Regina bypass interchange has diverging diamond
Pilot Butte will soon be home to the leading edge of highway interchange design, according to the Saskatchewan government, which is eager to share the news in a week of public meetings.
Highways ministry spokesman Doug Wakabayashi said the Pilot Butte overpass at the Regina bypass will open far ahead of schedule — in a matter of weeks or even days. The interchange will be only the second in Canada to use the socalled “diverging diamond” design.
The interchange will see crisscrossing lanes on a bridge over the bypass, with two controlled intersections moving traffic to opposing sides of the road. That means drivers can merge onto the highway in both directions without crossing oncoming traffic.
“It is relatively new to North America and certainly very new to Canada,” Wakabayashi said. “It is an example of how engineers look to do what they can in the design process to improve safety.”
From above, the diverging diamond plan appears complex, but Wakabayashi said it’s easy to navigate on the road.
“The primary difference is what happens as traffic approaches the bridge,” he explained. “Using curbing and the lines on the pavement and traffic lights, traffic is moved over to the left-hand side of the road.”
That facilitates left-side merging, he said, reducing the number of potential collision points with oncoming traffic. Wakabayashi said he’s tried it out for himself in the United States. He claims he wasn’t fazed driving on the wrong side of a busy road.
“They’re actually very intuitive once you get onto the interchange,” he said. “It’s very apparent what’s expected of drivers.”
The Pilot Butte interchange was originally pushed back because of delays securing passage over what was once First Nation land, a process Wakabayashi said the feds made “cumbersome.” But good weather last year sped up construction. The project was also pushed ahead of a less heavily travelled intersection at Highway 33.
Now, the ministry is ready to invite residents to learn about the interchange. The schedule for public information sessions is as follows:
Tuesday, Cornwall Centre (Centre Court) from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.; Wednesday, Pilot Butte Recreation Centre from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Thursday, Sandra Schmirler Leisure Centre from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
March 3 will be the big event, with the ministry offering a walkthrough of the interchange itself, slated to take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Details will follow.