

the n

ew

tra

ffic

sig

nal at M

cL

ean

Str

eet

would

repla

ce t

he O

&M

costs

of

opera

ting t

he e

xis

ting tra

ffic

sig

na

l;

The C

ity

su

pp

ort

s this

optio

n a

s a

sh

ort

-term

pro

ject.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

C3

Optio

n C

3 p

rovi

des a

good

lo

w-c

ost solu

tion t

o im

pro

ve

transport

atio

n c

ond

itio

ns o

n H

igh

wa

y 97,

part

icu

larl

y fo

r lo

ca

l tra

ffic

ente

ring a

nd

exitin

g the

hig

hw

ay

to/f

rom

the d

ow

nto

wn

and t

o/f

rom

West Q

uesnel.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

C3:

$488

,14

4

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n C

3:

A

dva

nce t

o Im

ple

menta

tion

Pla

n

3.5.

6.6

Opt

ion

C4: S

igna

lize

Suth

erla

nd A

venu

e /

Hig

hway

97

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

Safe

ty is a

co

ncern

at

the

Suth

erl

an

d A

venue in

ters

ection g

iven its

location o

n t

he insid

e o

f a h

ori

zonta

l curv

e a

nd o

n a

modera

te v

ert

ica

l

curv

e. L

eft

turn

s into

and

out of

Suth

erl

and

Ave

nue a

re c

halle

ngin

g f

or

passenger

vehic

les a

nd f

or

school b

usses that com

e to

and f

rom

St.

Ann

e’s

Cath

olic

Scho

ol.

Op

tion

C4 D

escriptio

n

A tra

ffic

sig

nal has b

een

identif

ied a

s a

short

term

impro

vem

ent to

addre

ss s

ightlin

e is

sues a

nd im

pro

ve a

ccess in

to a

nd o

ut of

Suth

erla

nd A

ven

ue.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

The h

ori

zonta

l curv

e p

rese

nts

a c

ha

lleng

e f

or

passeng

er

ve

hic

les a

nd

school b

usses a

ttem

ptin

g t

o turn

left

or

rig

ht o

ut of

the

inte

rsectio

n.

Furt

her,

buses a

nd p

assen

ger

vehic

les turn

ing left

onto

Su

therl

an

d

Avenu

e s

om

etim

es h

ave

to

pause in t

he s

outh

bou

nd t

hro

ug

h tra

vel

lan

e, cre

ating

an u

ncom

fort

able

situ

ation f

or

these d

rivers

wh

en

thro

ug

h tra

ffic

is p

assin

g a

t hig

her

spe

eds. A

tra

ffic

sig

na

l is

warr

ante

d a

t th

is locatio

n a

s d

ocum

ente

d in A

pp

en

dix

K.

It is

import

ant

to n

ote

that

the n

ort

h-s

outh

inte

rconn

ecto

r ro

ute

ide

ntif

ied in S

ecti

on

3.5

.3.1

of

this

mem

o w

ould

both

connect b

ack

onto

the e

xis

ting H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

lignm

ent at th

e S

uth

erl

and A

venu

e

inte

rsection u

nd

er

a d

iffe

rent configura

tion. T

hus, th

is o

ption s

hou

ld

not pro

ce

ed t

o im

ple

menta

tion u

ntil a d

ecis

ion h

as b

ee

n m

ade a

bo

ut

the im

ple

menta

tion o

f th

e n

ort

h-s

outh

inte

rconn

ecto

r.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/ Lo

cal

Con

ne

ctiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

C4:

$250

,00

0

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

New

Tra

ffic

Sig

nal

at

Su

therl

an

d A

ven

ue

Op

tion

C4:

Eva

luatio

n S

um

mary

Local tr

aff

ic t

o a

nd f

rom

Suth

erla

nd A

venu

e w

ou

ld m

ost

benefit

from

a t

raff

ic s

ignal at

this

in

ters

ectio

n,

with litt

le t

o n

o b

en

efit

for

regio

nal th

rough

traff

ic;

Safe

ty c

ond

itions w

ould

impro

ve w

ith p

reve

nting left

tu

rns o

ut o

nto

Hig

hw

ay

97 f

rom

a s

top c

ontr

olle

d a

ppro

ach o

n t

he insid

e o

f a c

urv

e;

Level of

serv

ice w

ou

ld im

pro

ve f

or

sid

e-s

treet tr

aff

ic; h

ow

eve

r, a

tra

ffic

sig

nal or

round

abo

ut

wou

ld lik

ely

red

uce thro

ugh m

ove

ment serv

ice;

This

optio

n d

oes n

ot im

pro

ve a

ccess m

anagem

ent or

change

cond

itions f

or

ped

estr

ians, cyc

lists

, or

hea

vy

vehic

le im

pacts

;

The a

lignm

ent

of

Optio

n A

R-1

Nort

h-S

ou

th I

nte

rcon

necto

r ru

ns t

hro

ugh t

his

in

ters

ectio

n a

nd i

f constr

ucte

d,

access t

o p

ropert

ies s

erv

ices b

y

Suth

erla

nd A

ven

ue w

ould

chang

e.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

C4

Optio

n C

4 p

rovi

des a

short

-term

im

pro

vem

ent to

addre

ss s

afe

ty c

oncern

s a

nd

con

nectivity t

o S

uth

erla

nd A

ve

nue,

and

part

icula

rly a

ccess to S

t. A

nn’s

Cath

olic

Scho

ol.

Ho

wever,

this

option s

hould

be s

cre

ened

-out u

ntil O

ption

AR

-1 N

ort

h S

outh

In

terc

onn

ecto

r has b

een f

ully

explo

red a

nd a

decis

ion m

ade

on w

heth

er

to im

ple

ment or

elim

inate

it. If

Option A

R-1

does p

roce

ed,

it w

ill in

volv

e a

sig

na

lize

d inte

rsection a

t F

ront

Str

eet in

a s

imila

r lo

catio

n t

o the

exis

ting S

uth

erlan

d A

venu

e / H

igh

wa

y 97 inte

rsection,

but u

nder

a d

iffe

rent configura

tion th

at su

pport

s a

ccess to d

ow

nto

wn Q

uesn

el f

rom

the

inte

rcon

necto

r.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n C

4:

S

cre

en o

ut fr

om

furt

her

revi

ew

an

d im

ple

menta

tion.

Tw

o im

pro

vem

ent optio

ns w

ere

iden

tifie

d f

or

Stu

dy

Se

gm

ent D

on H

igh

wa

y 97

thro

ugh

the

Tw

o M

ile F

lat

ind

ustr

ial are

a o

f Q

uesnel.

Bo

th o

ptio

ns p

rovi

de

a s

olu

tion to

ad

dre

ss the a

ccess m

anagem

ent challe

ng

es id

entif

ied o

n th

is s

egm

ent in

clu

din

g th

e n

um

ero

us p

rivate

dri

vew

ays

th

at pro

vid

e d

irect access

to b

usin

esses a

nd a

dja

cent

lan

d u

ses. B

oth

options e

ncom

pass the w

hole

stu

dy

segm

ent fr

om

the in

ters

ection o

f S

uth

erl

an

d A

venue

to

Hig

hw

ay

26.

3.5.

7.1

Opt

ion

D1

(.1, .

2, .3

, .4, .5

): T

wo

Mile

Fla

t Acc

ess M

anag

emen

t

Ba

ckgro

un

d:

The s

ectio

n o

f H

igh

wa

y 97 w

hic

h r

uns thro

ugh t

he T

wo M

ile F

lat

are

a o

f Q

uesne

l fr

om

Suth

erla

nd A

ven

ue t

o H

igh

wa

y 2

6 p

rese

nts

a f

ew

nota

ble

challe

ng

es f

or

develo

pin

g im

pro

vem

ent solu

tio

ns. W

hile

colli

sio

n r

ate

s a

re g

en

era

lly lo

wer

on t

his

section,

there

are

a n

um

ber

of

constr

ain

ts inclu

din

g t

he

pro

xim

ity

of

the C

N r

ail

corr

idor,

ind

ustr

ial l

an

d u

ses th

at ab

ut th

e h

igh

wa

y, a

nd n

um

ero

us p

riva

te d

rive

wa

ys w

ith d

irect

hig

hw

ay

access. A

t th

e inte

rsection

of

Bro

wnm

iller

Road,

he

avy

vehic

les tra

ck o

ff the p

ave

ment due to t

he p

oor

geom

etr

y o

n th

e s

ide

-str

eet

appro

ach to

the

hig

hw

ay.

In a

dd

ition, th

e H

igh

wa

y

26 inte

rsection e

xperi

ences a

hig

h c

olli

sio

n s

eve

rity

ra

te.

Op

tion

Desc

rip

tion

:

This

optio

n iden

tifie

s a

lo

ng

-term

pla

n t

o im

pro

ve a

cce

ss

managem

ent th

rough

out th

e w

ho

le T

wo M

ile F

lat

seg

ment of

Hig

hw

ay

97

fro

m S

pears

Road t

o H

igh

wa

y 26.

In t

his

segm

ent, H

igh

wa

y 97

serv

es n

um

ero

us p

rivate

ind

ustr

ial

busin

esses, serv

ices a

nd a

ctiv

ities in

clu

din

g t

he C

VS

E tru

ck

weig

h s

cale

, an

d th

e Q

uesnel A

irport

. M

an

y of

these

busin

esses a

nd s

erv

ices h

ave

direct

dri

vew

ay

access o

ff

Hig

hw

ay

97

, w

hic

h is 4

lan

es w

ide a

nd h

as a

poste

d s

peed

of

70 k

m/h

. F

ew

or

no d

ed

icate

d t

urn

lanes a

re p

rovi

ded to

separa

te h

igher

sp

eed

thro

ugh tra

ffic

fro

m tra

ffic

turn

ing in

to

these d

rive

wa

ys. T

hus, th

is o

ption ide

ntifies a

netw

ork

of

possib

le f

ronta

ge a

nd b

ackage r

oads th

at

were

de

velo

ped

based o

n a

vaila

ble

pub

lic r

ight-

of-

wa

y and p

riva

te

unde

velo

ped la

nd w

ith a

s f

ew

impacts

to e

xis

ting s

tructu

res

as p

ossib

le.

New

Ro

ad

s S

ho

wn

in

Blu

e

This

optio

n is

se

para

ted into

fiv

e s

ub

-are

as b

y th

eir c

onnection t

o th

e n

eare

st m

ajo

r in

ters

ectio

n a

t S

pears

Road,

Hilb

orn

Roa

d,

Pin

ecre

st R

oad,

Quesne

l-

Hix

on R

oad

, an

d H

igh

wa

y 26

. A

ll five

sub-a

reas a

re d

escribed a

nd

eva

luate

d in

furt

her

deta

il in

Ap

pen

dix

L.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

Optio

n D

1 p

rop

oses to c

ha

nge m

an

y of

the

pri

vate

accesses to

busin

esses o

n b

oth

sid

es o

f H

igh

wa

y 9

7. C

urr

ently,

man

y of

these

busin

esses h

ave d

irect access to H

igh

wa

y 97 b

y dri

vew

ay

and

th

is

options w

ould

move

man

y of

these d

irect accesses o

ff H

igh

wa

y 9

7 a

nd

onto

the b

ackage / f

ronta

ge

Road

netw

ork

. T

here

are

man

y d

esig

n

challe

ng

es r

ela

ted

to O

ptio

n D

1 inclu

din

g p

ropert

y im

pacts

and

acquis

itio

n, u

tilit

y im

pacts

, environm

enta

l constr

ain

ts,

pre

sence o

f

exis

ting c

onta

min

ate

d s

ites, and

the

pre

sence

of

pote

ntia

l

arc

haeo

log

ical site

s. T

he c

onceptu

al desig

n m

ust support

WB

-24

desig

n v

eh

icle

s.

Op

tion

D1 O

vera

ll E

valu

atio

n S

um

ma

ry:

Pro

vid

ing a

fro

nta

ge /

backage road re

duces a

ccesses a

nd li

mits

local tr

aff

ic to a

ccess the h

igh

wa

y;

Consolid

ating p

rivate

dri

vew

ays

can

impro

ve tra

ffic

safe

ty;

Level of

serv

ice a

nd h

ea

vy

veh

icle

impacts

wo

uld

no

t chang

e b

y a

consid

era

ble

le

vel;

Pro

pert

y constr

ain

ts o

n t

he e

ast sid

e o

f th

e h

igh

wa

y ne

ar

Sp

ears

Roa

d lim

its a

bili

ty t

o c

onsolid

ate

accesses;

While

few

colli

sio

ns h

ave

occurr

ed o

n this

segm

ent, red

ucin

g the n

um

be

r of accesse

s in

this

section w

ould

pro

vid

e a

be

nefit t

o road s

afe

ty c

ond

itions.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

D1:

Optio

n D

1 o

ffers

a lon

g-t

erm

solu

tion

to

addre

ss t

he

am

ount

of

hig

hw

ay

traff

ic a

nd h

ea

vy

veh

icle

s a

ccessin

g

private

busin

esses a

nd

in

dustr

y d

irectly

off

Hig

hw

ay

97 i

n t

he

Tw

o M

ile F

lat

are

a.

T

his

option

sho

uld

be

com

pare

d t

o O

ption D

2,

whic

h ide

ntif

ies im

pro

vem

ents

with

in t

he e

xis

ting h

igh

wa

y ri

ght

of

wa

y th

roug

h T

wo

Mile

Fla

t. T

hus, it is

recom

mended that

this

option

be a

dvanced

to t

he M

AE

for

furt

her

eva

luation

.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/

Lo

cal C

onn

ectiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

D1:

$34,3

02,3

69

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n D

1:

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n

3.5.

7.2

Opt

ion

D2:

Tw

o M

ile F

lat H

ighw

ay 9

7 Re

conf

igur

atio

n

Ba

ckgro

un

d

A d

iffe

rent appro

ach w

as e

xplo

red t

o a

ddre

ss th

e

hig

hw

ay

safe

ty,

access a

nd

pro

pert

y con

str

ain

t

issues o

n H

igh

wa

y 9

7 thro

ugh T

wo M

ile F

lat as

described

in O

ption D

1.

Op

tion

D2 D

escriptio

n

This

optio

n p

rese

nts

a s

hort

to m

ediu

m term

appro

ach

to im

pro

ve a

ccess m

anagem

ent th

rou

gho

ut

the w

hole

Tw

o M

ile F

lat

by

reconfigurin

g H

igh

wa

y 97

from

a 4

-lane r

ura

l art

eria

l und

ivid

ed h

igh

wa

y in

to a

3-lan

e u

rban a

rteria

l und

ivid

ed h

igh

wa

y. T

his

option

was id

entified d

ue t

o th

e c

halle

ng

es o

f build

ing a

fronta

ge / b

ackage r

oad n

etw

ork

thro

ugh T

wo

Mile

Fla

t in

clu

din

g p

ropert

y constr

ain

ts, to

po

gra

ph

y and

conta

min

ate

d s

ites. B

y re

configuri

ng t

he e

xis

ting

wid

th o

f th

e h

igh

wa

y, it

is p

ossib

le to p

rovid

e

ded

icate

d le

ft turn

lanes a

nd r

igh

t tu

rn d

ece

lera

tio

n

and a

ccele

ratio

n lanes a

t lo

cal r

oad

inte

rsectio

ns a

nd

at m

ajo

r drive

wa

y accesses that serv

e m

ulti

ple

busin

esses a

nd la

nd u

ses.

This

optio

n a

lso a

llow

s

for

a m

ulti

-use p

ath

wa

y to

be p

rovi

de

d in p

ara

llel to

the h

igh

wa

y b

etw

een S

uth

erlan

d A

venue

an

d

Hig

hw

ay

26

.

A f

ull

se

t of

pla

n v

iew

conceptu

al dra

win

gs o

f th

is

option is in

clu

ded in A

pp

en

dix

G.

De

sig

n C

onsid

era

tio

n:

Hig

hw

ay

97

is r

econfig

ure

d to a

n u

rba

n c

ross-s

ectio

n w

ith c

urb

gutt

er

and

sid

ew

alk

. T

he tra

vel l

ane

and c

entr

e t

wo w

ay

left

turn

lane

wid

th is

3.6

mete

rs.

Sin

ce th

is d

esig

n e

ffectiv

ely

narr

ow

s t

he h

igh

wa

y and

supp

ort

s

access to a

dja

cent

land u

se, th

e h

igh

wa

y spe

ed w

ould

be r

educe

d to 5

0

km

/h. T

he m

ulti

-use p

ath

wa

y is

3.0

mete

rs w

ide

and is s

epara

ted

fro

m the

road

wa

y w

ith a

2.0

mete

r b

oule

vard

. T

here

is a

dd

itio

nal s

pace

within

th

e

hig

hw

ay

right

of

wa

y to

pro

vide a

cce

lera

tion

an

d d

ece

lera

tion lan

es a

t ke

y

inte

rsections a

nd m

ajo

r acce

sses; or

to a

dju

st th

e d

esig

n d

eta

ils f

or

the w

idth

of

the lane,

bo

ule

vard

, a

nd m

ulti

-use p

ath

wa

y.

Op

tion

D2:

Eva

luatio

n S

um

mary

This

optio

n im

pro

ves t

he d

esig

n a

nd s

afe

ty o

f access t

o a

dja

ce

nt

land

uses a

nd p

rovi

des s

om

e o

pport

un

ity

to c

onsolid

ate

accesses;

Hea

vy

vehic

le a

nd

tru

cks m

ove

ments

are

im

pro

ved w

ith d

edic

ate

d left

turn

lanes a

nd r

ight

turn

de

cele

ration

an

d a

ccele

ration lan

es;

Hig

hw

ay

thro

ug

h c

ap

acity

is r

educed;

ho

we

ver,

the d

edic

ate

d left

turn

and r

ight

turn

lan

es h

elp

main

tain

thro

ugh

tra

ffic

speeds;

Passin

g o

pport

unitie

s a

re r

estr

icte

d w

ith t

he r

eduction o

f th

rough la

ne c

apacity

from

2 la

nes to 1

lane in e

ach d

irection;

This

optio

n im

pro

ves p

ed

estr

ian a

nd b

icyc

le c

ond

itions a

s there

is n

o a

ctive

tra

nsp

ort

ation c

on

nection c

urr

ently

in e

xis

tence b

etw

een the d

ow

nto

wn

and T

wo M

ile F

lat;

Safe

ty c

ond

itions f

or

pedestr

ians a

nd c

yclis

ts w

ould

impro

ve a

s th

ese m

odes w

ould

not

be r

equ

ired t

o s

hare

the s

ho

uld

er

an

d/o

r tr

ave

l la

nes a

long

Hig

hw

ay

97

;

There

should

be f

ew

ch

alle

nges w

ith t

he c

onstr

ucta

bili

ty o

f th

is o

ptio

n g

iven t

he d

esig

n f

its w

ith

in t

he e

xis

ting

rig

ht

of

wa

y;

Min

imal i

mpacts

to p

ropert

ies a

nd a

dja

cent

land u

ses.

Re

vie

w o

f O

ption

D2:

Optio

n D

2 p

rovi

des a

diffe

rent so

lution t

o a

ddre

ss th

e a

mount of

direct access tha

t lo

ca

l tra

ffic

has to

Hig

hw

ay

97

in the

Tw

o M

ile F

lat

are

a b

y re

ducin

g t

hro

ugh lane

capacity

to im

pro

ve s

ide

-str

eet

access

capacity.

T

his

option s

hou

ld b

e c

om

pare

d to O

ptio

n D

1,

wh

ich iden

tifie

s a

lo

ng

-te

rm fro

nta

ge a

nd b

ackage

road n

etw

ork

to a

ddre

ss th

e s

am

e p

roble

m. T

hus, it

is r

ecom

mended th

at th

is o

ptio

n b

e a

dva

nced t

o th

e

MA

E f

or

furt

her

evalu

ation.

Re

lation

ship

to

Gu

idin

g P

rin

cip

les

Im

pro

ved

So

me

wh

at

Imp

rove

d

Sta

tus

Qu

o

So

me

wh

at

Po

ore

r P

oo

rer

Lo

cal &

Re

gio

na

l T

raff

ic

✓

Imp

rove

Safe

ty

✓

Pe

d /

Bik

e C

on

diti

ons

✓

Le

vel o

f S

erv

ice

✓

Access M

an

ag

em

ent

/ Lo

cal

Con

ne

ctiv

ity

✓

Mitig

ate

He

avy

Ve

hic

le

Imp

acts

✓

Co

nce

ptu

al P

lann

ing

-Leve

l P

roje

ct C

ost E

stim

ate

: O

pti

on

D2:

$24,7

10,4

66

The c

onceptu

al d

esig

n d

raw

ing

is p

rovid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

G.

The c

ost

estim

ate

bre

akdow

n is

pro

vid

ed in A

pp

en

dix

H.

Re

co

mm

en

da

tio

n f

or

Op

tio

n D

2

A

dva

nce t

o M

ultip

le A

ccou

nt E

valu

atio

n

Table 3.2 summarizes the recommendations for each option as previously evaluated according to the guiding

principles. It is noted that Options B1, C1 and C2-b advance to the MAE for further evaluation as a combined

downtown online solution.

Table 3.2: Summary of Option Development Recommendations based on Guiding Principles Evaluation

Study

Segment Option Name Screening Outcome

Alternate

Route

Option AR-1a North-South Interconnector (4-Lane)

Advance to MAE

Option AR-1b: North South Interconnector (2-Lane) Screen-Out

Option AR-2 (a&b):

North South Industrial Connector Screen-Out

Option AR-3: East-West Connector Screen-Out

Option AR-4: North-South Bypass Screen-Out

A

South

Quesnel

Option A1: Basalt Rd. and Gook Rd. Access Management (2-lane) Screen-Out


Advance to MAE







B

North Star


Advance to MAE individually and in combination with Options C1, C2-b

Option B2: Quesnel River Bridge to Nadeau Street Sidewalk Screen-Out

C

Downtown

Quesnel


Advanced to MAE in combination with Options B1, C2-b

Option C2-a: Front Street 4-Laning Reconfiguration Screen-Out


Advance to Implementation Plan and to MAE in combination with Options B1, C1

Option C3 Relocate Traffic Signal from Reid St. to McLean St.


Option C4: Signalize Sutherland Ave / Highway 97 Screen-Out

D

Two Mile

Flat


Advance to MAE


Advance to MAE

As previously outlined, a set of 14 on-highway improvement options and 6 alternate route options were developed

to a conceptual level. The options were evaluated against the project’s six guiding principles to understand how

well each of the options support the objectives of the overall Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan. Of the

total 20 options that were previously identified, 7 options have been advanced for further evaluation within the

MAE framework including a benefit-cost analysis (Note: Option B1 is assessed in the MAE twice). Table 3.3

summarizes the options that have been evaluated within the MAE.

Table 3.3: Summary of Options Assessed in the MAE

Study Area Option Name

Alternate Route Option AR-1a: North-South Interconnector (4-Lane)

A - South Quesnel Option A2: Basalt Rd. and Gook Rd. Access Management (4-lane)

B - North Star Option B1: Quesnel River Bridge and Quesnel Overhead Replacement

D - Two Mile Flat Option D1: Frontage and Backage Road Network

Option D2: Highway 97 Reconfiguration to Urban 3-Lane Design

Online Downtown

Solution

(Evaluated as 1

Option)




The MAE was applied to 7 of the 20 options developed in this study. The primary purpose to advance these

options into the MAE was to determine a preferred option among the competing options. Further, the benefits

and costs were quantified to obtain an overall benefit-cost ratio that was used to identify the preferred options.

The MAE consists of five accounts including the Financial, Customer Service (Mobility and Safety), Social /

Community, Environmental, and Economic Indicators accounts. The assumptions and methodology applied to

quantifying the benefits and costs of each account is described as follows:

Financial Account

The financial account includes the conceptual planning level project cost estimate which includes the capital

investment costs for planning, project management, property acquisition, design and engineering, environmental,

construction, First Nations accommodation and regional recoveries. These high-level planning cost estimates

include a contingency of 35% for each of the cost elements. Quantities for the cost estimate have been

developed from the conceptual designs and items and unit rates are based on similar BC MoTI projects.

This account also includes annual maintenance and rehabilitations costs, and the salvage value (based on 20%

of the construction cost only) at the end of the project’s life cycle. These future annual costs are discounted at a

rate of 6% to calculate the net present value of the overall net project cost.

Customer Service Account

The customer service account represents the cost to intersection users over the life cycle of the project. This

includes values for travel time, vehicle operating costs, and collisions accrued and discounted over 25 years.

Given that the customer service account reflects the benefits of proposed improvements to highway users over 25

years, this account is particularly sensitive to traffic growth rate assumptions. Thus, the options that are

evaluated in the MAE have been assessed with the normal 0.5% background traffic growth rate, and with the

1.5% sensitivity analysis traffic growth rate.

The mobility (travel time savings) have been calculated using Synchro and SimTraffic models for the selected

options to measure the level of improvement or reduction in vehicle travel time, travel distance and fuel consumed

that the option offers in comparison to existing conditions. The travel time savings have been calculated using the

MoTI Default Values for Benefit Cost Analysis (2012), which were factored up to account for inflation. An annual

inflation rate of 1.47%, as supplied by Statistics Canada, was applied to these default values.

Vehicle operating costs are measured based on the type and percentage of passenger vehicles and heavy

vehicles travelling on the highway, and their fuel usage, which is factored into an actual cost and discounted over

the 25 year lifecycle.

The safety benefits have been calculated based on a high-level comparison of the main differences that the

option provides over existing conditions (e.g. unsignalized intersection vs. signalized). A simplified collision

prediction model (CPM) was developed for the base highway conditions and collision modification factors (CMF)

were applied for the option to obtain a relative safety benefit for the option.

Social Community Account

The social / community account assesses the potential effect of the option on community and social values. The

criteria used to evaluate this account include vehicle connectivity, pedestrian and cyclist connectivity, and

consistency with community plans. Input provided by technical representatives from the City of Quesnel and the

Cariboo Regional District has been incorporated into this account.

Environmental Account

The environmental account describes the potential for biophysical and natural resource impacts of a project. This

is not intended to replace an environmental assessment, if required, but as a qualitative and quantitative measure

of potential impacts. Qualitative criteria including noise, visual and pollution impacts have been used to evaluate

the options. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have been quantified based on the SimTraffic analysis results for

traffic fuel use, which is based on the rate of vehicle stopping, travel time and delays. A calculation of carbon

dioxide, nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbon emissions for the option in comparison to existing conditions is provided.

Economic Indicators Account

The economic indicators account represents a summation of the quantitative benefits and costs from each of the

four preceding accounts to obtain a benefit-cost ratio (b/c ratio) and a net present value (NPV) of the project costs

in today’s dollars. Typically a b/c ratio of 1.0 or greater is needed to justify the economic feasibility for a project to

proceed to implementation. At the end of the MAE of each option, an outcome is provided with a clear

recommendation of whether to implement the option or to not implement the option.

3.6.2.1 Option AR-1a: North-South Interconnector

This option consists of providing a new alignment for Highway 97 around the north side of the downtown Quesnel

and replacing the Quesnel River Bridge and Quesnel Overhead with a 4-lane highway design. The MAE is

provided for Option AR-1a as summarized in Table 3.4.

Option AR-1a is compared to the downtown online improvement solution that is formed by the combination of

Options B1, C1 and C2-b. The costs and benefits of these combined improvements are evaluated here in

comparison to Option AR-1a.

Financial Account

Option AR-1a - The conceptual project cost estimate for Option AR-1a (4-lane) North-South Interconnector is

$162,959,887 and an estimate breakdown is provided in Appendix H. Operation and maintenance costs are

approximately $2.6M to maintain the new travel lanes and bridge structures (at this time, additional operational

costs for retaining walls have not been incorporated). However, if the existing highway alignment along Carson

Avenue and Front Street can be devolved to the City, this new route could result in less overall O&M costs than

existing. The salvage value, based on construction costs, is $19.3M.

Options B1, C1, C2-b – The conceptual project cost estimate for all three options combined to form a downtown

improvement solution is $104,287,695. Operation and maintenance costs account for cost to maintain the new

structures over the Quesnel River Bridge, additional travel lane resurfacing, and the new Rail overpass structure

as part of Option C1. The salvage value, based on construction costs, is $12.6M.

Customer Service Account (Safety and Mobility Benefits)

Option AR-1a – This options provides a significant safety benefit as it reduces the number of major intersections

on the highway from eleven to two and shortens the overall length of Highway 97. The safety benefits amount to

$23.4M under normal growth and $25.6M under the sensitivity growth scenario.

Mobility benefits are also significant as an estimate of 10,300 vpd could be redistributed onto the new route by

2042 under the 0.5% background growth rate, as previously shown in Figure 3.2. The forecast usage of this route

is based on the analysis of origin-destination data collected as part of the existing conditions study. Further, traffic

volumes on Front Street would reduce from 15,300 vpd to as low as 5,000 vpd and volumes on Highway 97 east

of Carson Avenue before the Quesnel Overhead could be reduced to as low as 10,500 vpd.

Option AR-1a is 1.4 km shorter in distance compared to the existing Highway 97 alignment through downtown,

and has 11 fewer intersections. This shorter and more direct route leads to an average estimated travel time

savings of 2 minutes and 38 seconds per vehicle or 52% travel time savings over the existing route. This

estimate is based on average travel conditions and is considered conservative. This redistribution of highway

traffic to a faster and more direct route is estimated to result in $93.1M of mobility benefits under the normal

growth scenario, and $113.6M under the sensitivity scenario.

Options B1, C1, C2-b – Unlike Option AR-1a, the downtown solution provides only an incremental improvement

in mobility and safety benefits as the number of major intersections which highway traffic must pass through

reduces from 11 to 8 intersections. This translates to a safety benefit of $3.2M under normal growth conditions,

and $4.1M under the sensitivity growth scenario. Mobility benefits amount to $7.1M under normal growth

conditions, and $14.3M under the sensitivity growth scenario.

Table 3.4: MAE for Option AR-1a in comparison with Options B1, C1, C2-b

Social / Community Account

Option AR-1a - Since the north-south industrial connector would provide an alternate route to the existing

alignment, vehicle connectivity would improve. Both local and regional travellers would have two route options to

travel north-south across the City, as opposed to only one currently. Pedestrian and cyclist connectivity would

Option AR-1a Option B1, C1, C2-b Option AR-1a Option B1, C1, C2-b

North-South

Interconnector

4 Lanes

Online Downtown

Highway Improvements

North-South

Interconnector

4 Lanes

Online Downtown

Highway Improvements

FINANCIAL

162,959,887$ 143,363,306$ 162,959,887$ 143,363,306$

94,257,794$ 74,661,213$ 94,257,794$ 74,661,213$

2,638,583$ 2,439,900$ 2,638,583$ 2,439,900$

19,344,370$ 16,779,550$ 19,344,370$ 16,779,550$

146,254,100$ 129,023,656$ 146,254,100$ 129,023,656$

84,547,247$ 67,316,803$ 84,547,247$ 67,316,803$

SAFETY BENEFITS

38,574,832$ 38,574,832$ 41,457,048$ 41,457,048$ 15,146,002$ 35,291,696$ 15,809,369$ 37,380,824$

23,428,830$ 3,283,136$ 25,647,679$ 4,076,224$

MOBILITY BENEFITS

100,211,723$ 100,211,723$ 122,642,178$ 122,642,178$ 47,873,348$ 94,886,115$ 58,539,644$ 112,708,662$ 52,338,375$ 5,325,608$ 64,102,534$ 9,933,516$

82,935,021$ 82,935,021$ 99,305,508$ 99,305,508$ 42,127,942$ 81,182,492$ 49,797,854$ 94,874,763$

OPERATING COST BENEFIT 40,807,080$ 1,752,529$ 49,507,654$ 4,430,745$

93,145,455$ 7,078,137$ 113,610,188$ 14,364,261$

SOCIAL/COMMUNITY

Vehicle Connectivity

Pedestrian and Cyclist Connectivity

Consistency with Community Plan

ENVIRONMENTAL

Noise Impacts

Visual Impacts

Pollution Impacts

GHG EMISSIONS

EXISTING GHG (tonnes/yr) 8,930.42 8,930.42 10,026.96 10,026.96IMPROVED GHG (tonnes/yr) 4,309.35 8,312.02 4,757.95 9,068.10ANNUAL SAVINGS (tonnes/yr) 4,621.07 618.40 5,269.01 958.86

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1.38 0.15 1.65 0.27

32,027,037.96$ (56,955,530.19)$ 54,710,619.95$ (48,876,318.06)$ NET PRESENT VALUE - NET OF DO-

MINIMUM

Project Cost - Net of Do-Minimum Option B1-b

TOTAL LIFE CYCLE COSTS - NET OF DO-

MINIMUM

BENEFIT COST RATIO - NET OF DO-

MINIMUM

0.5% Annual Traffic GrowthSensitivity Analysis

1.5% Annual Traffic Growth

MAE - 25 Year Benefit Cost Analysis

TOTAL MOBILITY BENEFITS

Existing Safety CostsImproved SafetyCosts

TOTAL SAFETY BENEFITS

Existing Mobility CostsImproved Mobility CostsMOBILITY BENEFIT

Vehicle Operating Existing Costs

Project Cost - Actual

Vehicle Operating Improved Costs

MaintenanceSalvage ValueTOTAL LIFE CYCLE COSTS - ACTUAL

also improve with the addition of new pedestrian and cycle facilities on the new Quesnel River Bridge and

Quesnel Overhead structures.

While this option is not discussed or shown in existing community plans, the City of Quesnel has expressed

strong support for this option. Some of the community benefits it offers include moving most heavy vehicles and

highway traffic off of Front Street and the downtown core to improve safety and accessibility. Moving heavy

vehicles off of Front Street also reduces the risk of chemical spills in the downtown and improved air quality. This

option also provides significant opportunity for redevelopment of the downtown and for the City to consider

acquiring Front Street and Carson Avenue back into the downtown street network.

Options B1, C1, C2-b – The combination of improvements to Highway 97 on the existing alignment would have

little improvement to vehicle connectivity and actually reduces connectivity to Carson Avenue. Similar to Option

AR-1a, pedestrian and cyclist connectivity would improve with a new facility that would be provided on the new

Quesnel River crossing structures for these users. As previously discussed for Option C1, the City does not see

significant value with this solution as it does not address the key objectives of reducing highway and heavy truck

traffic on Front Street.

Environmental

Option AR-1a – This option could potentially have impacts to noise levels in the residential areas that would be

located closest to this route; however, these impacts could be mitigated by sound barrier walls. The route would

follow parallel to the CN railway and be located about half-way between the plateau on which downtown Quesnel

is built on, and the waterfront. Thus, visual impacts would be relatively contained. Pollution and GHG emissions

would be reduced by up to 4,621 tonnes per year as a result of lower vehicle operating costs and fuel

consumption.

This option does traverse known geotechnical issues along the embankment between downtown Quesnel and the

Quesnel River including the PGE Railway Mile 385 Slide and the PGE Railway Texaco Slide. Both slides require

further site investigation as the existing slope stability is uncertain. The description of these slides is discussed

further within the technical memorandum Terrain Stability (Geohazard) Constraints – Summary, Highway 97

Quesnel Transportation Plan, completed by Amed Foster Wheeler Environment and Infrastructure and included in

Appendix F.

Options B1, C1, C2-b – Environmental impacts as a result of this downtown network solution would be relatively

minimal. While Option C1 would have a visual impact on the south downtown Quesnel area, the overall solution

maintains Highway 97 on a very similar alignment to how it exists today. Some incremental reductions to GHG

emissions and pollution could be achieved with this solution.

Economic Indicators Account

The benefit-cost ratio and net present value for both Option AR-1a and the downtown combined solution (Option

B1, C1 and C2-b) were calculated based the assumption that the existing Quesnel River Bridge and the Quesnel

Overhead must be replaced. The do-minimum cost to replace these bridges is the same as the conceptual

project cost estimate for Option B1-b.

Option AR-1a -The b/c ratio net of the do-minimum cost (Option B1-b) is a ratio of 1.38 under normal growth

conditions, and 1.65 under sensitivity growth conditions. This is equal to a positive net present value of $32.027M

under normal growth conditions or $54.711M under sensitivity growth conditions.

Options B1, C1, C2-b - The b/c ratio net of the do-minimum cost (Option B1-b) is a ratio of 0.15 under normal

growth conditions, and 0.27 under sensitivity growth conditions. This is equal to a negative net present value of

$(56.956M) under normal growth conditions or $(48.876M) under sensitivity growth conditions.

Review of Option AR-1a and Downtown Options (B1, C1, C2-B)

Overall, Option AR-1a provides great value, benefits and a b/c ratio that is justified as a positive economic project,

and which supports the objectives of the City of Quesnel, the MoTI, and community organizations. Option B1, C1,

and C2-b provides only a fraction of the value that Option AR-1a provides, but at a similar order of magnitude cost

and with a negative net present value.

Outcome for Option AR-1a:

Recommended for Implementation as a Short-Term Project.

Outcome for Downtown Solution - Options B1, C1 and C2-b

Not Recommended.

3.6.3.1 Option A2: Basalt Road and Gook Road Access Management (4-Lane)

Option A2 consists of upgrading Highway 97 from 2 lanes to 4 lanes of traffic with turn lanes at the intersections

of Basalt Road and Gook Road. Two design variants are explored at the Gook Road / Highway 97 intersection

including a left-turn in restricted intersection (Variant 1), and a full movement signalized intersection (Variant 2). A

protected ‘T’ intersection is proposed at the Basalt Road / Highway 97 intersection. The MAE for Option A2 is

summarized in Table 3.5.

Financial Account

The conceptual project cost estimate for Option A2 Variant 1 is $22,260,023 and the cost estimate for Option A2

Variant 2 is $22,298,285. An estimate breakdown for both design variants is provided in Appendix H. In

comparison to Option A1, this option requires more property to widen the existing 2-lane highway to a 4-lane

highway, and it requires offsetting the existing frontage roads further back from the existing highway shoulder.

Operation and maintenance costs would be expected to increase by an additional $828,500 over the 25 year

project lifecycle for both variants due to the wider paved right of way on Highway 97. The salvage value at the

end of the lifecycle for design variant 1 with turn restricted intersections is $1,473,630; and for design variant 2 is

$1,514,130.


Highway traffic safety would be improve under both design variants. Consistent among both design options, three

existing accesses to the frontage roads would be closed, which results in fewer turning movements on and off the

highway and safety benefits. The left-turn in restriction at Gook Road / Highway 97 would restrict all left turns and

cross highway turns from the side-streets onto Highway 97. Similarly, the protected ‘T’ restricted intersection at

Basalt Road / Highway 97 would restrict left turns into and out of the east leg of the intersection. The net safety

benefit with design variant 1 is estimated to be $2,155,000 over existing conditions.

Design variant 2 with a traffic signal proposed at Gook Road / Highway 97 would also observe a safety benefit,

albeit slightly less than variant 1 as no turning restrictions would be implemented, and because traffic signals

have a limited effectiveness of reducing collisions. The net safety benefit with design variant 2 is estimated to be

$1,391,600 over existing conditions. Further, the design of these intersections includes greater throat spacing

between the highway intersections and the frontage road intersections, which improves heavy vehicle turning

movements and prevents vehicle over-tracking into opposing lanes.

Highway mobility is expected to improve with both design variants. A2 with design variant 1 (turn restrictions) was

calculated to have a mobility benefit of $6,280,500 under normal growth. The mobility benefit for design variant 2

(signalization) is $2,226,500 under normal growth. Clearly, the traffic signal would incur some additional delay to

highway through volumes, which results in the lower mobility benefit compared to variant 1 with the restricted

intersection designs at Basalt Road and Gook Road.

Table 3.5: Option A2 MAE Evaluation

Variant 1

Left-in Only

Restriction' at Gook

Road / Highway 97

Variant 2

Signal at Gook

Road / Highway 97

Variant 1

Left-in Only

Restriction' at Gook

Road / Highway 97

Variant 2

Signal at Gook Road

/ Highway 97

FINANCIAL

$22,260,023 $22,298,285 $22,260,023 $22,298,285

828,473.16$ 828,473.16$ 828,473.16$ 828,473.16$

1,473,630.00$ 1,514,130.00$ 1,473,630.00$ 1,514,130.00$

21,614,866.16$ 21,612,628.16$ 21,614,866.16$ 21,612,628.16$

SAFETY BENEFITS

$12,711,256 $12,711,256 $13,610,964 $13,610,964$10,556,127 $11,319,622 $11,283,353 $12,065,175

2,155,129.00$ 1,391,634.00$ 2,327,611.00$ 1,545,789.00$

MOBILITY BENEFITS

21,166,000.00$ 21,166,000.00$ 21,931,000.00$ 21,931,000.00$ 16,199,000.00$ 19,790,000.00$ 17,110,000.00$ 21,002,000.00$

4,967,000.00$ 1,376,000.00$ 4,821,000.00$ 929,000.00$

7,062,546.19$ 7,062,546.19$ 7,462,048.01$ 7,462,048.01$ 5,749,000.00$ 6,212,000.00$ 6,048,000.00$ 6,575,000.00$

OPERATING COST BENEFIT 1,313,546.19$ 850,546.19$ 1,414,048.01$ 887,048.01$

6,280,546.19$ 2,226,546.19$ 6,235,048.01$ 1,816,048.01$

SOCIAL/COMMUNITY




ENVIRONMENTAL

Noise Impacts

Visual Impacts

Pollution Impacts

GHG EMISSIONS

EXISTING GHG (tonnes/yr) 990.61 990.61 1,063.89 1,063.89IMPROVED GHG (tonnes/yr) 806.12 870.70 861.30 936.36ANNUAL SAVINGS (tonnes/yr) 184.49 119.90 202.59 127.53

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Benefit Cost Ratio 0.39 0.17 0.40 0.16

Net Present Value (13,179,190.97)$ (17,994,447.97)$ (13,052,207.16)$ (18,250,791.16)$

Good

Fair

Poor

Sensitivity Analysis


Option A2: 4-Lane Basalt Road to Gook MAE - 25 Year Benefit Cost

Analysis






Project Cost


MaintenanceSalvage Value (20%)TOTAL LIFE CYCLE COSTS


Option A2: 4-Lane Basalt Road to Gook

Road


Variant 1 with the turn restricted intersections would result in reduced vehicle connectivity for traffic entering and

leaving some of the businesses and land uses adjacent to Highway 97. Further, variant 1 would provide

improved pedestrian and cycle connectivity on either side of Highway 97 as a result of the frontage and backage

road network improvements; however these users would not observe any changes with respect to crossing the

highway. The City has expressed concern that the turn restrictions at Gook Road / Highway 97 would make it

challenging for nearby businesses to access the highway.

Variant 2 would provide improved vehicle connectivity across the highway with the traffic signal at Gook Road.

This design variant would also result in improved pedestrian and cycle conditions with the addition of new

signalized crosswalks that would be provided in conjunction with a traffic signal at Gook Road / Highway 97 and

the associated frontage and backage road improvements. This design variant is supported by the City.

Environmental

Impacts to the environment are expected to be incrementally positive in general. No significant noise impact is

expected with variant 1; however, the traffic signal under variant 2 will lead to increased vehicle stopping and

starting noise on highway through movements. Pollution and GHG emissions are forecast to reduce on an

incremental level as vehicle fuel and operating costs are expected to reduce.

Economic Indicators

The benefit cost analysis of both design variants indicates that neither option has a b/c ratio greater than 1.0.

Design variant 1 has the highest b/c ratio of 0.39 and design variant 2 has a b/c ratio of 0.17 under normal growth

conditions. Further, the net present value of each design option is considerably negative despite the mobility and

safety benefits that are applied. The b/c ratio and net present value of the options would likely be much higher if

the traffic usage of the highway and side-streets was higher and if there was a history of more collisions than is

currently present and forecast over the project lifecycle.

Review of Option A2

Despite the low b/c ratio that this option provides, there is still good long-term value in providing a consistent

design to the Highway 97 corridor in the South Quesnel area. As such, we recommend reviewing the economic

feasibility of this project, and revisiting detailed access / intersection configurations in the future as a long-term

implementation project.

Outcome for Option A2:

Recommended for Implementation as a Long-Term Project.

3.6.4.1 Option B1(a&b): Quesnel River Bridge and Quesnel Overhead Replacement

Option B1-b consists of replacement of the existing 2-lane wide Quesnel River Bridge and the Quesnel Overhead

bridges while maintaining Highway 97 on its existing alignment into downtown Quesnel. Option B1-a consists of

the same replacement, but with two 4-lane wide structures to match the laning and capacity of Highway 97 south

of the bridges. The MAE for Option B1(a&b) is summarized in Table 3.6. Option B1-a has also been assessed in

conjunction with Option C1 and C2-b as a downtown online Highway 97 improvement solution and is compared

with Option AR-1: North-South Interconnector. This comparison is provided with the MAE for Option AR-1.

Financial Account

The conceptual project cost estimate for Option B1-a is $99,667,206 to replace the existing 2-lane structures with

4-lane wide structures, as shown in the estimate breakdown provided in Appendix H. The conceptual project

cost estimate for Option B1-b, otherwise known as the do-minimum option, is $68,702,093 to replace the existing

2-lane structures with new 2-lane structures. Operation and maintenance costs would observe an increase over

the existing facility by approximately $1.2M to $2.3M to maintain the additional pavement surface and bridge deck

surface area. The salvage value of the new structures is estimated at $8.3M for Option B1-b and $12.4M for

Option B1-a.


The safety and mobility benefits for replacing the existing structures are relatively low in comparison to the project

costs. The safety benefits of the proposed improvements account for the wider 4-lane cross-section with Option

B1-a, wider shoulders and a wider median along the highway and bridge decks since there is no shoulder or

median on the existing structures. Under the normal 0.5% traffic growth scenario, the safety benefits amount to

$7.6M for Option B1-a and $7.2M for Option B1-b.

The mobility benefits were calculated for Option B1-a based on the additional lane capacity that the structures

would provide. The analysis was run in SimTraffic to calculate the travel time savings under both normal and

sensitivity growth scenarios. The normal growth scenario lead to a mobility benefit of $10.7M and the sensitivity

scenario lead to a benefit of $3.7M. No mobility benefits are anticipated for Option B1-b as this option does not

increase traffic capacity or mobility compared to the existing bridges.


Vehicle connectivity on the Highway would be maintained as this option does not provide any additional

connections to local and regional routes in comparison to the existing infrastructure. However, this criteria is

especially important as the Quesnel River Bridge and Quesnel Overhead provide critical connectivity to the whole

BC interior region that is connected by Highway 97. Pedestrian and cyclist connectivity is improved as new

sidewalk and pathway facilities would be provided on the structures that would provide improved accessibility and

safety for these users to cross the Quesnel River. Further, this option is consistent with the existing OCP and

transportation network, though it is noted that it does not provide any new opportunities for changing the role and

function of local streets and land uses that connect with the highway in downtown Quesnel. The City supports the

replacement of the bridges, but prefers that this replacement occurs in support of Option AR-1a: North South

Interconnector.

Environmental

Impacts to the environment are generally neutral as this option is essentially a replacement of existing

infrastructure; thus, visual and noise impacts are considered minimal. Pollution and GHG emissions are forecast

to reduce as a result of the additional laning capacity that reduces vehicle fuel consumption over the 25-year

project lifecycle.

Table 3.6: Option B1(a&b) MAE

Option B1-a Option B1-b Option B1-a Option B1-b

4-Lane Quesnel River

Bridge and Overhead

Replacement


Bridge and Overhead

Replacement


Bridge and Overhead

Replacement


Bridge and Overhead

Replacement

FINANCIAL

99,667,208$ 68,702,093$ 99,667,208$ 68,702,093$

2,335,439$ 1,232,680$ 2,335,439$ 1,232,680$

12,474,200$ 8,277,920$ 12,474,200$ 8,277,920$

89,528,446.72$ 61,656,852.83$ 89,528,446.72$ 61,656,852.83$

SAFETY BENEFITS

$18,094,438 $18,094,438 $19,155,768 $19,155,768$10,430,108 $10,899,072 $11,010,681 $11,538,383

7,664,330.00$ 7,195,366.00$ 8,145,087.00$ 7,617,385.00$

MOBILITY BENEFITS

23,254,000.00$ 23,254,000.00$ 25,668,000.00$ 25,668,000.00$ 13,851,000.00$ 23,254,000.00$ 22,947,000.00$ 25,668,000.00$

9,403,000.00$ -$ 2,721,000.00$ -$

4,629,439.65$ 4,629,439.65$ 4,764,423.46$ 4,764,423.46$ 3,323,000.00$ 4,629,439.65$ 4,308,000.00$ 4,764,423.46$

OPERATING COST BENEFIT 1,306,439.65$ -$ 456,423.46$ -$

10,709,439.65$ -$ 3,177,423.46$ -$

SOCIAL/COMMUNITY




ENVIRONMENTAL

Noise Impacts

Visual Impacts

Pollution Impacts

GHG EMISSIONS

EXISTING GHG (tonnes/yr) 650.13 650.13 682.96 682.96IMPROVED GHG (tonnes/yr) 469.88 650.13 619.91 682.96ANNUAL SAVINGS (tonnes/yr) 180.25$ -$ 63.05$ -$ ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

0.21 0.12 0.13 0.12

(71,154,677.07)$ (54,461,486.83)$ (78,205,936.26)$ (54,039,467.83)$


Project Cost


MaintenanceSalvage ValueTOTAL LIFE CYCLE COSTS

NET PRESENT VALUE

BENEFIT COST RATIO

Sensitivity Analysis - 1.5% Annual Traffic Growth







Economic Indicators

Option B1-a with a b/c ratio of 0.21 and Option B1-b with a b/c ratio of 0.12 under normal growth conditions

suggests that these options are not economically feasible. However, it should be considered that this option is

essentially a long-term asset management cost as the existing Quesnel River Bridge and Quesnel Overhead

provide immense economic value and support to multiple communities located throughout the BC Interior region,

stretching from Cache Creek up to Prince George. The cost of losing this vital economic link would be

significantly greater than the cost to replace both structures.

Review of Option B1(a&b)

Overall, Option B1(a&b) provides a straightforward approach to addressing the largest challenge with Highway 97

in Quesnel, which is the required replacement of the Quesnel River Bridge and Quesnel Overhead. The poor B/C

ratio may be hard to justify this option given that Option AR-1a North South Interconnector is able to retain a

much higher B/C ratio in comparison and can address many other challenges including highway safety on Front

Street, increased travel time savings, and improved connectivity. If Option AR-1a becomes unfeasible to

construct upon further highway planning and preliminary design, this option should move forward as the preferred

alternative.

Outcome for Option B1:

Not Recommended. However, Option B1 may be considered the preferred alternative to Option AR-1a if it is

found through further study that the North-South Interconnector is unfeasible for construction.

3.6.5.1 Option D1: Frontage and Backage Road Network

Option D1 consist of developing a network of frontage and backage roads that parallels Highway 97 through

adjacent local land uses and available public right-of-way to reduce the number of private driveways and

accesses on Highway 97. This option involves significant land impacts and constraints with existing business

operations. This option is intended to be a long term plan for further discussion. Option D1 is assessed in the

MAE as summarized in Table 3.7 in a more qualitative layout due to limited traffic count information to quantify

mobility and safety benefits.

Financial Account

The conceptual project cost estimate for this option is $34,302,369 and an estimate breakdown is provided in

Appendix H. Operating and maintenance costs would increase due to the increased length and paved surface

area of new roads and supporting

infrastructure.

Customer Service Account (Safety and

Mobility Benefits)

Highway traffic safety would improve by

removing many of the private driveways and

accesses, and consequently the turning

movements on and off the highway that are

currently permitted. Further, local traffic

would be directed to access the highway at

controlled access points that would also

result in improved local traffic safety. It

should be noted that collision rates are

relatively low along this segment of Highway

97 and the safety benefits may not outweigh

the cost of providing this local road network

system until traffic volumes and collision

rates increase. Pedestrian and cyclist safety

would improve considerably as these users

would be able to use the local frontage and

backage road network instead of using the

shoulder of Highway 97.

Highway and local traffic mobility would be

expected to improve. With fewer turning

movements onto and off the highway,

through traffic would observe fewer delays

and local traffic would be able to make

greater use of the dedicated left turn and right turn bays that are provided at the major intersections of Rome

Avenue, Pinecrest Avenue, Quesnel-Hixon Road and Highway 26.


Similar to the customer service account, vehicle, pedestrian and cyclist connectivity would also observe

improvements as these modes can only currently rely on Highway 97 as the main transportation route. Providing

Table 3.7: Option D1 MAE

ACCOUNT Two Mile Flat

Frontage and Backage Road Network

FINANCIAL Option D1

Project Cost $ 34,302,369.00

Operating & Maintenance Cost

SAFETY BENEFITS

Safety (highway and local traffic)

Safety (pedestrians / cyclists)

MOBILITY BENEFITS

Mobility (highway)

Mobility (local traffic)

Vehicle Operating Costs

SOCIAL/COMMUNITY




ENVIRONMENTAL

Noise Impacts

Visual Impacts

Pollution / GHG Emission Impacts

Good FairPoor

a frontage and backage road network would provide more options to these users for easier access to residences,

businesses and industry in the Two Mile Flat area.

The City has reviewed this option and feels that the network of frontage and backage roads is theoretical and

difficult to implement due to the existing amount of developed land use along the corridor. However, the City

supports MoTI’s plan for Option D1 where it is feasible to construct frontage / backage roads.

Environmental

Noise and visual impacts to the environment in the community would be the most noticeable since much of the

local traffic which currently accesses businesses from the highway would be re-directed to the new frontage and

backage road network where other businesses and residents may not be accustomed to. Pollution and GHG

emissions may or may not reduce for two reasons. First, removing the accesses and associated traffic from the

highway would reduce through traffic delay and result in improved emissions. However, local traffic may have to

take a longer route on the frontage and backage road network to access the highway, which would increase

emissions.

Review of Option D1

This option offers a long-term solution for access management on Highway 97 between Spears Road and

Highway 26. However, this option comes at a significant cost and with the typical challenges that are involved in

planning, designing and building new roads around existing developed land uses. This option could be

implemented in phases over time and as development occurs. This option would require the direct input and

collaboration with City staff and Council.

Option D2 provides an alternative solution that involves reconfiguring the existing highway design to better

support access to adjacent land uses. While Option D2 would be considered easier to implement due to fewer

property acquisitions, constraints and technical challenges, its review in the MAE indicates that such a solution

would come at the cost of highway traffic mobility.

3.6.5.2 Option D2: Reconfiguration to Urban 3-Lane Design

Option D2 consists of reconfiguring the existing rural arterial undivided 4-lane segment of Highway 97 between

Spears Road to Highway 26 into an urban arterial undivided 3-lane segment with turn lanes at intersections and

major accesses. While Option D1 provides a long-term, yet challenging, solution to address access issues along

the corridor, Option D2 provides a solution to address these access issues by considering that the existing high-

speed rural 4-lane highway may not be the best facility to support safe access to the adjacent land use that is

becoming more urbanized. The design of Option D2 includes 1 lane in each direction with a centre two-way left

turn lane and/or back-to-back left turn lanes, shoulders, curb and gutter, and a multi-use pathway that is

separated by a boulevard. The MAE for Option D2 is summarized in Table 3.8.

Financial Account

The conceptual project cost estimate for this option is $24,710,466 and an estimate breakdown is provided in

Appendix H. Operating and maintenance costs would decrease since the paved surface width of asphalt area of

the travel lanes and the multi-use pathway is approximately 4 metres less than the existing paved width of the

Outcome for Option D1:

Recommend for further study and consultation jointly with Option D2.

rural 4-lane highway over a distance of 3.5 kilometres. The salvage value at the end of the project’s 25-year

lifecycle is $2,750,980.

Table 3.8: Option D2 MAE

0.5% Annual Traffic

Growth

Sensitivity Analysis - 1.5%

Annual Traffic Growth

FINANCIAL

$24,710,466 $24,710,466

(353,617)$ (353,617)$

2,750,980$ 2,750,980$

21,605,869.41$ 21,605,869.41$

SAFETY BENEFITS

$19,301,171 $20,374,781$12,938,041 $13,420,331

6,363,130.00$ 6,954,450.00$

MOBILITY BENEFITS

66,881,000.00$ 69,832,000.00$ 77,951,000.00$ 86,555,000.00$ (11,070,000.00)$ (16,723,000.00)$

18,238,671.12$ 19,766,525.40$ 26,945,000.00$ 26,768,000.00$

OPERATING COST BENEFIT (8,706,328.88)$ (7,001,474.60)$

(19,776,328.88)$ (23,724,474.60)$

SOCIAL/COMMUNITY




ENVIRONMENTAL

Noise Impacts

Visual Impacts

Pollution Impacts

GHG EMISSIONS

EXISTING GHG (tonnes/yr) 2,567.28 2,814.30IMPROVED GHG (tonnes/yr) 3,808.04 3,905.62ANNUAL SAVINGS (tonnes/yr) (1,240.77)$ (1,091.32)$ ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Benefit Cost Ratio -0.62 -0.78

Net Present Value (35,019,068.29)$ (38,375,894.01)$

Good

Fair

Poor

Option D2: 3-Lane Highway 97 With Multi-Use Path

and Sidewalks







Project Cost


MaintenanceSalvage Value (20%)TOTAL LIFE CYCLE COSTS


Highway safety improves with this option with a safety benefit of $6,363,130 under the normal growth scenario

and $6,954,450 under the sensitivity growth scenario. These safety benefits are obtained by converting the

corridor into an urban 3-lane segment, which is characterized with having lower travel speeds compared to a 4-

lane rural highway. Thus, collision severity is reduced, which leads to lower collision costs and improved safety

on this segment.

While highway safety improves, highway mobility reduces as a result of the reduction in through travel lanes,

reduced vehicle speeds, and the elimination of passing opportunities. The mobility benefits under the normal

growth scenario are negative $(19,776,328), and under the sensitivity growth scenario are negative

$(23,724,474). The SimTraffic analysis that was used to calculate the mobility benefits assumed that the vehicles

speed limit would reduce from the existing 70 km/h posted limit to 60 km/h limit with the 3-lane cross-section.

However, it should be noted that the performance of the turning movements at key intersections in a 3-lane

design, including Rome Avenue, Pinecrest Road, Quesnel-Hixon Road and Highway 26, performs above MoTI

thresholds for acceptable traffic performance.


The 3-lane urban design option rates good for all three criteria for a few reasons. First, vehicle connectivity is

supported with this option by the provision of additional dedicated deceleration and acceleration lanes for left and

right turns at key intersections, and at major access points to adjacent industry and businesses. Pedestrian and

cyclist connectivity is improved by providing a multi-use pathway that provides a direct connection in parallel to

Highway 97 to support access between origin and destination points in downtown Quesnel and in the Two Mile

Flat area. Lastly, the multi-use pathway and urban design supports the City of Quesnel’s vision for a pedestrian

and cycle connection into Two Mile Flat as it is defined in the City’s Active Transportation Plan (2016) and in its

OCP.

Environmental

Environmental impacts as a result of the 3-lane design are mixed. In terms of noise and visual impacts, the

project would provide an improvement to these conditions as the urban design would provide an improved visual

aesthetic along the corridor while vehicle noise would reduce with a lower speed limit and fewer travel lanes for

vehicles to pass. However, this option would result in an increase to GHG emissions and pollution as vehicle fuel

use would observe an increase due to the lower travel speeds and moderate increase in vehicle travel times with

this option.

Economic Indicators

The benefit cost analysis of this option is -0.62 under the normal growth scenario, and -0.78 under the sensitivity

scenario. This significantly negative b/c ratio and net present value is mainly an outcome of the poor mobility

benefits that would be observed. However, this overall quantitative result should not completely distract from the

mostly positive, yet more qualitative benefits that this option could have for the local community and for safety on

the corridor.

Review of Option D2

This option can offer a relatively easy solution to address access management issues on Highway 97 and

improve highway safety and local community uses; albeit at a significant cost to vehicle mobility and economic

development. The sensitivity analysis confirms that growing traffic volumes will further reduce the cost

effectiveness of this option as a potential solution. Further, converting this section of Highway 97 to 3 lanes is

inconsistent with the recommended 4-lane improvements identified in Option A2 for South Quesnel, or with

Option AR-1a for the North-South Interconnector. In comparison, Option D1 would maintain 4 lanes for vehicle

mobility and address the need for improved pedestrian and cycle conditions by moving these users onto a

frontage / backage road network. Further study and consultation of Option D1 and Option D2 is recommended.

Recommendation for Option D2:

Recommend for further study and consultation jointly with Option D1.

Further to the guiding principles evaluation of all the options developed, and further to the multiple account

evaluation of advanced options, Table 3.9 summarizes the recommended options to be included in the

implementation plan. Options that were screened-out after each evaluation do not advance into the

implementation plan. The recommended options were reviewed with the project team`s input and a phasing

strategy has been developed as described in the next section of this report.

Table 3.9 Summary of Recommended Options and Phasing for the Implementation Plan

Project Phasing Option Name

Short Term

Projects

0 - 5 Years




Option C3: Relocate Traffic Signal from Reid St. to McLean St.

Option AR-1a: North-South Interconnector (4-Lane)

Medium to

Long-Term

Projects

6 - 25 Years





Five improvement options have been advanced as short-term projects for implementation as part of the Highway

97 Quesnel Transportation Plan. A summary of each project including the conceptual planning level cost

estimate is provided in Table 3.10. Options A4, A5, C2-b and C3 address priority issues on the existing highway

alignment to improve road safety, access and mobility issues. These improvements are supported by the City of

Quesnel and the community for implementation over 2018 to 2019.

Option AR-1a is recommended as a short-term project as it is critical that further planning, site investigations,

preliminary and detailed design be completed within the next five years. These next steps, as described in

Section 3.10 of this report, are required to enable construction of the new alignment and Quesnel River Bridge

and Overhead replacement to be completed before the existing bridges reach their end-of-life. If Option AR-1

cannot proceed under this short-term timeline, the existing bridges will require significant rehabilitation in the 5-10

year timeframe (2022 – 2027) that could result in significant closures that would impact local and provincial trade,

goods movement and regional mobility. This improvement is supported by the City of Quesnel and the

community at large, as documented in Section 3.9 of this report.

Table 3.10: Summary of Short Term Implementation Projects (0 to 5 Years)

Option & Location Needs Description Improvement Class ‘D’

Conceptual Cost Estimate

Option A4

Highway 97 / Cedar

Avenue and Highway

97 / Maple Drive

• Above average collision rates

• Increase in pedestrian traffic in

area due to relocation of students

to Maple Drive Middle School

• Signal timing optimization

Ongoing Traffic

Operation

Maintenance

Option A5

Highway 97 / Racing

Road, Highway 97 /

Quesnel-Hydraulic

Road and connecting

Segment

• High collision severity and collision

rates;

• Sub-standard existing access

design.

• Access management and traffic

control improvements at both

intersections.

Cost being

Refined in

Preliminary

Design

Option C2-b

Front Street (Highway

97) from Carson

Avenue to Sutherland

Avenue.

• High collision frequency

intersections;

• Pedestrian safety challenges;

• Inefficient laning configuration for

turning movements;

• Reconfigure Front Street to 1 lane

each direction and a centre turn

lane;

• Pedestrian crossing

improvements.

Cost being

Refined in

Preliminary

Design

Option C3

Carson Avenue

(Highway 97) / Reid

Street and Carson

Avenue / McLean

Street

• Traffic capacity and network

mobility needs at McLean Street /

Carson Avenue;

• Inefficient use of traffic signal at

Reid Street / Carson Avenue;

• Remove traffic signal from Reid

Street / Carson Avenue;

• Install new traffic signal at McLean

Street / Carson Avenue

$488,144

Option AR-1a

Highway 97 from

Nadeau Street east of

Quesnel River to

Sutherland Avenue

northwest of

downtown Quesnel

• Required replacement of Quesnel

River Bridge and Quesnel

Overhead;

• High collision rates on highway

segment;

• Highway safety issues and traffic

congestion in downtown Quesnel;

• Heavy truck and dangerous goods

movement safety and pollution

concerns in downtown Quesnel

• Replacement of Quesnel River

Bridge and Quesnel Overhead on

new 4-lane highway alignment;

• Re-align Highway 97 north of

Quesnel downtown up to

Sutherland Avenue;

• Improve highway safety & design;

• Improve mobility and reduce travel

time by 50% through downtown

Quesnel;

• Remove most heavy vehicles and

dangerous goods from travel

through downtown Quesnel;

• Provide a Long-term solution for

Highway 97.

$162,959,887

Four improvement options have been advanced as medium to long-term projects for implementation as part of the

Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan. A summary of each project including the conceptual planning level

cost estimate is provided in Table 3.11.

Options A2 and A3 form a long-term access management solution for Highway 97 in the South Quesnel

commercial area between Basalt Road and Juniper Road and is support by the City of Quesnel and the

community. Options D1 and D2 each provide a possible solution for addressing the needs identified on the

segment of Highway 97 that runs through the Two Mile Flat area between Sutherland Avenue and Highway 26.

Both Option D1 and D2 should be studied further in consultation with the City of Quesnel to determine if either

one option or a combination of both frontage network and online improvements can provide a feasible and

practical solution to address the access management issues identified on this segment.

Table 3.11: Summary of Medium to Long-Term Implementation Projects (6 to 25 Years)



Option A2

Highway 97 from

Basalt Road to South

of Maple Drive and

intersections at Basalt

Road and Gook Road

• Segment is 2 lanes wide and

highway segments both north and

south are 4 lanes wide;

• Driver expectancy and behaviour

challenged by changing highway

design;

• Side-street accesses are sub-

standard;

• Challenging turning movements

into and out of side-streets for

heavy trucks and vehicles with

trailers;

• Widen highway to 4 lanes for

consistent design with adjacent

segments;

• Realign frontage roads to improve

turning movements at intersections

and to accommodate wider

highway cross-section;

• Improve traffic control at Highway

97 / Basalt Road and Highway 97 /

Gook Road

o Variant 1 – Left-In Restriction at

Gook Rd / Highway 97

o Variant 2 – Traffic Signal at

Gook Rd / Highway 97

$22,260,023

(Variant 1)

$22,298,285

(Variant 2)

Option A3

Juniper Road and

Jade frontage and

interface with Highway

97

• Side-street accesses are sub-

standard at Juniper Road /

Highway 97, Juniper Road / Cedar

Avenue, and Jade Road / Cedar

Avenue

• High collision frequency at Cedar

Avenue / Highway 97 intersection;


into and out of side-streets for

• Close Juniper Road / Highway 97

access;

• Close north leg of Juniper Road at

Cedar Avenue intersection and

realign Juniper Road further east to

a new intersection with Cedar

Avenue;

• Close north leg of Jade Road /

Cedar Avenue intersection (traffic

redistributed on existing network)

$1,726,837



heavy trucks and vehicles with

trailers.

Option D1

Highway 97 from

Sutherland Avenue to

Highway 26 • There are numerous private

driveways with direct access onto

Highway 97;


for heavy vehicles using some

accesses and the intersection of

Brownmiller Road / Highway 97;

• Develop a frontage and backage

road network and relocate

accesses to these local roads;

• Access management solutions

including closing and consolidating

accesses;

• Controlled access to Highway 97;

$34,302,369

Further Study

Recommended

Option D2

Highway 97 from

Sutherland Avenue to

Highway 26

• Reconfigure Highway 97 to an

urban street design with dedicated

turn lanes for accesses to major

driveways and intersections;

• Reduce from 4 lanes of traffic to 2

lanes of traffic with a centre turn

lane to accommodate right turn

lanes and a multi-use pathway

$24,710,466

Further Study

Recommended

As with any improvement project that the MoTI undertakes, there are typically risks associated related to design,

constructability, cost and many other elements. Further, it is important to identify potential risks as they can

impact the overall cost, schedule and feasibility of the recommended improvement options. A planning level

assessment of potential risks by study segment is provided in Table 3.12. Many of the risks identified apply to

Option AR-1a; thus, it is recommended that the MoTI undertake a complete risk register for Option AR-1a.

Table 3.12: Planning-Level Summary of Potential Project Risks for Option AR-1a

No. Risk Name Risk Description Applicable to

Options:

Engineering (Design)

ED1 Design Standards Design of structures and approaches must meet Transport Canada

railway requirements. • Option AR-1a

ED2 Design Standards Type of bridge (pier vs. clear span) to be determined upon further

design and First Nation consultation. • Option AR-1a

ED3 Estimated

Quantities

Retaining walls are included in conceptual design quantities and cost

estimate; however, there is a risk additional retaining wall structures

may be required upon further design.

• Option AR-1a

Geotechnical

G1

Technical

Geotechnical

Conditions

There are known slope geotechnical issues that require further site

investigations to confirm feasibility of construction, as documented in

Appendix F.

• Option AR-1a

G2

Site

Contamination

Investigation

There are many contaminated sites in the Two Mile Flat area,

including the Super Save Gast Station at the northeast corner of

Sutherland Avenue / Highway 97, that are known contaminated sites.

• Option AR-1a

• Option D1

G3

Site

Contamination

Remediation

There are many contaminated sites in the Two Mile Flat area including

the Super Save Gast Station at the northeast corner of Sutherland

Avenue / Highway 97, that are suspected sources of ground

contaminants that requires remediation.

• Option AR-1a

• Option D1

G4 Geotechnical

Investigations

Archaeological investigations will need to occur concurrently with the

geotechnical investigations. • Option AR-1a

Environmental

EN1 Environmental

Assessment

In-river and land wildlife species are present and require further

environmental assessment to confirm impacts and mitigation

measures.

• Option AR-1a

• Option D1

EN2 Environmental

Work Window

Environmental work windows likely to be required around fish

migration and spawning periods. • Option AR-1a

Archaeology

AR1 Archaeology Finds

During Design

Risk that archaeological finds are discovered during planning and

design phases of the project sites including First Nations artefacts and

Railway artefacts.

• Option AR-1a

• Option D1

AR2

Archaeology Finds

During

Construction

Risk that archaeological finds are discovered during construction

phase of the project including First Nations artefacts and Railway

artefacts.

• Option AR-1a

• Option D1

AR3 Geotechnical

Investigations

Archaeological investigations will need to occur concurrently with the

geotechnical investigations. • Option AR-1a


Options:

Properties

P1 Property

Acquisition

Loss of business to existing in-home businesses located along route

alignment. • Option AR-1a

P2 Property

Acquisition

Loss of commercially owned property located along frontage / backage

road alignment. • Option D1

P2 Property

Acquisition

Closure of the gas station at Sutherland Ave / Highway 97 could result

in expropriation. • Option AR-1a

P3 Project Delays Closure of the Super Save Gas Station at Sutherland Avenue /

Highway 97 could have potential impacts to project schedule. • Option AR-1a

P4 Property

Acquisition

Municipally owned greenspace and property at the west end of

existing Quesnel Overhead including existing monument / memorials

could require replacement value.

• Option AR-1a

P5 Property

Acquisition

Small amount of property acquisition from St. Ann’s Catholic School

property is requires that could require replacement value. • Option AR-1a

Construction (Access, Traffic Management, Weather)

C1 Access

Management

Project requires access changes to St. Ann’s Catholic school and

church both temporarily during construction and permanently as part of

the design.

• Option AR-1a

C2 Railway Traffic

Management

Working around railroads requires full-time flaggers and engineers for

railway operation safety.

• Option AR-1a

• Option D1

C3 Traffic

Management Construction on busy provincial highway route; • All Options

C4 Drainage Uncertainty regarding impacts to drainage along existing or proposed

highway alignment.

• Option AR-1a

• Option A2

• Option D1

C5 Weather Seasonal weather windows create shorter construction season. (Eg.

Late Spring thaw, early snow, summer thunderstorms) • All Options

First Nations

FN1 FN Consultation FN consultation inadequate to meet needs of FN groups. • Option AR-1a

FN2 Accommodation

Agreements

Accommodation Agreements take longer than anticipated to negotiate,

resulting in schedule delays. • Option AR-1a

FN3 Spiritual / Cultural

Monitors Project may require spiritual and / or cultural monitors.

• Option AR-1a

• Option A2

• Option D1

FN4 Increased

Expectations FNs have increased expectations based on other project precedents. • All Options


Options:

Third Parties (Municipalities, Utilities)

TP1 City of Quesnel Require property west of the existing Quesnel Overhead in area

designated as park. • Option AR-1a

TP2 Utility Relocations BC Hydro Distribution, Gas, Telus / Shaw require advanced

notification to relocate.

• Option AR-1a

• Option A2

• Option D1

Funding and Timing

FT1 Project Delays due

to Funding

Substantial rehabilitation of Quesnel Overhead and rehabilitation of

Quesnel River Bridge occurs to maintain service extending life without

addressing existing highway safety, traffic congestion and heavy truck

issues on the structure.

• Option AR-1a

FT2 Project Delays due

to Funding

Significant challenges for rehabilitation of Quesnel Overhead due to

the type of structure and the presence of an active railway.

Rehabilitation would require, at minimum, single-lane alternating

traffic.

• Option AR-1a

The development of the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan involved significant consultation with the

community of Quesnel including municipal staff, elected officials, First Nations, community stakeholders and the

public. Over the course of the Phase II planning study, there were:

4 x meetings with technical representatives from the City of Quesnel and the Cariboo Regional District

3 x meetings with Elected Officials and Lhtako Dené First Nation

2 x Public Open Houses

1 x meeting with Stakeholder Organizations

Meetings with Individual Property Owners

The involvement of these various groups and communities in the planning study and the feedback and input

received is described as follows.

A group of technical representatives from the City of Quesnel and the Cariboo Regional District was formed to

provide direct input and feedback to the project team on the technical analysis and findings as the study

proceeded through the key tasks. Specifically, the MoTI project team and their consultant met with these

technical representatives on the following dates to discuss and provide input regarding the following topics of the

planning study:

Meeting Date Meeting Topics / Purpose

January 19th, 2017 Phase II Kick-Off Meeting

Future Economic and Traffic Forecasts

April 19th, 2017 Discuss Municipally Planned Improvements relevant to Highway 97

June 20th, 2017 Review Public Open House #1 Findings

Discuss Potential Improvement Options

September 19th, 2017 Review Options Developed and Incorporate technical representative input

Discuss Evaluation and Screening-Out of Options

In addition, the project team and their consultant met with the technical representative in advance of both public

open houses to provide a brief update on the study and to confirm the messaging and intent for both engagement

sessions.

The MoTI project team and their consultant met with elected officials three times throughout the study to provide

an update on the study’s progress and to gather input and feedback on the development of the Highway 97

Quesnel Transportation Plan. These elected officials included Mayor and Council from the City of Quesnel, and

the Directors from the Cariboo Regional District. Specifically, these meetings occurred on the following dates to

discuss the following topics:

Meeting Date Meeting Topics / Purpose

January 19th, 2017 Phase II Kick-Off Meeting

Present Future Economic and Traffic Forecasts

September 19th, 2017 Present Options Developed and Seek Input

March 28th, 2018 Present the Final Draft Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan

Further, the MoTI project team met with Lhtako Dené First Nation three times throughout the study to provide an

update on the study’s progress and to gather input and feedback on the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation

Plan.

The MoTI project team and their consultant met with various local stakeholders individually throughout the study

to brief them on the purpose and direction of the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan, and to gather their

input on the key transportation issues that their respective organizations have observed along Highway 97. Their

input was incorporated into the problem definition statement to inform the options developed and the solutions

recommended from this plan. Specifically, the MoTI project team and their consultant met with the following

stakeholders:

Staff from Ministry of Forests, Lands Natural Resources, Operations and Rural Development

Director and Staff from the G.R. Baker Memorial Hospital

Economic Development Officer of the City of Quesnel

Staff from BC Ambulance

To understand the needs, issues, concerns, and opportunities of Highway 97 in Quesnel, community and

stakeholder feedback was essential. To collect this information, the MoTI invited the public to participate in Public

Open House #1 on April 3rd, 2017 and provide their input by completing a feedback form at the open house,

through an online survey, and by submitting feedback by email. The public open house was held at the Quesnel

Senior’s Centre on Carson Avenue from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM. In total, 81 residents and community members

attended the public open house and 123 survey responses were completed. The full results and findings of

Public Open House #1 are documented in the Community Engagement Summary Report – June 2017, provided

in Appendix M.

On February 7th, 2018 and February 19th, 2018, the MoTI invited the public to participate in the study’s second

Public Open House held over these two days. Community members were invited to provide their input on the

conceptual improvement options that were developed to address the existing and future transportation issues

identified in Phase 1 of the study. Participants were asked to provide their input on the options developed by

completing a feedback form survey that was available in hard copy and web-based formats, and by submitting

any additional feedback by email to the project team. The public open house was held at the Quesnel Senior’s

Centre on Carson Avenue from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM both days. In total, 903 residents and community members

attended the public open house and 843 survey responses were completed. The full results and findings of

Public Open House #2 are documented in the Community Engagement Summary Report – February 2018,

provided in Appendix N.

Key Findings

Participants were asked to rank the priority of the potential improvement options on a scale from 1 to 6, with 1

being the most important and 6 being the least important. The ranking results for each distinct option are shown in

Figure 3.8 The highest ranked option was Option AR-1 – North-South Interconnector with 81% of responses

ranking it number 1. The lowest ranked option was Option D-2 - Highway Realignment onto Legion Drive with

34% of responses ranking it number 6.

Figure 3.8: Ranked Priority of Improvement Options

Further, participants were asked to choose one of the two options if given a choice:

Option B1 - Quesnel River Bridge and Overhead Replacement and Option C1 - Highway 97 Realignment

onto Legion Drive; or

Option AR-1 North-South Interconnector (includes Quesnel River bridge and Quesnel Overhead

replacement on new alignment)

The results of the survey are shown in Figure 3.9. Out of the total 784 responses to this question, a large majority

of participants (84%) selected Option AR-1 North-South Interconnector over Option B1 and Option C1 (16%).

Figure 3.9: Results of Option Comparison

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

OPTION D-2: TWO MILE FLAT HIGHWAY URBANIZATION

OPTION C-1 - HIGHWAY REALIGNMENT ONTO LEGION DRIVE

OPTION D1 - TWO MILE FLAT LONG TERM ACCESS STRATEGY

OPTIONS A-2 AND A-3: SOUTH QUESNEL ACCESS MANAGEMENT

OPTION B-1 - QUESNEL RIVER BRIDGE & OVERHEAD REPLACEMENT

OPTION AR-1 – NORTH-SOUTH INTERCONNECTOR

Percent of Participants

1 2 3 4 5 6

16%

84%

Option B1 and Option C1

Option AR-1 North-SouthInterconnector

The development of the Highway 97 Quesnel Transportation Plan has involved extensive collaboration and

consultation with organizations and members representing the community of Quesnel. The options identified for

short-term implementation are recommended for further planning and engineering design as the timeline and the

MoTI’s priorities permit.

Of the four options identified in the short-term implementation strategy, three of these options including Option A5

(Racing Road and Quesnel-Hydraulic Road Access Management), Option C2-b (Front Street 3-Laning

Reconfiguration) and Option C3 (Relocate Traffic Signal from Reid Street to McLean Street) are being advanced

into preliminary design, engineering and construction over 2018 and 2019 for immediate implementation.

Option AR-1a (North-South Interconnector) is also recommended to be advanced as a short-term project.

Several next steps are required to advance this project into the design process. Further, the timeline for this

project is constrained by the known ageing and lifespan issues of the existing Quesnel Overhead and Quesnel

River Bridges.

Letters of support from multiple levels of government, industry and community organizations for the short-term

projects including Option AR-1a North-South Interconnector are provided in Appendix O.

The conceptual design developed for the North-South Interconnector and its priority as a short-term project has

outlined the need for further site investigations, fieldwork, and design work required for this project. The next

steps as this project advances to preliminary design should include:

Conduct a project risk register assessment of the North-South Interconnector;

Undertake geotechnical and archaeological site investigations and reporting;

Undertake utility locates and field ties and involve utility owners in the design process to ensure

requirements are incorporated and delays are minimized;

Undertake a value analysis exercise to meet Ministry requirements and help to refine the design;

Advance the design through the next phases and incorporate responses from all stakeholders;

Continue engagement with local governments, Lhtako Dené, key stakeholders and the general public.

The following next steps are recommended for the conceptual design improvements identified for access

management in the South Quesnel area as a long-term solution:

Work collaboratively with staff from the City of Quesnel and the Cariboo Regional District to refine the

access management plan so that it integrates cohesively with the local road network system, existing land

use and potential future development;

Support the City and the Regional District to incorporate the access management improvements into

appropriate local government documents, such as the City of Quesnel’s OCP Road Network Plan, the

Cariboo Regional District’s Quesnel Fringe Area OCP or the Quesnel Active Transportation Plan);

Conduct a risk assessment of the South Quesnel Access Management Plan.

The following next steps are recommended for the conceptual design improvements identified for access

management in the Two Mile Flat area as a long-term solution:

Work collaboratively with staff from the City of Quesnel to refine the access management plan so that it

integrates cohesively with the local road network system, existing land use and potential future

development;

Support the City to incorporate the access management improvements into appropriate local government

documents (such as the Quesnel OCP Road Network Plan and/or the Quesnel Active Transportation Plan);

Conduct a risk assessment of the Two Mile Flat Access Management Plan.

highway 97 quesnel transportation plan phase ii ......the mobility analysis of the study network...

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