Raise the Hammer

If you've never seen a road race on Locke Street, you must not live there.. people fly through the four-way stop all the time late at night, and zoom down the street.
I'm torn on this because efficient traffic is something Hamilton can be proud of - less idling and less congested traffic means less pollution and carbon emissions.. certainly Hamilton makes up for those saved emissions in spades with other pollutants, though.
There's just too much cost to making these streets 2-way yet again. Actual enforcement is the key, and speed-timed lights with red light cameras would be a good way to slow things down. In Cambridge, they have lights that go red when someone exceeds the speed limit, as an example.
We shouldn't let a few jackasses ruin it for everyone. We still have them on Locke anyhow (not to mention the 2-3AM Harley Davidsons produced by the West Town being ridiculously loud.. I mean, I love Harleys, just not in the city).

Hamilton has more km of major roads/highways per person than any other city in Canada. In no way, shape or form does that equal lower carbon emissions and less deadly pollutants (which cause a plethora of respiratory ailments). Our 'efficient' traffic is actually a sign that we might very well contribute more pollution per person/driver than any other city in Canada....not to mention all of the other pollutants we contribute.

Also, Mervin, I realize that people street race everywhere....but along King, Main, York, Cannon etc.... it isn't just a daily thing. It's a 24-7 thing. 365 days a year. I live near Locke and am on Locke several times a week and have yet to see a street race, even though I know they are bound to happen. I can't remember a day going by in the past several years without seeing one on King, York or Main in my daily travels.

I don't think Marvin is aware that when we talk about street racing we mean over 100 km/hr on King St near Gage Park. People who do this have to apply their brakes soon after and end up using waaay more fuel by starting and stopping at every stop light.

If we reduce the # of lanes then we will reduce the maximum speed... and ultimately reduce smelly fumes and loud disruptive noises.

Yes the motorcycles can be annoying, but this is a different subject.

Main St. should be converted to 2 way with the LRT running down the center lanes from Eastgate to University Plaza. King St. should also be converted to 2 way with left turn lanes at major intersections as should Cannon and Wilson. Traffic lights need to be timed to the speed limit to discourage speeding. Drivers wishing to "fly" from one end of town to the other should use Burlington St. (although an extension needs to be provided to get to the 403). Before all the "automophiles" jump on my back, I live on Wellington N. near Cannon and witness, and hear, racing 24/7 on my street. I also am required to drive for work as I provide on site service. We all need to sacrifice and compromise to resolve this issue. An extra 10-15 mins. won't hurt you.

Be sure to visit www.myhamilton.ca/myhamilton/CityandGovernment/ProjectsInitiatives/RapidTransitFeasibilityStudy/Rapid+Transit+Feasibility+Study and fill out the rapid transit survey

Mattchall

Please see this blog:

http://raisethehammer.org/blog.asp?id=10...

Converting streets to two-way won't result in '10-15 extra minutes'. It would be more like 2 or 3 along Main or King. People predicted the end of the world with James South being converted along with all of it's suburban drivers using it to go up two Mountain accesses. The gridlock never happened. With efficient LRT, it won't happen on Main or King either.

Jason; Yes, I've read that before. Studies are all well and good, and I am a strong advocate of 2 way streets. However, traffic lights are generally red for close to 1 min. If the right lane has parked cars and someone is turning left from the traveling lane (assume the city planners are too thick to consider left turn lanes) you will idle for more than 2-3 mins when driving from one end of the city to the other. Just try driving in downtown TO. My point is not the number of added time, it is that this is something that needs to be done and if it costs single occupant vehicles more commuting time, so be it. The end result is worth it.

yea, I see your point. You're talking about coming through the entire city. I agree that an extra 10 minutes or whatever, to get from Dundurn to Ottawa etc.... would be more than fine. Right now it's insane and full of speeding.

While I agree that the main streets (Main, King, etc) are the ones that have the most street races on a daily base, as pointed out by another poster, there are other streets which have a problem with these idiots who were born with lead feet.
I live on Melvin Ave in the citys east end. Between Parkdale Ave. and Woodward Ave, there is "one" stop sign. In this area, there are numerous apt. bldgs., 4 housing surveys and 3 schools. Does the stop sign help curve speeding? Not on your life. About the only thing the stop sign works for are the city buses.