OT: OT thread number 11 | No More Bad News PLEASE!

[Drivesaitl]

Two years old but this came across my feed. This will help explain the fair sex to the younger folk here in the audience. Wait, no it won't, but you'll probably laugh. NSFW



btw my condolences to the "friends" in the crowd. I was one a fair amount of times..

 

[ThreeOfAPerfectPair]

Victory!

About 700,000 GDL drivers currently qualify to take their advanced road test. About 500,000 drivers will be eligible to automatically exit out of the GDL program.

 

[Mr Kot]

Victory!

LEARNER BROS! WE WON THE STRUGGLE!

 

[joestevens29]

Judging by what I see on the roads on a daily basis they should've made it mandatory to do a driving test everytime you renew your license.

 

[JordanGalhanth]

Judging by what I see on the roads on a daily basis they should've made it mandatory to do a driving test everytime you renew your license.

I've been gone from Edmonton for almost three years, and as bad as some of the drivers are in my new town, nothing compares to back there.

- The F150 oil jocks who treat Highway 2 like the Autobahn
- The little old grandmas who merge onto the Henday doing 60 kph
- The lane jumpers on Gateway Boulevard who forgot that they have to get into Tim Horton's from the far left lane, not the right
- EVERYBODY who doesn't have a hot clue how to zipper merge during construction season

It's a special kind of irritating.

 

[joestevens29]

I've been gone from Edmonton for almost three years, and as bad as some of the drivers are in my new town, nothing compares to back there.

- The F150 oil jocks who treat Highway 2 like the Autobahn
- The little old grandmas who merge onto the Henday doing 60 kph
- The lane jumpers on Gateway Boulevard who forgot that they have to get into Tim Horton's from the far left lane, not the right
- EVERYBODY who doesn't have a hot clue how to zipper merge during construction season

It's a special kind of irritating.

The City didn't do anyone any favours on Yellowhead with regards to this. Unless you drive it regularly it's tough to remember which exit is on which side. They should literally have signs with those instructions, but hey that would cost an extra couple hundred bucks a sign.

 

[TB12]

I've been gone from Edmonton for almost three years, and as bad as some of the drivers are in my new town, nothing compares to back there.

- The F150 oil jocks who treat Highway 2 like the Autobahn
- The little old grandmas who merge onto the Henday doing 60 kph
- The lane jumpers on Gateway Boulevard who forgot that they have to get into Tim Horton's from the far left lane, not the right
- EVERYBODY who doesn't have a hot clue how to zipper merge during construction season

It's a special kind of irritating.

Plus people that have no clue about traffic circles…entering, exiting, how to signal in/out. Brutal.

 

[Fixed to Ruin]

Plus people that have no clue about traffic circles…entering, exiting, now to signal in/out. Brutal.

Weirdly enough AMA has really good videos on traffic rules/situations.

 

[Stoneman89]

My wife and I were downtown a week or two ago and had an in depth look at what is happening there these days. To my dismay, it looks a lot like something from an apocalypse movie in many spots. I remember the downtown being vibrant and decent looking from back in the 60's and 70's. Older buildings, no doubt, but still clean and orderly. Now, it is an endless stream of roadblocks, orange pylons, broken concrete on nearly every road, and according to the city, it's a multi-year plan to rehab. The old parking lots have deteriorated badly, and many are now vacant and unsightly. The demographic is increasingly dominated by homeless, mentally ill, and substance addicted persons. Even the upscale and vaunted Ice District is dominated by these types. Garbage thrown everywhere. Vacant and decrepit old buildings waiting for someone to tear them down and build something worthwhile. I wouldn't want to have a potential business associate come down there and look at this mess, let alone have a friend visit and try to "show off" our city.
I know construction is a healthy signal for an area, but this is so run down, it is far and above that. Too much of a good thing all at once perhaps? There are nice updated pockets, but that's about it. It was a bit of a shock to see it like this, and it likely will be like this for at least a few more years.

 

[Drivesaitl]

My wife and I were downtown a week or two ago and had an in depth look at what is happening there these days. To my dismay, it looks a lot like something from an apocalypse movie in many spots. I remember the downtown being vibrant and decent looking from back in the 60's and 70's. Older buildings, no doubt, but still clean and orderly. Now, it is an endless stream of roadblocks, orange pylons, broken concrete on nearly every road, and according to the city, it's a multi-year plan to rehab. The old parking lots have deteriorated badly, and many are now vacant and unsightly. The demographic is increasingly dominated by homeless, mentally ill, and substance addicted persons. Even the upscale and vaunted Ice District is dominated by these types. Garbage thrown everywhere. Vacant and decrepit old buildings waiting for someone to tear them down and build something worthwhile. I wouldn't want to have a potential business associate come down there and look at this mess, let alone have a friend visit and try to "show off" our city.
I know construction is a healthy signal for an area, but this is so run down, it is far and above that. Too much of a good thing all at once perhaps? There are nice updated pockets, but that's about it. It was a bit of a shock to see it like this, and it likely will be like this for at least a few more years.

I've been mentioning it for quite awhile. DT is really in trouble. Everything from the mall there to streetfront retail to restaurants. But you summarized the ghost landscape well. We took a ride down there on Saturday and the vast majority of people on the street were homeless, druggies,

Events that used to be at Churchill square no longer are. I'm aware of a few events that pulled out of there. They just didn't want to do it there anymore.

Its really weird too how the Entertainment District hasn't helped the DT at all. What its done instead in its gated confines is whenever there is an event there, even a free event, its ticketed. This contrasts greatly with how it was envisioned and described prior. It was to be a meeting square for Edmontonians. Its been essentially turned into an e ticket only environment and it kind of feels likes its headed towards being its own bubble indefinitely because the DT is such a mess. you didn't mention the bike lanes everywhere which are just a headache for drivers. Its removed street parking all over the place and making right hand turns across bike paths has become a nightmare of watching for flying cyclists or e-bike users that go at high speeds, don't yield, and just figure they own the road. The primary way to avoid hitting one of these idiots is not to be driving DT at all.

Unfortunately the primary way to avoid seeing all the decay, disillusion, and death of DT is just not to go there. I never liked the decision to move the Arena to the DT or the RAM to the DT and I like it less now. Its not a place I feel comfortable anymore. Which is besides the point that its not a place I can enjoy anymore. I just don't enjoy my time there. I tend not to enjoy being there and having to be constantly vigilant on the street. Not just there either. Even years ago we were in Sutton Hotel having a drink at the pub there. Two homeless people come in high out of their heads hassling customers for money and being rude about it. Now one would expect the staff, or security or bouncer or whatever to be dealing with something like this. They all left to the back area to let customers fend for themselves. This is when I knew the DT environment was changing. This isn't safe. Seeing countless drug transactions and even a guy getting physically assaulted in the Second Cup by the eyesore library was another.

Theres been a lot of jokes about the ugly Milner looking like a giant tank firing at City Center. Looks like its fired several salvos. .

 

[Stoneman89]

I've been mentioning it for quite awhile. DT is really in trouble. Everything from the mall there to streetfront retail to restaurants. But you summarized the ghost landscape well. We took a ride down there on Saturday and the vast majority of people on the street were homeless, druggies,

Events that used to be at Churchill square no longer are. I'm aware of a few events that pulled out of there. They just didn't want to do it there anymore.

Its really weird too how the Entertainment District hasn't helped the DT at all. What its done instead in its gated confines is whenever there is an event there, even a free event, its ticketed. This contrasts greatly with how it was envisioned and described prior. It was to be a meeting square for Edmontonians. Its been essentially turned into an e ticket only environment and it kind of feels likes its headed towards being its own bubble indefinitely because the DT is such a mess. you didn't mention the bike lanes everywhere which are just a headache for drivers. Its removed street parking all over the place and making right hand turns across bike paths has become a nightmare of watching for flying cyclists or e-bike users that go at high speeds, don't yield, and just figure they own the road. The primary way to avoid hitting one of these idiots is not to be driving DT at all.

Unfortunately the primary way to avoid seeing all the decay, disillusion, and death of DT is just not to go there. I never liked the decision to move the Arena to the DT or the RAM to the DT and I like it less now. Its not a place I feel comfortable anymore. Which is besides the point that its not a place I can enjoy anymore. I just don't enjoy my time there. I tend not to enjoy being there and having to be constantly vigilant on the street. Not just there either. Even years ago we were in Sutton Hotel having a drink at the pub there. Two homeless people come in high out of their heads hassling customers for money and being rude about it. Now one would expect the staff, or security or bouncer or whatever to be dealing with something like this. They all left to the back area to let customers fend for themselves. This is when I knew the DT environment was changing. This isn't safe. Seeing countless drug transactions and even a guy getting physically assaulted in the Second Cup by the eyesore library was another.

Theres been a lot of jokes about the ugly Milner looking like a giant tank firing at City Center. Looks like its fired several salvos. .

Yes, I forgot to mention the countless bike lanes that have sprung up, making it confusing and hazardous to both driver and pedestrian.. The city wants you to not take your vehicle downtown (or anywhere, really), yet there are dozens of these unsightly street level parking lots staring you in the face every where you go.
And yes, e-bikes lying everywhere, blocking sidewalks and corners to block your path and contribute to the landscape. For a population that should be actually being more active due our world of the internet, media, etc, just one more thing to help someone go a couple blocks without taking a step and then dumping the machine off to the side, to be picked up eventually.

 

[bellagiobob]

My wife and I were downtown a week or two ago and had an in depth look at what is happening there these days. To my dismay, it looks a lot like something from an apocalypse movie in many spots. I remember the downtown being vibrant and decent looking from back in the 60's and 70's. Older buildings, no doubt, but still clean and orderly. Now, it is an endless stream of roadblocks, orange pylons, broken concrete on nearly every road, and according to the city, it's a multi-year plan to rehab. The old parking lots have deteriorated badly, and many are now vacant and unsightly. The demographic is increasingly dominated by homeless, mentally ill, and substance addicted persons. Even the upscale and vaunted Ice District is dominated by these types. Garbage thrown everywhere. Vacant and decrepit old buildings waiting for someone to tear them down and build something worthwhile. I wouldn't want to have a potential business associate come down there and look at this mess, let alone have a friend visit and try to "show off" our city.
I know construction is a healthy signal for an area, but this is so run down, it is far and above that. Too much of a good thing all at once perhaps? There are nice updated pockets, but that's about it. It was a bit of a shock to see it like this, and it likely will be like this for at least a few more years.

The City is fervently working to get to the downtown portion of it's repairs checklist. Right after the bridge trusses are rechecked, LRT pillars are fixed, the 4 year Hawrelak Park repair is done, and the 10 year Yellowhead fixerup is completed.

 

[Drivesaitl]

The City is fervently working to get to the downtown portion of it's repairs checklist. Right after the bridge trusses are rechecked, LRT pillars are fixed, the 4 year Hawrelak Park repair is done, and the 10 year Yellowhead fixerup is completed.

I see what you did there with the 4 yr Hawreluk Park repair. I'll raise you to 5yr plan.

Basically any project the city undertakes seems to be work to rule to actively find ways to do little as possible to make the job go on as long as it is possible. It seems that some of the unionistic practice of just self serving creating sustained employment by doing as little as possible has hit hard in this Civic infrastructure.

Its hard to shake such ingrained attitudes out of work places but its something that often infects road crews or project crews and especially in City run (which is to say not run at all) projects. So that the person standing on the shovel becomes the valued employee. They know what they're doing. More like them and the project will last an additional year and more pay for everybody.

Beyond the scope of this topic but its also the problem with pay by hour vs pay by amount completed and work done.

For instance average roofing crew will work faster and harder as the private small project has a bottom line and estimate. Its often arranged so that each worker will get a set amount upon completion in contracted arrangements. Thus your roof gets shingled quicker. If it was pay by hour they'd be up there pissing around for weeks. Like a City crew would.

 

[joestevens29]

My wife and I were downtown a week or two ago and had an in depth look at what is happening there these days. To my dismay, it looks a lot like something from an apocalypse movie in many spots. I remember the downtown being vibrant and decent looking from back in the 60's and 70's. Older buildings, no doubt, but still clean and orderly. Now, it is an endless stream of roadblocks, orange pylons, broken concrete on nearly every road, and according to the city, it's a multi-year plan to rehab. The old parking lots have deteriorated badly, and many are now vacant and unsightly. The demographic is increasingly dominated by homeless, mentally ill, and substance addicted persons. Even the upscale and vaunted Ice District is dominated by these types. Garbage thrown everywhere. Vacant and decrepit old buildings waiting for someone to tear them down and build something worthwhile. I wouldn't want to have a potential business associate come down there and look at this mess, let alone have a friend visit and try to "show off" our city.
I know construction is a healthy signal for an area, but this is so run down, it is far and above that. Too much of a good thing all at once perhaps? There are nice updated pockets, but that's about it. It was a bit of a shock to see it like this, and it likely will be like this for at least a few more years.

Downtown is so funny when I go out for a few "pops" there. Lots of really nice places with a lot of people done up for the night out, then when you step foot outside it's like the movie hangover. You look around and wonder wtf just happened.

 

[yukoner88]

So last night, we finally had a clear sky to look at, and look at what appeared

 

[bellagiobob]

 

[yukoner88]

i'll have to remember that for my next First Aid/CPR course

 

[Pizza!Pizza!]

Two years old but this came across my feed. This will help explain the fair sex to the younger folk here in the audience. Wait, no it won't, but you'll probably laugh. NSFW



btw my condolences to the "friends" in the crowd. I was one a fair amount of times..

I too have been a victim of 'platonic cuddling', its both awesome and sucks at the same time.

 

[K1984]

I've been gone from Edmonton for almost three years, and as bad as some of the drivers are in my new town, nothing compares to back there.

- The F150 oil jocks who treat Highway 2 like the Autobahn
- The little old grandmas who merge onto the Henday doing 60 kph
- The lane jumpers on Gateway Boulevard who forgot that they have to get into Tim Horton's from the far left lane, not the right
- EVERYBODY who doesn't have a hot clue how to zipper merge during construction season

It's a special kind of irritating.

Don't forget my personal favorite - the folks that think every arterial road in the city is a 50 km/hr speed limit even when they definitely aren't.

I can sympathize a bit because the city decided to make some streets 50 and some 60 without any real obvious reason which is confusing, but for f*** sakes just pay attention to the signs and keep up with the limit.

 

[Stoneman89]

Don't forget my personal favorite - the folks that think every arterial road in the city is a 50 km/hr speed limit even when they definitely aren't.

I can sympathize a bit because the city decided to make some streets 50 and some 60 without any real obvious reason which is confusing, but for f*** sakes just pay attention to the signs and keep up with the limit.

Myopic drivers.

On today's drive in to work today alone, going down Argyll Road, and THREE different drivers made left hand turns from the right hand lane, cutting people off and nearly causing accidents.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Plus people that have no clue about traffic circles…entering, exiting, how to signal in/out. Brutal.

Whoever brought in traffic circles should be beaten.

 

[Stoneman89]

Whoever brought in traffic circles should be beaten.

The Brits. Blame the Brits. Give King Charlie a taste of Louisville Slugger.

 

[GigaChad]

Very random memories from the past:

 

[Tarus]

Whoever brought in traffic circles should be beaten.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

Just nuke that whole intersection and start over.