Latest news with #CollegeDrive
CTV News
26-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
City council punts College Drive rapid transit decision, again
WATCH: Saskatoon city administration is going back to drawing board over a crucial stretch of the upcoming Bas Rapid Transit corridor. A crucial stretch of Link, Saskatoon's upcoming bus rapid transit program, is being delayed for a second time. Councillors asked administrators to provide some additional information and options during its regular business meeting on Wednesday, after delaying a previous approval last month so city staff could answer lingering questions. Despite answering those questions and recommending councillors approve the concept plan, the city's elected officials voted to explore more options. They're calling for more information, including the implications of not removing the College Drive pedestrian overpass, and installing the latest available real-time technology to shorten the wait time for vehicles waiting to turn left at a traffic light. 'I'm always of the view that when we do big things, we have to make sure we get them as right as we can,' Ward 10 Coun. Zach Jeffries said after presenting a series of motions. Link is expected to revamp the transit network and have more buses moving quickly across major routes. One of the most crucial routes will be on College Drive. To accommodate Link, plenty of construction is being proposed by administration. That includes medians being replaced with one dedicated bus lane travelling in each direction. Traffic would be reduced to two lanes in either direction from Preston Avenue to Clarence Avenue, and a series of Link platform stations would be installed along College Drive. Last month, the city's transportation committee approved a series of changes to the original plan, which included having buses moving in the same direction as traffic, as opposed to contraflow, and replacing the College Drive pedestrian overpass with a street-level crossing. Councillors previously had issues with eastbound traffic on College Drive trying to turn northbound on Preston Avenue where long lines in the turning lane routinely back up traffic. In a verbal update, Terry Schmidt, the general manager of transportation and construction, told councillors plans to mitigate bottlenecks is ongoing. Another concern was the traffic data, which hasn't been updated on the route since 2018. Despite Saskatoon's population growing by roughly the population of Prince Albert over the last seven years, Schmidt estimated traffic would be slowed by just three minutes, as listed in the report. 'With the higher traffic volumes today, the travel time may increase a few minutes to be closer or more consistent to the three-minute increase for the width flow design,' Schmidt said. Ward 3 Coun. Rob Pearce also raised concerns about the three-metre width and 42 metre length of the platforms that will be placed near campus where the medians are now. Administration says each platform can accommodate up to 200 people. However, Pearce wondered how people will freely move with a concrete retaining wall, in addition to signage, shelters and exits only on the ends. 'I'm concerned about the safety of people trying to get onto that platform,' he said. Schmidt replied by saying an identical design in Calgary has worked well. An update will be back before either the transportation committee or the regular business meeting this summer.
CTV News
15-06-2025
- CTV News
‘She was loved by everybody': Saskatoon cyclist community hosts second annual rally to remember Natasha Fox
The Ride for Your Life event returned to Saskatoon over the weekend as a way for the community to both remember the life of Natasha Fox and advocate for better cycling infrastructure. 'Natasha was something else. She brought joy to everything she did. She made people happy. She was loved by everybody. And it was incredible to be around,' Tod Fox, husband of Natasha Fox, said. Two years ago, Natasha Fox was struck and killed by a cement truck while riding her bike. New infrastructure has since been built at the intersection of College Drive and Wiggins Road, where Fox lost her life, but those in attendance believe more can be done. 'It brings people together and tells politicians and policymakers that this is important. We're here to tell you that lives are at stake,' Tod Fox said. Tod Fox has been passionately advocating for better cycling infrastructure in Saskatoon since his wife's death, and the city's cycling community has supported him. Saskatoon cyclist community hosts second annual rally to remember Natasha Fox (Hallee Mandryk /CTV News) As many cyclists tend to be on the road this time of year, Gord Holtslander, the board chair of Saskatoon Cycles, shared some advice for being safe this summer. 'Keep your head up and be aware. So for cyclists, obviously ride in a way that is drivers be aware that there are nice people on bikes and they're going to be sort of everywhere, give them space,' Holtslander said. Tod Fox said the event's turnout is a true testament to the impact his wife had on the community. 'It just shows how much of an effect she had on the community by how many people still care and show up, saying this is important, and that she was taken from us too early,' Fox said. Sunday marked the second annual Ride for Our Lives event, which is currently the only bike rally in Saskatoon. While the event stemmed from a tragedy, organizers wanted to highlight the joys of cycling and its potential within the city. 'Cycling is wonderful. Cycling is fun. Cycling brings joy. Cycling is just a great thing to do. As long as everyone behaves safely, cycling is marvelous,' Holtslander said. Tod Fox said the event serves as an important reminder to both cyclists and drivers. 'Just glance up, look over your shoulder. Be kind to one another. We all want to get home safe. We all have people who love us. Make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else,' Fox said.
CTV News
22-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
‘Get it right now': Saskatoon city council delays decision on College Drive changes
Saskatoon city council will wait one more month to make a decision on potential changes to College Drive. Councillors unanimously voted in favour of deferring a decision on a series of concept design changes to the city's upcoming bus rapid transit (BRT) system at its regular meeting Wednesday. 'A quarter of the BRT funding is direct from Saskatoon taxpayers, but I bet that all the BRT fixes to make the system work properly later on will be 100 per cent on the back of taxpayers, so getting things right from the start is crucial,' Cary Tarasoff, a close follower and critic of city council, said during the meeting. Link, the upcoming BRT system launching in 2028 , is expected to revamp the transit network and have more buses moving quickly across major routes. One of the most crucial routes will be on College Drive. To accommodate Link, plenty of construction is being proposed by administration. That includes medians being replaced with one bus-dedicated lane travelling in each direction. Traffic would be reduced to two lanes in either direction from Preston Avenue to Clarence Avenue and a series of Link platform stations would be installed along College Drive. Earlier this month, the city's transportation committee approved a series of changes to the original plan, which included having buses moving in the same direction as traffic as opposed to contraflow as well as replacing the College Drive pedestrian overpass with a street-level crossing. On Wednesday, Tarasoff's speech to council prompted some additional discourse from councillors. 'Have we made sure we've dotted all the I's and cross all the T's on how to optimize things?' Ward 10 Coun. Zach Jeffries said. Jeffries specifically had issues with eastbound traffic on College Drive trying to turn northbound on Preston Avenue. Long lines in the turning lane have been known to back up traffic, and administration says it will be able to add a second turning lane with the existing land available. 'Every single centimeter you're thinking about is precious,' Jeffries said. Jeffries wonders if there's an opportunity for the city to acquire some land to help widen the roadway on College Drive and Preston Avenue and on College Drive and Clarence Avenue to help with traffic flows. 'Because once you embark on actually constructing something like this, you can't go back,' he said. 'I'd rather get it right now.' One issue pointed out by Tarasoff was capacity concerns with the city growing and Saskatchewan Polytechnic centralizing its 11 campuses on to University of Saskatchewan grounds in the coming years. During the committee meeting earlier in the month, administration couldn't say how many people could be on a transit platform at a time. Tarasoff said with events at Merlis Belsher Place, the Saskatoon Field House and Griffiths Stadium drawing capacity crowds of 2,700 people to 6,100, will Link be able to move crowds effectively? 'To simple questions, simple answers should be given. And we've got complicated issues that are we're not even talking about yet.' Tarasoff said. Terry Schmidt, the city's general manager of transportation and construction, later said the platforms have a capacity limit of 200 people. The original concept council approved in 2019 says platforms 'will comfortably accommodate 12 to 20 waiting passengers.' 'We believe there's sufficient capacity at these platforms to accommodate the trips that are being generated,' Schmidt said. 'And we can also accommodate that through increased frequency and the larger busses.' Administration says the proposed changes would slow traffic on College Drive by approximately three minutes. Council will vote on the matter when it's back at council's next meeting at the end of June.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Temporary power outage scheduled in Greenfield for March 11
GREENFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Eversource has announced a planned power outage for parts of Greenfield on Tuesday, March 11, as crews work to improve reliability across the electric system. Eversource stated that the outages are necessary to allow crews to safely complete system upgrades and ensure long-term service reliability. The temporary outages will occur in two separate timeframes: 4:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. 10:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Impacted Streets The outage will affect multiple streets in Greenfield, including: Arnold Lane Carol Lane Champney Road College Drive Colrain Road Davenport Way Duren Drive Eunice William Drive Fairview (Lane, Terrace, and West Street) Green River Road Holland Avenue Homestead Avenue Huntington Circle Keegan Lane Lunt Drive Mackin Avenue Mary Potter Way Meadow Lane/Manor Mohawk Trail Munson Street Nash's Mill Road Nichols Drive Plain Road Plum Tree Lane Revere Circle Shelburne Road South Shelburne Road Sauter Lane Sunset Square Thayer Road The company apologized for any inconvenience and assured residents that updates would be provided if there are any changes to the schedule. Residents with questions or concerns about the outage can contact Eversource at 800-286-2000. The company encourages customers to prepare for the temporary loss of power and check for updates in case of any scheduling changes. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
