Archive for the ‘Squealing Wheels’ Category

Port Metro Vancouver (PMV) and the City of North Vancouver (CNV) will host a Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, May 25th at the Pinnacle Hotel from 5:30pm to 8:30pm regarding the proposed Low Level Road Improvement Project.  The Public Notice states that the first hour will be an Open House and the Town Hall Meeting will begin at 6:30pm.

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Port Metro Vancouver (PMV) will return to the City of North Vancouver (CNV) Council Meeting on Monday, May 9, 2011 to present the results from the long overdue Crossing Assessment Report.  In December 2009, CNV City Council approved expenditure of funds on a study to be performed on all at-grade rail crossings on the North Shore between the Second Narrows Bridge and the Lions Gate Bridge.  It was recognized that train whistling had become an even more significant issue on the North Shore since June 2009 when noise complaints from residents increased considerably.  See the post “Tired of Rail Noise in North Vancouver?” The purpose of the study was to determine how anti-whistling could be achieved for each of the crossings.

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The event on Wednesday, May 4th has been changed to a Community Open House.  The Town Hall Meeting has been moved to Wednesday, May 25th.

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The Public Information Meeting

Public reaction to Port Metro Vancouver’s (PMV) proposed Low Level Road Improvement Project has prompted the PMV to hold a Town Hall Meeting in conjunction with the City of North Vancouver (CNV).  The meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 4th, 2011 from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm at the Fraternal Order of Eagles Hall, 170 West 3rd Street in North Vancouver.

Many local residents were unaware of this proposed project and the Community Open House held in February 2011, and many residents objected to this project outright or have significant concerns about the design of this project.  This Town Hall Meeting has been organized in response to these concerns.  North Vancouver residents need to attend this event, voice their concerns, ask questions and provide input!

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It’s that time of year again when our clocks spring forward and give us an extra hour of daylight.  However, many people are bleary-eyed on the Monday after Daylight Savings Time (DST) goes into effect.  The loss of one hour of sleep due to DST can have a significant impact on many people.

On March 9th, ICBC posted a news article on their website entitled “ICBC urges drivers to plan ahead for Daylight Savings Time.” The article compares the loss of sleep to being an impaired driver: “The impact of the loss of an hour sleep can lead to us being impaired as drivers. When most of us think of impaired driving, we think of people who drink and drive. But anything that decreases your ability to judge the situation around you and to react appropriately can be dangerous.”

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Port Metro Vancouver (PMV) is hosting a Community Open House on Thursday, February 10, 2011 at the Pinnacle Hotel at the Pier from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm for North Vancouver residents to learn more about the proposed Low Level Road Improvement Project.  This infrastructure project will have significant benefits to the rail noise pollution that is currently affecting residents in Lower Lonsdale.  See the recent post A Solution for Lower Lonsdale! for more details about this project.

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The Project

On December 13, 2010, Port Metro Vancouver (PMV) gave a presentation to North Vancouver City Council regarding their Low Level Road Improvement Project.  The scope of the project is extensive but the primary components of this project that are relevant to Lower Lonsdale residents affected by rail noise include:

  • Closing the St. Andrew’s uncontrolled crossing
  • Closing the St. Patrick’s uncontrolled crossing
  • Building an overpass close to St. Patrick’s Street for vehicle access to the industrial businesses on the waterfront
  • Building an overpass next to the Neptune and Cargill terminals and closing a 3rd uncontrolled crossing

The primary benefits of these changes mean an improved level of safety because 3 uncontrolled crossings will be closed permanently.  This means that the CN Rail locomotives will not have to blast their whistles at these crossings!

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You are not alone!

Rail noise has long been a problem on the North Shore.  Longstanding problems were further compounded in June 2009 when CN Rail locomotives starting blasting their whistles at all uncontrolled crossings in North Vancouver.  This was the result of a safety audit in the spring of 2009 which indicated that whistles were not being sounded according to required operating procedures.  This increase in whistling throughout the entire North Shore has resulted in an even larger percentage of the resident population being affected by rail noise pollution.

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