Entry no.26 - Highways of Dresden pt.1
Just a little poll for fun.
12 members have voted
To help reorient where we are, here's a quick look at the southern portion of the regional transportation map:
Dresden is the large size map at the southern most part of the region. The metro area extends further south and I might add that area to the region in the future, though it's largely suburbia south of here.
The Highway System in Dresden
Dresden is served by two 700-series expressways, highways - 700 and 702(4 to 6 lane RHW). These are the two primary north to south highways in the region, they cross or merge three times. The two highways connect in a very unusual interchange called Looper Junction which was covered in entry 21(note: this interchange is currently undergoing refurbishment yet again! 
) In addition to Looper Junction there are 5 other interchanges in the city.
Highway 700 comes into the city from the North East corner beyond which is Cisco Bay(the city) & Lindin City. It loops back west to Calgon via Spaghetti Junction. The southern terminus of highway 700 is located is just south of Looper Junction in downtown Dresden.
Highway 702 meanwhile enters Dresden by crossing directly over Cisco Bay(the waterbody) from Calgon. This is the short route to Central Pretoria but actually takes much longer as it's heavily congested. Capacity is limited by the 4 lane Cisco-Bay bridge. This highway runs north to south through Dresden and continues on southward for another 50km.
There are also three other secondary highways (2 lane RWH) which connect Dresden to less populated areas outside of the city limits. Currently they are lightly used.
System Overview:
A - "The Curveball"
B - "The Web"
C - "Looper Junction"
D - "Z-Change"
E - Underpass Rd./702 Interchange
F - Esna Parkway/702 Interchange
Batter up! First up is,
A - The Curveball
The Curveball is an interchange between highway 700 and several local roads in north eastern part of the city serving the neighborhood of Gonzaga. I like to think its rather obvious as to how it got its name;
close ups
traffic flow gif
usage
total vehicle count east of the interchange: 1,266
total vehicle count west of the interchange: 3,833
Pano shots
If your curious below is what the area and interchange looked like before being converted to the RHW standard(about 18 months ago). However click at your own risk however... she anit purdy. 
Ministry of Transportation internal report
Safety rating - 4/5
The westbound on ramp merges into highway 700 in a new lane that continues all the way until the next interchange 1.5 km away! Allowing vehicles to safely enter the highway without concerns for merging. The eastbound on ramp merges directly at a fractional angle, no merging lane. Not ideal but not terrible either.
Capacity rating(in relation to local congestion) - 4/5
On and off ramps are single lane only, which is more than sufficient for local traffic in the neighborhood of Gonzaga as it is entirely suburban and not very large in size. On and off ramps are moderate in length.
Design rating - 3.5/5
This rating is not to be confused with how good I think it is but rather it's how original/unique of a design it is. Makes use of fractionally angled ramps, flex fly, additional bridge structure. It's nothing amazing but it is somewhat atypical and has a nice 'flow' to it. Agree or disagree?
Final Grade - 11.5/15 Highway 702 exit 27 (aka "The Curveball")
Next up,
B - The Web
About 1.5 kilometers southwest of The Curveball is the next interchange on highway 700, locally referred to as The Web. The Web located in the neighborhood of Orchard Heights parts of which were seen in the last entry. It's actually comprised of two interchanges combined into one, one fully accessible and another partially, this however results in a design flaw. Traffic counts start to get quite heavy here heading towards highway 700 and downtown Dresden. .
Click on the spoiler if you'd like to see the "before" version.
The current version
traffic flow gifs
http://imgur.com/eVu6EgN
http://imgur.com/gYHLLE5
usage
total vehicle count eastward: 3,833
total vehicle count southwest to/from Looper Junction: 12,632
total vehicle count westward to/from westward Portlands Rd: 4,555
the evening rush hour counts are even higher
the eastern part is relatively generic, but I really like how the western portion came out(off/on ramps to/from Portland Rd.)
in the evening
Ministry of Transportation internal report
Safety rating - 2/5
2 of 4 on ramps have extended merging lanes. For the other two on ramps vehicles enter onto the highway near an off ramp(s). I'd like to reconstruct the eastern portion of the interchange, but there're limited options available at the present time to make what I have in mind come to fruition. What I would love to see is a diagonal flex fly high transition, here's hoping that is something this is actually possible.
Capacity rating(in relation to local congestion) - 2/5
On and off ramps are single lane only, moderately sufficient for local traffic flows. However lack of a merging lane causes significant congestion.
Design rating - 4/5
Eastern portion is generic. However the western portion features an innovative means of redirecting local traffic from using the highway.
Final Grade - 9/15 Highway 702 exit 29/30 (aka "The Web")
C - Looper Junction
Looper Junction is 1.25 km southwest of the The Web and was originally covered in entry 21. . It's the only major interchange in Dresden between two 700-series highways(700 & 702). However it is current being reconstruction(yet again!). All I can say is that there will be some major design improvements, stay tuned. 
For the record, prior to it's reconstruction this was it's last appearance(as seen in the NAM challenge album), usage and internal grade. 
Highway 700 terminates just south of Looper junction in downtown Dresden seen in entry 
usage
total vehicle count WB 700: 12,632
total vehicle count SB 700: 7,755
total vehicle count NB 702: 17,988
total vehicle count SB 702: 9,128
Ministry of Transportation internal report
Safety rating - 1/5
While this interchange is to be commend for being quite unique in design, it does present some serious safety concerns in it's current form. Only 1 of 6 on ramps has a merging/acceleration lane and the one that does creates another problem in the form of weaving.
Capacity rating(in relation to local congestion) - 1/5
All on and off ramps are single lane only, which is not sufficient for the heavy rush hour traffic flows seen above. There are also 9 tight/hairpin turns, which is actually a reduction of 2 from 11 when first built. These tight turns significantly reduce vehicle speeds and further congest the interchange. (The up coming version will eliminate nearly all these!)
Design rating - 5/5
Looper Junction has a strange beauty to it. It's not ascetically pleasing in the traditional sense, yet there is something eye catching about it. But more importantly(and more relevant to the score) it's construction was an innovative breakthrough in managing to connect two highways at an otherwise nearly impossible to connect angle.
Final Grade - 7/15(quite harsh!) Highway 700-702 Interchange southern connection (aka Looper Junction) -
Originally I intended to cover all the the cites interchanges in this one entry, but 30 images later(mostly mosaics too) and I'm only half way done. Plus it's getting late and it's probably a good idea that I get some sleep before work. For the next update we'll switch highways and jump on the 702 continuing southbound through the remainder of Dresden.
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