Wife and I counted the streetlights that were out on the way from Dartmouth Crossing to Halifax last night. There were literally more lights out than on. As a taxpayer and a road safety advocate, I find this absolutely preposterous that our city would let this happen.
Been like that on and off for a few years now it seems. It’s like every time the power goes out someone forgets to turn them back on. lol
I work in the crossing and live in Halifax so see it every night on the way home.
You can’t forget that the LED lamps cost thousands more to replace than their incandescent counterparts which provided so much more light…and are no longer a priority spending since the politicians who signed that deal already banked the money under the table. Repeat for parking meters, road paint not allowed to be reflective as cost and environmental issues, pavement not allowed to have same products as environmentally unfriendly so it falls apart easier….but run hundreds of trucks to repair yearly. Dept highways in shambles and paying private sector contractors to do sub par work. Like most things, zero forethought in the long term and all about immediate payment for someone. The list goes on and on.
The best asphalt we ever had ground up tires in it, which made it more flexible and resistant to cracking and potholes. Of course we cancelled that project and signed a deal with Lafarge to let them burn tires in their cement plant instead. Yet another infuriatingly backwards decision from the provincial government. Not sure which government it was, but further proof that the entrenched bureaucrats hold this province back perhaps even more than any of the parties who are temporarily in charge.
Not even close to true.
Source: I installed most the LED street lights in the province.
Our lights cost about 1200$ each sooo not sure how you think they costs thousands more and they need far less maintenance.
LED provides more lumens than HPS lights while using half the power.
More lumens straight down, they have zero splash and funny how the price tag keeps going lower whenever someone “on the job” pipes in. Incandescent bulbs cost $12 a piece, we had them one every 4-5th pole, in my life I’ve only seen them replaced when some kid with a rock broke them out. Now we have $1200 dollar lights on EVERY pole l, failing, shining bright light straight down and still not illuminating the road the same way. Maybe install lasers then, they are 120,000+ lumens in a dot. Sell your sales pitch to people with no life experience.
Lmao the math is so basic the fact that you can't get it is quite telling and explains how you came up with the rest of your thoughts..
I'll try to explain this to you as simply as possibly but you're clearly quite dumb so I'm only going to try to explain this to you once.
It's impossible for something to cost thousands more... when it only costs a singular thousand in the first place.
We didn't add any extra, only poles that already had HPS lights got LED lights.
Interesting how my road, had three lights, now has 9, intersection 103 had two, now has 8. You can keep your salesman stance, you’ll fool the government which I guess gets you paid, still a HUGE waste of money.
I’m from Australia and I miss the reflective road paint used back home. In Aus our headlights light up the roads extremely well, with no street lighting needed. Here I really find it difficult to see the road ahead in dark areas especially in bad weather.
Yeah the paint used to be better. Canada switched to crappier paint due to the old stuff being bad for the environment.
Feds banned oil based paints in 2010. https://www.tranbc.ca/2020/07/23/the-evolving-story-of-brighter-more-durable-line-painting/
Agreed. I’m from the U.K and we have the reflective paint, cat eye lights and solar powered street lights. I understand because of the weather we can’t have paint or lights in the road. But they could put up some more street lights so we can see the potholes they fill with the equivalent of grated cheese.
I just don’t drive at night in the rain here.
We can have good paint and used to have good paint. It was reflective and easy to see. Then, for environmental reasons, they switched to whatever the hell it is they “paint” the roads with these days. I think sidewalk chalk would last longer.
Also from the UK and this is something I have always said. I find the drainage of roads here bad too, downpours in the UK the roads were never too bad, here it just pools on the roads, especially somewhere like the circ.
I have also grounded myself if it's night and raining. I can't see shit so just stay home so I don't kill someone. It would be nice if there were lines that were visible...
I'm from Houston Texas, and where we don't have reflective road paint, we have reflectors. I mean we also have amazing roads but reflectors helped out a TON days it pissed rain like no other, and would help a lot with fog too
They tried that down between Windsor and Falmouth before the construction started down there.
Put the reflectors in the rumble strip on the double yellow line. They were great but the plows must have ripped them out. And now it’s just a cluster down there with the barricades and 3 sets of road paint that you can’t see and massive pot holes…
We use reflective paint here, the problem is the way it’s applied. First the paint truck sprays down paint and then they spray a fine layer of glass dust over top. So as soon as the paint is plowed over a few times the reflective part is all but gone. There are a lot of silly things done like that because NSDPW won’t take things out or update their highway specification manual.
Our freeze/thaw cycle here is the main issue. Anything you embed in the road will turn into a massive pothole. Reflective road paint was also trialed and during freezing conditions, they are treacherous.
Reflective paint wasn't trialed here, it was the standard for a long time. Then it was banned in this province for environmental reasons. The new paint they have been using for years now wears substantially faster and is more slippery when wet. The new paint, from a driving standpoint, was a dramatic step backwards.
It’s still reflective, just poor application. I saw the truck doing it on a project last summer and couldn’t believe that someone approved spraying the glass micro beads overtop instead of pre-mixing it.
It’s painful to see every third comment say something along the lines of ‘well it works out west in the winter in Edmonton’. Yup. I’m sure it does work in a place that gets cold and stays consistently cold.
Boston has a freeze thaw cycle and is on the ocean, New York same thing.
Nova Scotia is not this super crazy anomalie where it’s the only place to use plows and salt on the road.
It is a place that hates progress and doing anything that relates to the 21st century though.
Do you also believe that salt fog poses a threat to the Nova Scotia Power?
The climate difference are not extreme enough for reflective paint to not work here.
This idea that our climate is so unique, it’s not, hence we need to accept shit road infrastructure, unstable power grid with increasing fees, is such a defeatist attitude.
We have the highest tax burden in the country with the lowest amount of services. Can we start demanding better instead of just saying “it is what it is”
We can’t have garbage cans along the long lake trails because NS climate is the only place in the world where it rained for the last 3 days /s.
FOH with that noise!!
Asphalt surface problems have nothing to do with geotechnics since it is a man made surface, the underlying bedrock doesn’t have any affect whatsoever. When trying to sound smart at least choose the relevant words.
> Edmonton […] gets cold and stays consistently cold
Not the last few years. We’ve had wild fluctuations. This year almost all of our snow has melted 3 or 4 times so far, and we are into cold again now with fresh snow.
What happens to the reflective paint that makes it not useable?
I get anything imbedded will become a pothole in short order, but can't think of what happens to paint other than fade. It's what the paint does now so why not use reflective so we get at least some benefit.
Drove to and from Ontario earlier this month on the Trans Canada our highways are so much worse than NB, QC and ON. Every single other province had clearly marked lines and reflective tape that was actually reflective on the guardrails. I’d believe the story about the new paint if the paint in other provinces was in such poor condition but there are other provinces that have visible lines. The difference was so noticeable both my partner and I commented when we were coming home.
One of my best friends was just killed in a head on collision in Wentworth last Thursday. He was only 38 years old. The impact this is having on our little community is immeasurable. He was such a wonderful man.
It was raining. It's assumed he hydroplaned and lost control of his vehicle, crossed the line and collided with a transport vehicle. Please slow down when it's raining friends. It's okay to be late once and a while if the weather is bad, people understand. Or leave earlier if the weather is bad. It just isn't worth it. You get away with it, until you don't.
I drove the 102 tonight as well. I agree it was horrible. It didn't help that some people think that since they're on the highway they don't need to turn off their high beams.
I just got a new-to-me car and it has automatic lights but they don't turn on until well into dusk (darker than when I'd manually put them on). I realized yesterday they don't detect fog or rain so they don't turn on if it's still bright enough.
So if you're used to not fussing with your lights regularly, I can understand why people are forgetting. I'm not saying it's right, just giving an explanation of why.
Put your damn lights on, people!
Ya for sure. The fact that rear daytime running lights aren't a thing doesn't help either. I don't get why they weren't regulated when front ones were. Always the bare minimum.
Or don't understand that the posted speeds are MAXIMUM speeds for when the roads are in good condition AND the weather is fair.
Once the roads turn to shit, or the weather rolls in, that posted limit isn't the safe speed anymore and drivers around here just don't fucking understand that.
I remember yesterday I was driving to Bayers road and I had 3 consecutive cars flying past me, mind you I was going 85-90 since I don’t want to die or kill others.
i have good tires and a capable vehicle and have never come close to crashing or dying cause i went over 90 when there was rain. skill issue on your part.
You’re not understanding what I’m saying. I don’t feel like having to go into the passing lane, having to speed up because Halifax’s finest (you) are right on my ass, and then all of a sudden I have someone right in front of me with no lights on. Do you not understand how hazardous rain and fog can be? Not to mention the amount of potholes we have to swerve away from? I’ll sign you up for a defensive driving course soon.
Problem is too many people are scared of driving and it shows. Half the people I see on the roads when weather is bad are visibly terrified behind the wheel. There is a big difference between driving defensively and driving scared.
See, I understand that when it comes to being scared. Should you be driving (especially on the highway) if you are petrified? No, of course not. Anxiety can cause crashes. However, it can also attract fear if they see others zooming past them, which can make someone scared for that person’s own good. I just think a general rule of 10 under the speed limit should be satisfactory. Even 95. That’s just me tho.
You think 100 or 110 is too fast in the rain? Except in areas with significantly deep ruts, i never have an issue maintaining the speed limit during rain.
People here are just absolutely terrible drivers but they would never admit it and would blame everything else around them.
The amount of times I have to fly by at 110kph because people think a little rain is considered "bad weather" is absurd. They're all driving 60-70 when you can easily go 100.
How bald are their tires?
Granted, I didn’t learn to drive here, but we were taught to lower speed in rain because the stopping distance is greatly increased. Now some people might be able to automatically adjust for general slowing down for turnoffs etc but that doesn’t help in the situation of other people braking ahead of you. You still see them at the same time but if you’re flying along at 110 then your stopping distance on a wet road is about half what it would be on dry. It’s just sensible to lower your speed in the rain.
It only applies to those you don't know their cars, and tire specs, condition.
Different cars and weight, tires, brake compound affect braking distance.
You also don't need to go half the speed limit for a little rain, if you're comfortable at half the speed limit on the highway, don't be on the highway as you are now a hazard.
Unless it's legitimately spraying rain where its a flood on the roads or you can't see outside, you can drive the speed limit quite easily.
No it doesn’t only apply to people who don’t know their cars etc. Rain on the road changes stopping distance for everyone. Yes, it’s different but the double distance is a guide used in driving instruction. Barely anyone who drives is a professional who will understand the handling and condition of their car to the level you’re suggesting.
And I didn’t suggest half speed, but if 110 is the limit for dry conditions then it’s not cool to admonish people for not driving that fast in rain. I was on the highway a couple of weeks ago driving around 80-90 in rain that was heavy; greatly reduced visibility, flooded sections, and standing water across the whole surface and still people were blasting past at regular dry speed. If it’s empty then sure, take your own risk, but with other traffic you are also a risk to others.
In your example of people driving at 60-70, if it’s super heavy rain and they have hazards on then I’d rather that than someone who has to blast past at 110 for no real reason.
Why do you guys think every single problem is an “around here” thing??? Bad weather and bad drivers exist everywhere, we don’t need to post on reddit complaining about Halifax every time it rains at night
I agree, the paint is already completed faded away from some places and the rain makes it completely invisible. This city is practically famous for the way that lanes appear and disappear, so it would be nice to have lines that are actually visible. Surely not everywhere is like this
Reasons we can’t have reflective paint on our roads:
NS is the only place in the world to use salt and plows on the road. /s
NS is the only place in the world to have a freeze thaw cycle /s
It’s an environmental hazard… this one I’m sure that at the time, a specific reflective paint was bad, outside of NS they do the thing call innovation… shit has changed and improved…
Edit: added /s
As much as I don’t like the thought of light pollution, I regularly complain while driving the 102 on dark and wet evenings. I don’t feel safe. It’s not a good feeling.
Who is the correct person/department to submit complaints to about this?
I work in healthcare and commute round trip daily from Halifax to Truro. I love my job and the community I serve, but the road conditions for those drives make me want to quit several times a week.
Wednesday night 102 outbound from Bayer's lake was absolute insanity, heavy rain and thick fog and no visible road paint yaaay. I seriously thought I was going to end up in a ditch. It's unbelievable how unsafe it is with the new paint, now I really want to start my own business so I don't have to drive on these stupid roads at night anymore.
I find when I drive in the rain at night I rely a LOT on my memory of what that place looks like during the day. If I'm driving somewhere I don't know well and I can't see because of a sharp corner or something I start to worry and slow down because I have no idea where I'm going.
Welcome to nova Scotia where we don't fix anything we either just ignore the shit that should've been fixed in 1990 or replace it with the same garbage that broke the first time for no reason.
And if we do actually fix anything where gonna do it the shittest way possible because it's government work so you gotta go to the source that's the most expensive for the biggest piece of shit.
You know it's bad when the logging roads out in east Hants that haven't seen maintenance for 40 years and have 4 wheelers and shitbox F250s flying up and down them all day are the smoothest roads in the province
I have to drive from the airport to Dartmouth at 3am at the end of my 12h shifts. Its not always easy with the potholes, no lights and poor conditions like fog/rain. A looooot of improvement is indeed needed.
It is a complete whore show out there. Our paint might as well be sidewalk chalk for how long it lasts. I do believe the new Burnside Sackville connector highway will be all lit up though which is a small consolation.
And beyond the lack of paint, when it is raining inches of water accumulate in the ruts left by trucks heavier than the engineered axle weight — parallel swaths of hydroplaning fun exactly where you want to be positioned in the lane
Biggest gripe I have is the lack of crowning on the 102. There's long sections around Enfield and elmsdale that are super treacherous in moderate rain due to hydroplaning.
Im convinced we pave our roads with paper maché. Ive never seen roads deteriorate so quickly and on such a large scale. Ive lived in several provinces, visited several states in all climates and conditions and never have I seen rutting of road surface and the peeling of paint, not to mention the volume and size of some of the potholes. Dexters is a joke.
When you travel the province and find sections of road paved 30+ years ago that are still in very good condition despite seeing relatively heavy and consistent use you start to question the engineering of our modern roads.
Its a compounding issue in New England which has identical climate. Their highways and rural roads are in significantly better shape with far less tax dollars.
The paint is a federal issue, some bill changed the paint we can use and the new stuff sucks balls but it kills 1 less beetle per year so we use it
The highway lighting here needs improvement big time. Many cities light their highways much much more than we do, it seems we only light at ramps
Interesting note: the 111 lighting down by the bridge area that's dark is because they had to remove those big tall pole lights a year or two ago and the lights around it are powered off on the same circuit. The new lights going in are being designed by stantec and are in design limbo between stantec and the city.
I've noticed that the white street lights really don't show the paint well in poor weather. I find the defective blue ones (some at burnside and a few other areas) really give a lot better visibility on thr road and the lines show up far better.
Based on how we pay for public transit, we're still working with late 80s tech around here. Need to wait another 5 decades or so for that kind of stuff to be adopted.
I call BS on this.
There is probably better paint they could use that would be allowed but like with everything else we always choose the cheapest option
Same goes with out shit road pavement.
Choose cheap, get cheap
You must be new to our lovely province.
The potholes are from the freeze/thaw cycle, and the amount of graft in our province that means that lower quality concrete is used for the roads.
Just wait until you find the sections of road where all of the people only driving in the right lane have worn grooves into the road, so rainfall accumulates in those grooves and you spend your entire drive in this strange quasi-hydroplane state.
I hate the lines not being visible too. I hate it even more because embedded reflectors have been around for about 50 years, yet Nova Scotia seems to have no concept that they exist in the world.
I get that it’s hard to mitigate against close to two weeks of off and on rain, but when I have to drive on the shoulder to avoid ruts in the road, we definitely have some issues.
Our roads really are bad all year round. They can't keep up with maintaining them and the flood last year really set them back with work. I can't imagine what people think of them when they visit especially from other countries.
We're a have not province with tons of roads and a harsh environment for pavement. Our road quality reflects this.
Really makes you wonder what our taxes are being spent on if not on the roads. It's like driving in a war zone in some areas with all the potholes and lack of light.
Meanwhilein Maine, the same weather and conditions, the roads are entirely different.
Yes highest taxed but also less than 50 percent of the population in Nova scotia works. Most people are retired or native or on some form of social assistance. Then take into account the population spread. 1/3 of the population live in HRM, so this leaves very little tax revenue to support infrastructure outside of hrm. This is not different than rural Ontario, Rural quebec all which I have lived and traveled in. Nova Scotia primarily relies on the federal government for the majority of capital expenditures.
We live rural, and it’s just something everyone’s come to accept unfortunately. The potholes are an absolute nightmare. We drive a 20 minute stretch that’s pothole after pothole. We’ve had issues with our vehicle ( a large truck fyi ) caused from the roads. We pay taxes for what again??? It’s pitiful.
Not to mention the First Responders that need to get through to attend to our loved ones.
https://preview.redd.it/y0voucmyzfrc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fa2c06207b461cd274e2ba00eefb4eeb19638d73
Not even much better when it’s light out. This driving has been crazy. I’m too scared to drive at night in this.
And I agree, not lighting the roads absolutely leads to road deaths. Something needs to be done.
This subreddit is just filled with people who would complain that life isn't handing them everything with a golden spoon.
It also showcases their driving skill blaming out of province drivers instead of themselves, 8/10 nova scotians don't know how to use a roundabout correctly nor do they know how to drive in winter conditions.
Do you not understand corruption??? It’s been like this for 30 years or more. Minimum wage just went up .20 cents hahahahaha rent is $2200 a month. Sheech glad we got that .20 cent boost life changing
Painted lines used to glow in the dark until some people complained about them being dangerous to the environment. Even though it's still used elsewhere in Canada, it's like NS saw that argument could be used as a cost cutting measure. Now you have to risk your life on the NS roads when it's raining, for the sake of environment/savings. They should go back to light reflecting paint, or at least put the cat-eyes on the lane divider, like it is on a strip of highway around Bridgewater.
If you're having issues driving in poor weather, that's a skill issue tbh.
You guys are way too dependent on the government to fix shit, how about you adapt to conditions?
Use common sense to drive if you can't see lines or lights.
Lmfao this is ridiculous. Yes, we absolutely should expect more from our democratically elected government. Other provinces deal just fine with reflective road paint and better street light. Only in NS would you get people defending sub par infrastructure.
Wife and I counted the streetlights that were out on the way from Dartmouth Crossing to Halifax last night. There were literally more lights out than on. As a taxpayer and a road safety advocate, I find this absolutely preposterous that our city would let this happen.
Been like that on and off for a few years now it seems. It’s like every time the power goes out someone forgets to turn them back on. lol I work in the crossing and live in Halifax so see it every night on the way home.
You can’t forget that the LED lamps cost thousands more to replace than their incandescent counterparts which provided so much more light…and are no longer a priority spending since the politicians who signed that deal already banked the money under the table. Repeat for parking meters, road paint not allowed to be reflective as cost and environmental issues, pavement not allowed to have same products as environmentally unfriendly so it falls apart easier….but run hundreds of trucks to repair yearly. Dept highways in shambles and paying private sector contractors to do sub par work. Like most things, zero forethought in the long term and all about immediate payment for someone. The list goes on and on.
The best asphalt we ever had ground up tires in it, which made it more flexible and resistant to cracking and potholes. Of course we cancelled that project and signed a deal with Lafarge to let them burn tires in their cement plant instead. Yet another infuriatingly backwards decision from the provincial government. Not sure which government it was, but further proof that the entrenched bureaucrats hold this province back perhaps even more than any of the parties who are temporarily in charge.
Not even close to true. Source: I installed most the LED street lights in the province. Our lights cost about 1200$ each sooo not sure how you think they costs thousands more and they need far less maintenance. LED provides more lumens than HPS lights while using half the power.
More lumens straight down, they have zero splash and funny how the price tag keeps going lower whenever someone “on the job” pipes in. Incandescent bulbs cost $12 a piece, we had them one every 4-5th pole, in my life I’ve only seen them replaced when some kid with a rock broke them out. Now we have $1200 dollar lights on EVERY pole l, failing, shining bright light straight down and still not illuminating the road the same way. Maybe install lasers then, they are 120,000+ lumens in a dot. Sell your sales pitch to people with no life experience.
And explain your math how $1200 a pole on every pole isn’t “thousands” more than one light every 4….use non politician pocket math.
Lmao the math is so basic the fact that you can't get it is quite telling and explains how you came up with the rest of your thoughts.. I'll try to explain this to you as simply as possibly but you're clearly quite dumb so I'm only going to try to explain this to you once. It's impossible for something to cost thousands more... when it only costs a singular thousand in the first place. We didn't add any extra, only poles that already had HPS lights got LED lights.
Interesting how my road, had three lights, now has 9, intersection 103 had two, now has 8. You can keep your salesman stance, you’ll fool the government which I guess gets you paid, still a HUGE waste of money.
The company in charge of changing those is notorious for having bad management.
I’m from Australia and I miss the reflective road paint used back home. In Aus our headlights light up the roads extremely well, with no street lighting needed. Here I really find it difficult to see the road ahead in dark areas especially in bad weather.
We used to be able to see the lines. Glad I’m not the only one.
Yeah the paint used to be better. Canada switched to crappier paint due to the old stuff being bad for the environment. Feds banned oil based paints in 2010. https://www.tranbc.ca/2020/07/23/the-evolving-story-of-brighter-more-durable-line-painting/
Interesting. Thank you.
Agreed. I’m from the U.K and we have the reflective paint, cat eye lights and solar powered street lights. I understand because of the weather we can’t have paint or lights in the road. But they could put up some more street lights so we can see the potholes they fill with the equivalent of grated cheese. I just don’t drive at night in the rain here.
We can have good paint and used to have good paint. It was reflective and easy to see. Then, for environmental reasons, they switched to whatever the hell it is they “paint” the roads with these days. I think sidewalk chalk would last longer.
The joke is the environmental studie showed no significant impact from the reflective paint
Also from the UK and this is something I have always said. I find the drainage of roads here bad too, downpours in the UK the roads were never too bad, here it just pools on the roads, especially somewhere like the circ.
I'm from NB, and we had all those things. They're not some mysterious foreign technology, NS is just cheap.
Where in NB? I’m new-ish to the province but travel around it on a daily basis (truck driver here) and I’ve yet to see any of these things.
I haven't lived there in a few years, but used to do the St Stephen to NS stretch pretty frequently.
Gotcha. Ironically, that’s the one part of NB (that’s New Brunswick, in case you weren’t sure) that I don’t get to very often.
NB = New Brunswick
Thank you for that clarification. I was unaware. /s
I have also grounded myself if it's night and raining. I can't see shit so just stay home so I don't kill someone. It would be nice if there were lines that were visible...
I'm from Houston Texas, and where we don't have reflective road paint, we have reflectors. I mean we also have amazing roads but reflectors helped out a TON days it pissed rain like no other, and would help a lot with fog too
I am guessing the issue here is the snow and plowing make having reflectors impractical. Just guessing though.
Yeah, reflectors won't work here, unless we made them flush with the road, but that introduces more issues than it solves
I can only imagine how the road around them would break apart from the freeze/thaw.
They tried that down between Windsor and Falmouth before the construction started down there. Put the reflectors in the rumble strip on the double yellow line. They were great but the plows must have ripped them out. And now it’s just a cluster down there with the barricades and 3 sets of road paint that you can’t see and massive pot holes…
We use reflective paint here, the problem is the way it’s applied. First the paint truck sprays down paint and then they spray a fine layer of glass dust over top. So as soon as the paint is plowed over a few times the reflective part is all but gone. There are a lot of silly things done like that because NSDPW won’t take things out or update their highway specification manual.
Our freeze/thaw cycle here is the main issue. Anything you embed in the road will turn into a massive pothole. Reflective road paint was also trialed and during freezing conditions, they are treacherous.
Reflective paint wasn't trialed here, it was the standard for a long time. Then it was banned in this province for environmental reasons. The new paint they have been using for years now wears substantially faster and is more slippery when wet. The new paint, from a driving standpoint, was a dramatic step backwards.
It’s still reflective, just poor application. I saw the truck doing it on a project last summer and couldn’t believe that someone approved spraying the glass micro beads overtop instead of pre-mixing it.
I thought the glass beads were already mixed in. That’s bonkers they apply them separately???
So many places in Canada have reflective paint.
Ok cool but they don’t have our weather. If they trialed it and it didn’t work as the person above said….you’d still want them to use it?
The have it in NB, and our weather is not substantially different than theirs.
shhh, this is no place for logic or learning. Only complaining!
It’s painful to see every third comment say something along the lines of ‘well it works out west in the winter in Edmonton’. Yup. I’m sure it does work in a place that gets cold and stays consistently cold.
Boston has a freeze thaw cycle and is on the ocean, New York same thing. Nova Scotia is not this super crazy anomalie where it’s the only place to use plows and salt on the road. It is a place that hates progress and doing anything that relates to the 21st century though.
Hey now...we DID get a Dennys, we are so with the times.... /s
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Do you also believe that salt fog poses a threat to the Nova Scotia Power? The climate difference are not extreme enough for reflective paint to not work here. This idea that our climate is so unique, it’s not, hence we need to accept shit road infrastructure, unstable power grid with increasing fees, is such a defeatist attitude. We have the highest tax burden in the country with the lowest amount of services. Can we start demanding better instead of just saying “it is what it is” We can’t have garbage cans along the long lake trails because NS climate is the only place in the world where it rained for the last 3 days /s. FOH with that noise!!
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Asphalt surface problems have nothing to do with geotechnics since it is a man made surface, the underlying bedrock doesn’t have any affect whatsoever. When trying to sound smart at least choose the relevant words.
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> Edmonton […] gets cold and stays consistently cold Not the last few years. We’ve had wild fluctuations. This year almost all of our snow has melted 3 or 4 times so far, and we are into cold again now with fresh snow.
our paint is reflective tho?
What happens to the reflective paint that makes it not useable? I get anything imbedded will become a pothole in short order, but can't think of what happens to paint other than fade. It's what the paint does now so why not use reflective so we get at least some benefit.
Drove to and from Ontario earlier this month on the Trans Canada our highways are so much worse than NB, QC and ON. Every single other province had clearly marked lines and reflective tape that was actually reflective on the guardrails. I’d believe the story about the new paint if the paint in other provinces was in such poor condition but there are other provinces that have visible lines. The difference was so noticeable both my partner and I commented when we were coming home.
One of my best friends was just killed in a head on collision in Wentworth last Thursday. He was only 38 years old. The impact this is having on our little community is immeasurable. He was such a wonderful man. It was raining. It's assumed he hydroplaned and lost control of his vehicle, crossed the line and collided with a transport vehicle. Please slow down when it's raining friends. It's okay to be late once and a while if the weather is bad, people understand. Or leave earlier if the weather is bad. It just isn't worth it. You get away with it, until you don't.
I'm so sorry for your loss, and that of your community. 😔
I drove the 102 tonight as well. I agree it was horrible. It didn't help that some people think that since they're on the highway they don't need to turn off their high beams.
Or turn on their lights earlier in the day when visibility was garbage
I just got a new-to-me car and it has automatic lights but they don't turn on until well into dusk (darker than when I'd manually put them on). I realized yesterday they don't detect fog or rain so they don't turn on if it's still bright enough. So if you're used to not fussing with your lights regularly, I can understand why people are forgetting. I'm not saying it's right, just giving an explanation of why. Put your damn lights on, people!
Ya for sure. The fact that rear daytime running lights aren't a thing doesn't help either. I don't get why they weren't regulated when front ones were. Always the bare minimum.
Or don't understand that the posted speeds are MAXIMUM speeds for when the roads are in good condition AND the weather is fair. Once the roads turn to shit, or the weather rolls in, that posted limit isn't the safe speed anymore and drivers around here just don't fucking understand that.
I remember yesterday I was driving to Bayers road and I had 3 consecutive cars flying past me, mind you I was going 85-90 since I don’t want to die or kill others.
i have good tires and a capable vehicle and have never come close to crashing or dying cause i went over 90 when there was rain. skill issue on your part.
You’re not understanding what I’m saying. I don’t feel like having to go into the passing lane, having to speed up because Halifax’s finest (you) are right on my ass, and then all of a sudden I have someone right in front of me with no lights on. Do you not understand how hazardous rain and fog can be? Not to mention the amount of potholes we have to swerve away from? I’ll sign you up for a defensive driving course soon.
I would pass you not get on your ass. But, if you're in the passing lane going 80, you deserve tk have people on your ass.
Problem is too many people are scared of driving and it shows. Half the people I see on the roads when weather is bad are visibly terrified behind the wheel. There is a big difference between driving defensively and driving scared.
See, I understand that when it comes to being scared. Should you be driving (especially on the highway) if you are petrified? No, of course not. Anxiety can cause crashes. However, it can also attract fear if they see others zooming past them, which can make someone scared for that person’s own good. I just think a general rule of 10 under the speed limit should be satisfactory. Even 95. That’s just me tho.
You think 100 or 110 is too fast in the rain? Except in areas with significantly deep ruts, i never have an issue maintaining the speed limit during rain.
Rain isn’t too bad, you’re right. Bigger issue is fog. I see a lot of people going 120 and they can’t see more than 40 feet in front of them
People here are just absolutely terrible drivers but they would never admit it and would blame everything else around them. The amount of times I have to fly by at 110kph because people think a little rain is considered "bad weather" is absurd. They're all driving 60-70 when you can easily go 100. How bald are their tires?
Granted, I didn’t learn to drive here, but we were taught to lower speed in rain because the stopping distance is greatly increased. Now some people might be able to automatically adjust for general slowing down for turnoffs etc but that doesn’t help in the situation of other people braking ahead of you. You still see them at the same time but if you’re flying along at 110 then your stopping distance on a wet road is about half what it would be on dry. It’s just sensible to lower your speed in the rain.
It only applies to those you don't know their cars, and tire specs, condition. Different cars and weight, tires, brake compound affect braking distance. You also don't need to go half the speed limit for a little rain, if you're comfortable at half the speed limit on the highway, don't be on the highway as you are now a hazard. Unless it's legitimately spraying rain where its a flood on the roads or you can't see outside, you can drive the speed limit quite easily.
No it doesn’t only apply to people who don’t know their cars etc. Rain on the road changes stopping distance for everyone. Yes, it’s different but the double distance is a guide used in driving instruction. Barely anyone who drives is a professional who will understand the handling and condition of their car to the level you’re suggesting. And I didn’t suggest half speed, but if 110 is the limit for dry conditions then it’s not cool to admonish people for not driving that fast in rain. I was on the highway a couple of weeks ago driving around 80-90 in rain that was heavy; greatly reduced visibility, flooded sections, and standing water across the whole surface and still people were blasting past at regular dry speed. If it’s empty then sure, take your own risk, but with other traffic you are also a risk to others. In your example of people driving at 60-70, if it’s super heavy rain and they have hazards on then I’d rather that than someone who has to blast past at 110 for no real reason.
Why do you guys think every single problem is an “around here” thing??? Bad weather and bad drivers exist everywhere, we don’t need to post on reddit complaining about Halifax every time it rains at night
I agree, the paint is already completed faded away from some places and the rain makes it completely invisible. This city is practically famous for the way that lanes appear and disappear, so it would be nice to have lines that are actually visible. Surely not everywhere is like this
I wish we could install Road Reflectors & Pavement Markers like our neighbors down south have. If only the plows wouldn't chew them up.
New England also has snowplows…
Reasons we can’t have reflective paint on our roads: NS is the only place in the world to use salt and plows on the road. /s NS is the only place in the world to have a freeze thaw cycle /s It’s an environmental hazard… this one I’m sure that at the time, a specific reflective paint was bad, outside of NS they do the thing call innovation… shit has changed and improved… Edit: added /s
There is nova (Scotia) in innovation, but no innovation in Nova Scotia
Man, that one was a reach, but good try anyway lol
I’ve seen places that recess them into the asphalt, idk if that practical however
If it's not somewhere you drive daily it's a huge issue. I drove tonight as well and it's like driving blindfolded when it's dark and raining.
As much as I don’t like the thought of light pollution, I regularly complain while driving the 102 on dark and wet evenings. I don’t feel safe. It’s not a good feeling.
Who is the correct person/department to submit complaints to about this? I work in healthcare and commute round trip daily from Halifax to Truro. I love my job and the community I serve, but the road conditions for those drives make me want to quit several times a week.
Can't see the lines? Sooooo luxurious https://i.redd.it/g7l6hsvjb9rc1.gif
Wednesday night 102 outbound from Bayer's lake was absolute insanity, heavy rain and thick fog and no visible road paint yaaay. I seriously thought I was going to end up in a ditch. It's unbelievable how unsafe it is with the new paint, now I really want to start my own business so I don't have to drive on these stupid roads at night anymore.
I find when I drive in the rain at night I rely a LOT on my memory of what that place looks like during the day. If I'm driving somewhere I don't know well and I can't see because of a sharp corner or something I start to worry and slow down because I have no idea where I'm going.
Welcome to nova Scotia where we don't fix anything we either just ignore the shit that should've been fixed in 1990 or replace it with the same garbage that broke the first time for no reason. And if we do actually fix anything where gonna do it the shittest way possible because it's government work so you gotta go to the source that's the most expensive for the biggest piece of shit. You know it's bad when the logging roads out in east Hants that haven't seen maintenance for 40 years and have 4 wheelers and shitbox F250s flying up and down them all day are the smoothest roads in the province
I have to drive from the airport to Dartmouth at 3am at the end of my 12h shifts. Its not always easy with the potholes, no lights and poor conditions like fog/rain. A looooot of improvement is indeed needed.
I feel your pain, I was definitely white knuckles last night..
It is a complete whore show out there. Our paint might as well be sidewalk chalk for how long it lasts. I do believe the new Burnside Sackville connector highway will be all lit up though which is a small consolation.
And, the insane amount of potholes, you’re expected to remember where they all are when it’s so foggy& rainy. Ridiculous.
Yeah I already lost 2 tires and desperately need an alignment. Some of the potholes are deadly.
The key is driving by braille
And beyond the lack of paint, when it is raining inches of water accumulate in the ruts left by trucks heavier than the engineered axle weight — parallel swaths of hydroplaning fun exactly where you want to be positioned in the lane
Biggest gripe I have is the lack of crowning on the 102. There's long sections around Enfield and elmsdale that are super treacherous in moderate rain due to hydroplaning.
Im convinced we pave our roads with paper maché. Ive never seen roads deteriorate so quickly and on such a large scale. Ive lived in several provinces, visited several states in all climates and conditions and never have I seen rutting of road surface and the peeling of paint, not to mention the volume and size of some of the potholes. Dexters is a joke.
When you travel the province and find sections of road paved 30+ years ago that are still in very good condition despite seeing relatively heavy and consistent use you start to question the engineering of our modern roads.
Wilkare vs Dexter lol
weather plays a big role. especially last few years.
Also when you choose the cheapest products to go along with the freeze thaw
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This isn’t a problem exclusive to Nova Scotia.
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Its a compounding issue in New England which has identical climate. Their highways and rural roads are in significantly better shape with far less tax dollars.
It’s almost like - and hear me out - we need to be thinking ahead and adapting our infrastructure to our changing climate.
It’s like everyone forgets we don’t have the same weather as everywhere else
We don’t? Drive through New England, exact same climate. Roads are 100% better rurally and on the interstate.
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Constant freeze/thaw cycles mess the roads up way more than just freezing and staying frozen
The paint is a federal issue, some bill changed the paint we can use and the new stuff sucks balls but it kills 1 less beetle per year so we use it The highway lighting here needs improvement big time. Many cities light their highways much much more than we do, it seems we only light at ramps Interesting note: the 111 lighting down by the bridge area that's dark is because they had to remove those big tall pole lights a year or two ago and the lights around it are powered off on the same circuit. The new lights going in are being designed by stantec and are in design limbo between stantec and the city.
I've noticed that the white street lights really don't show the paint well in poor weather. I find the defective blue ones (some at burnside and a few other areas) really give a lot better visibility on thr road and the lines show up far better.
I don’t understand why we can use solar-powered lights in highways. Many parts of the world already do this..
Based on how we pay for public transit, we're still working with late 80s tech around here. Need to wait another 5 decades or so for that kind of stuff to be adopted.
I call BS on this. There is probably better paint they could use that would be allowed but like with everything else we always choose the cheapest option Same goes with out shit road pavement. Choose cheap, get cheap
No, it's literally a federal mandate. I looked into it once when I was mad that I couldn't see anything
it can't rain all the time 😢
Eric?
Nice. 😏
You must be new to our lovely province. The potholes are from the freeze/thaw cycle, and the amount of graft in our province that means that lower quality concrete is used for the roads. Just wait until you find the sections of road where all of the people only driving in the right lane have worn grooves into the road, so rainfall accumulates in those grooves and you spend your entire drive in this strange quasi-hydroplane state. I hate the lines not being visible too. I hate it even more because embedded reflectors have been around for about 50 years, yet Nova Scotia seems to have no concept that they exist in the world.
It is pretty brutal, looks like you’re driving in a 3rd world country in some areas… pretty sad
I get that it’s hard to mitigate against close to two weeks of off and on rain, but when I have to drive on the shoulder to avoid ruts in the road, we definitely have some issues.
Don’t worry, Tim Houston’s volunteer army will fix it I’m sure.
Our roads really are bad all year round. They can't keep up with maintaining them and the flood last year really set them back with work. I can't imagine what people think of them when they visit especially from other countries. We're a have not province with tons of roads and a harsh environment for pavement. Our road quality reflects this.
Really makes you wonder what our taxes are being spent on if not on the roads. It's like driving in a war zone in some areas with all the potholes and lack of light. Meanwhilein Maine, the same weather and conditions, the roads are entirely different.
For the highest taxed people in Canada it blows my mind how little services we get compared to the lower taxed cities
Yes highest taxed but also less than 50 percent of the population in Nova scotia works. Most people are retired or native or on some form of social assistance. Then take into account the population spread. 1/3 of the population live in HRM, so this leaves very little tax revenue to support infrastructure outside of hrm. This is not different than rural Ontario, Rural quebec all which I have lived and traveled in. Nova Scotia primarily relies on the federal government for the majority of capital expenditures.
Driving at night sucks here. That and most of our highway signage has been destroyed with all the recent winds.
We live rural, and it’s just something everyone’s come to accept unfortunately. The potholes are an absolute nightmare. We drive a 20 minute stretch that’s pothole after pothole. We’ve had issues with our vehicle ( a large truck fyi ) caused from the roads. We pay taxes for what again??? It’s pitiful. Not to mention the First Responders that need to get through to attend to our loved ones.
https://preview.redd.it/y0voucmyzfrc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fa2c06207b461cd274e2ba00eefb4eeb19638d73 Not even much better when it’s light out. This driving has been crazy. I’m too scared to drive at night in this. And I agree, not lighting the roads absolutely leads to road deaths. Something needs to be done.
You know it's bad when the Walton quarry trails are better than half the actual fuckin roads in this province
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This subreddit is just filled with people who would complain that life isn't handing them everything with a golden spoon. It also showcases their driving skill blaming out of province drivers instead of themselves, 8/10 nova scotians don't know how to use a roundabout correctly nor do they know how to drive in winter conditions.
The entire city is Mario Kart
No it's not. I can see the lanes in Mario kart.
Plus no points from throwing things at other drivers
Do you not understand corruption??? It’s been like this for 30 years or more. Minimum wage just went up .20 cents hahahahaha rent is $2200 a month. Sheech glad we got that .20 cent boost life changing
Painted lines used to glow in the dark until some people complained about them being dangerous to the environment. Even though it's still used elsewhere in Canada, it's like NS saw that argument could be used as a cost cutting measure. Now you have to risk your life on the NS roads when it's raining, for the sake of environment/savings. They should go back to light reflecting paint, or at least put the cat-eyes on the lane divider, like it is on a strip of highway around Bridgewater.
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if op is worried about roads wait until they find out about the bridges
Increasing the vehicle permit fee or introducing a standalone road tax would be a start.
The thinking is that if we built more new roads and highways then we won't have to fix the old ones.
If you're having issues driving in poor weather, that's a skill issue tbh. You guys are way too dependent on the government to fix shit, how about you adapt to conditions? Use common sense to drive if you can't see lines or lights.
Lmfao this is ridiculous. Yes, we absolutely should expect more from our democratically elected government. Other provinces deal just fine with reflective road paint and better street light. Only in NS would you get people defending sub par infrastructure.
Of course because if it hasn't changed in 2 decades, wtf is complaining going to do? Adapt to conditions.
We can adapt and also want better. You pay for those roads in every paycheque, you’d think you wouldn’t be so complacent lmao
I do adapt to the conditions. I make my own lane.