RR 174 split.
A study looking at expanding Regional Road 174 will get underway this spring.
File photo
OTTAWA EAST - The city and its neighbouring county in the east end are one step closer to potentially widening Regional Road 174 and fixing the notorious “split.”
The city’s transportation committee endorsed the terms of reference for an environmental assessment to study the possibility of widening the 174 to six lanes between the 417/174 split and Trim Road, as well as the potential to add another two lanes to Regional Road 174 between Trim and Rockland.
Another possibility is a new interchange at Trim Road and the 174.
The contract for the study will be awarded this spring and the study itself is expected to take two years. It will look at future transportation needs in the east end; transit, cycling and pedestrian links; and potential impact on significant natural environments and at-risk species.
The result will be a plan for fixing the Highway 417/Regional Road 174 split and the 174 to County Road 17 to improve traffic flow and safety.
There are a lot of related projects to consider when looking at possibly widening the highway, not the least of which is the city’s plan to build a light-rail transit line from Tunney’s Pasture to Blair Station.
“It’s time sensitive because they’re dependant on each other,” said Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney.
Cumberland Coun. Stephen Blais stated in the report that he is looking forward to the results of the study “after decades of inaction.”
“For too long, the road network in the east end had been left to deteriorate while suburban development continued,” Blais said in a statement.
The recent reconstruction and widening of the Cyrville Bridge helped pave the way to potentially widen the 174 by providing more room to add lanes, Tierney said.
Even though the east end has the highest level of transit use in the city (60 per cent of Orleans and Cumberland residents who commute downtown take the bus), cars crawl along at an average of 40 kilometres per hour during rush hour, according to Blais.
Farther east, a number of intersections (as opposed to over- or underpasses) create safety concerns, according to a city report.
The United Counties of Prescott and Russell had accepted $4 million in provincial money for an environmental assessment study to look at expanding 8.4 kilometres of County Road 17, east of Canaan Road.
But the city has been in talks with the county, which agreed the $4 million was enough to cover a study reaching all the way west to Trim Road. The province confirmed that another $1 million is still available to push the study area even farther west into the city’s territory, up to the 417/174 split.
Meeting for Queensway expansion
Long before any work starts on improving the 417/174 split, the province plans to widen Highway 417 between Nicholas Street and the split.
The Ministry of Transportation will host a public open house for that project on Feb. 13 at the Hampton Inn Ottawa Conference Centre from 4 to 8 p.m., with a presentation at 6 p.m.
The project includes widening Highway 417 by one lane in each direction, which would be used as a bus-only lane temporarily during construction of LRT.
Widening the Queensway further compounds the need to fix the split, Tierney said.
“We’re adding all these nice lanes, but they merge into one,” he said.
Bridges at Hurdman, Lees Avenue, Vanier Parkway and Belfast Road are up for replacement.
The 174 will be re-aligned to the St. Laurent Boulevard off-ramp and a barrier will be added to prevent drivers from heading north on St. Laurent after exiting westbound.
Limiting the northbound on-ramp from St. Laurent to Highway 417 to use by transit and emergency vehicles only is also part of the plan.
Find out more at the Feb. 13 meeting, or contact the project engineer, David Lindensmith, at dave.lindensmith@ontario.ca.