Much has been made of the Glendon Drive Environmental Assessment, which lasted over two years, and for good reason! It is a major thoroughfare through our community, handling thousands of vehicles every day. It has old, oddly-oriented connections to it that make safety a problem, even when drivers are following the rules of the road, like Five Corners (Jefferies/Vanneck/Coldstream/Glendon), Kilworth Park Drive, and Old River Road. More connections will be coming soon like an extended Crestview Drive winding through Edgewater Estates and Kilworth Heights West, and a new road to be built to the north which I will illustrate below.
So, in order to quell any further rumours or speculation, and because I don’t expect anyone not on Council to read through the full 297 page environmental assessment, here are the changes you can expect to see over the next 20 years assuming the following:
- Middlesex County can budget appropriately for the work in the time frames set out by Stantec
- Lands that need to be acquired in order to accommodate the changes, where needed, can be acquired in a reasonable amount of time
- Something else doesn’t throw the plan off course
Overall, I think you will be pleased. When you pair the recommendations with the vision set out by Dr. Avi Friedman several years ago, it all goes together quite nicely and will help reinforce the village feel we all appreciate about Komoka and Kilworth.
Section 1 – Glendon Drive from Highway 402 to Komoka Rd
- This will become a three-lane section of road with a middle turning lane
- Paved shoulders, which could be used as bike lanes
- Drainage ditches with flat bottoms will be constructed to improve drainage
- Concrete box culvert at the Komoka Creek crossing requires extension or replacement
- No realignment of the creek is proposed
- The speed limit should remain 80 kph
- Narrow band of property may be required along the south side for ditch improvements; we will find out for sure during the detailed design process
- Decorative paving, ornamental trees, and nice signage as you enter Komoka
- New, large shade trees planted along Glendon Drive along with groups of native shrubs
From the report, here is what that looks like in practice:
And here is a gallery of the changes. Use the arrows on the left and right of the images to browse them.
Section 2 – West of Komoka Rd to Jefferies / Vanneck
Big changes ahead for this stretch of road! More lanes, slower traffic, and roundabouts! This works nicely with the village feel we’re aiming for, despite the additional lanes of vehicular traffic.
- The three-lane section of road expands to four lanes
- Left-turn lanes where needed
- A proper curb, which you can see now at Glendon & Queen St, and gutter with storm sewers proposed
- Boulevard will provide a multi-use pathway on both the north and south sides of Glendon
- During off-peak hours, the outside vehicular lanes could be converted to on-street parking
- For example, this occurs on Richmond St in London downtown between Queens Ave and Central Ave
- Reduce the speed limit to 50 kph through this stretch, enhancing safety for all especially pedestrians and cyclists
- Stop lights and cross-walks should be installed at Glendon/Tunks Lane, Glendon/Crestview Dr, and Glendon/Springfield Way
- Coldstream Rd is diverted, with a new road being paved to the west, just south of the rail underpass, then turning south to continue Springfield Way
- A four-lane roundabout formed by Vanneck, Jefferies, and Glendon Drive
- Some property will likely be acquired on both sides of Glendon for this stretch to accommodate additional lanes and multi-use paths; we’ll know for certain after detailed design occurs
- Add landscaped medians
- Decorative paving, trees, shrubs should be added to the Wellness Centre corner of Glendon/Tunks
- Lots of other little ornamental touches throughout
Here is what the typical cross-section of this section of the road should look like:
And here is a detailed gallery of how each part of this section of Glendon Drive should look like from above. Use the arrows on the left and right of the images to browse them.
Section 3 – Jefferies / Vanneck to Kilworth Park Dr
- Four-lane road, paved shoulders
- The south side of Glendon would have a boulevard and multi-use pathway
- Reduce the existing 80 kph speed limit to 70 kph
- London is anticipated to drop the speed limit on their side of the bridge to 70 kph in the future
- Improved road side ditch on the north side of Glendon
- May require a very small amount of property acquisition
- More streetscape and landscaping touches to continue the aesthetic established to the west
Here is the typical cross-section:
And here is a more detailed gallery, this time just two images:
And finally…
Section 4 – Kilworth Park Drive to Thames River Bridge
The most significant item in this stretch is the controversial realignment of Old River Road. I don’t endorse this, or the numerous stop lights being introduced, which is why I voted against endorsing the full plan at Council. It passed nonetheless. Additionally you can look forward to:
- Going back to two-lanes of vehicular traffic
- The multi-use pathway and boulevard go away east of Kilworth Park Dr, though the wide paved shoulders remain
- A middle turning lane where needed
Here is the typical cross-section minus the turning lane:
And here is a short gallery of the overhead view:
And there you have it! As far as the timeline goes, Stantec laid out a recommended time frame for each portion of the work. They recommended that Five Corners become a single lane roundabout within the next 5 years, and then a two-lane roundabout within 5-10 years. Komoka & Glendon’s roundabout was recommended to be construction in 5-10 years. Here is a more thorough timetable:
[table “1” not found /]If you have any questions not answered here, please give me a call at 226-448-6774 or email me at silva@middlesexcentre.on.ca.
If you have a 2018 election campaign-related question, please email me at me@dereksilva.ca. You can also get a hold of me using Facebook or Twitter!