Commuter Hell

[GordonH]

This access road that merges at bottom hill, was put in place before the WFN hospital deal ever got off the ground. Now it's a road to nowhere.
Maybe its time WFN block off access at both ends, since it's their road.

So I don't go over to Westside much if at all. So I took a look at google maps the section of Sneena Rd that run along Hwy 97, again has no propose except it was to connect to Hospital that WFN was going to have (Which is not happening).
So block this access off at both ends, so traffic merging at the bridge would only be those coming off Campbell Rd or needing to do u-turn back into Kelowna.

[Steve-O]

That is the machine Gordon. And they use one in Calgary, having grown up there, you want freeze/thaw cycles, spend a winter there.

What would this do? Allow 3 lanes of traffic all the way from the Westside Rd overpass to where Harvey becomes 3 lanes just after the hostel. Traffic likely would still back up, but my experience it starts moving pretty good after that bottle neck.

[sulchie]

I know how to fix the problem. Move away. There are no good jobs in Kelowna anyway.

[lightspeed]

I know how to fix the problem. Move away. There are no good jobs in Kelowna anyway.

https://www.immigroup.com/news/top-8-wo ... ove-canada

[dodgerdodge]

Just to add to this thread before it dies. It seems that the lights at Leathead have now become the new bottleneck on Harvey.
There are so many cycles to get through the through green is just way too short for a major highway! Twice now in the morning rush i have sat right alongside the motels (Days inn i think it is) while i see the red light ahead and on both occasions when it changed green i did not get to the intersection before it changed back to red. So frustrating for such a short distance!

[tw1nm3t3or]

I know how to fix the problem. Move away. There are no good jobs in Kelowna anyway.

Good idea. You paying us loans to move?

[tw1nm3t3or]

This is a huge problem. A 10 to 15 minute drive which takes an hour. Let's talk about the issues one being that back road where everyone takes which CAUSES the traffic jams. That road needs to be closed it has done nothing but problems since it opened both entering AND leaving Kelowna.

Actually the back roads relive stress off the main highway, this is why merging lanes exist. There just needs to be a way to stop traffic from doing complete stops. If those back roads were not there the traffic would be 10x worse think of all the extra cars on the main road.

You forget its ONE bridge to cross. You can have 6 lanes going into the bridge with less cars but the same congestion spread out for ONE crossing.

[kgcayenne]

Oh man, something has changed. This past two weeks has been so much worse than in the two previous years. Each morning, though, I'm thankful that the lane bunnies aren't causing rear-enders.

[dodgerdodge]

Oh man, something has changed. This past two weeks has been so much worse than in the two previous years. Each morning, though, I'm thankful that the lane bunnies aren't causing rear-enders.

Yeah it was painful this morning. I had no need to get into Kelowna early enough to miss the jam so had to suck it up and wonder did i choose wisely by staying in the left lane or should i have used the back road past the ghost hospital?
Love the late lane changers whose sole mission in life is to get into the "moving" lane with that well know Kelowna all in one manoeuvre, turn wheel, make a move, indicate, shoulder check, stick hand out window pretty much all at same time whilst forcing their way into a non existent gap only to repeat 400 yards later as the other lane is now "moving"

[kgcayenne]

or should i have used the back road past the ghost hospital?

Are you a routine Sneener? Shame on you!!!!

[GordonH]

Come on WFN your road to nowhere needs to be blocked off, so get off your as es and do that.

[neilsimon]

...
Are you a routine Sneener? Shame on you!!!!

How dare someone use a public road to get where they need to quicker. How dare they!
Just one question, what if it is the shortest route by distance for them? Is it okay then?

[dodgerdodge]

Are you a routine Sneener? Shame on you!!!!

Ha ha well i have used it before and i thought it was great, i just whizzed down to the Campbell roundabout and had a 3 minute wait to merge onto bridge. BUT boy oh boy was i in for a shock when i tried it again a few days later to find the line up went all the way back to the First Nations building. I had an even longer wait so now i take my chances on the highway, laughing at the long line of sneeners some days and cursing them on others.

Seriously though its a legitimate route that is available to all traffic unlike those heading back to Westbank in the evening that choose to merge off at Westside rd and drive over the top and merge back on again. Now that is cheating, particularly as the right through lane is marked up as only a bus lane yet countless people ignore the fact. This does happen way less now since the new road behind the shops was opened up to Boucherie.

[kgcayenne]

laughing at the long line of sneeners some days and cursing them on others.

I watch for the ones who deke off at the bridge hill exit, and when they meet back up beside me upon merging, I give them a thumbs-up and "Good job".

as the right through lane is marked up as only a bus lane yet countless people ignore the fact.

I don't think they ignore it, they don't know what the pavement markings mean, or aren't even looking to begin with. One day I was going to Shoppers and some guy pulls up along side in the bus lane, I look at him an say: "Boy, that's a funny lookin' bus you're driving." He didn't know he was in a bus lane. "Oh $#!t." as he looked all around him.

[dodgerdodge]

Seems another story has surfaced on another media outlet regards the seriously bad congestion recently. This part of the article had me banging my head on my desk LOL.
And i quote:

Media company (name removed) contacted the City of West Kelowna and the Ministry of Transportation, but the City said it was the Province's responsibility to maintain HWY 97 and the Province said it was unable to answer because the government's leadership has yet to be determined.
Therefore the Province is saying it cannot answer any questions regarding the traffic issue.
Media company also reached out to SNC Lavalin, the contracted engineering company who built the current bridge, to ask about the amount of volume the bridge could handle. Media company also inquired about what measures the engineering company would take to ensure future bridges were built to keep up with population growth. However SNC Lavalin referred our questions back to the province, who said they were unable to answer.