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Low Level Bridge

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The following could be plopped under a number of different thread headings but, as I have opined before, I think that the Low Level Bridge and its attendant car traffic spaghetti is due for a complete rethink. Also, on the broader site we have talked about the historical Rossdale Power Plant and its access (or lack thereof) and what might be done to effect some change. I have collected my ideas and illustrated the planning aspect employing 4 different sequential panels. So here goes...
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Above ^ Panel #1 showing the radial railway connecting the historic Rossdale Power Plant building the Rossdale Residential Community, the Low Level Bridge and beyond...
I am renewing the idea of having the Radial Railway historic Tram Cars doing manifold duties:
1. Connecting Historic points-of-interest in Edmonton with an historic conveyance network
2. Extending Transit Access to the River Valley, the Low Level Bridge (The original purpose of the Low Level Bridge was to connect the communities of Edmonton and Strathcona for the Edmonton, Yukon and Pacific Railway. While it was designed for rail traffic, it also served pedestrians and horse-drawn wagons for its first two years. In 1902, a railway track was officially added, and later a timber deck was added to allow for vehicular traffic)... and access to the historic Power Plant building in Rossdale
3. Providing a more leisurely and interesting transit ride (it is already on world record for having the highest vantage point vista for a Tram rail conveyance in its journey across the High Level bridge)... I would like to add to its mystique and drama by having it hug the shore line of the North Saskatchewan River between the Power Plant and the Low Level Bridge and to cross that second Historical Edmonton Bridge and wind its way up the Millcreek Ravine offering Edmontonians and Tourists alike the opportunity to enjoy the ravine from a sightseeing perspective.
4. serving double duty the tram car rail embankment along the river's edge would also provide a flood mitigation role protecting the community of Rossdale

Stations evident on panel 1 would be:
#1. an end-of-line loop at the administration building of the Power Plant (converted to a joint Radial Railway Transit Station and -- built out on the roof of the administration building -- an aerial Tram station). Incidentally, I still see the conversion of the Power Plant into a 3-way Indigenous project: a First Nations Historical Museum, a modern-day Indigenous Art Galley, and a food and entertainment enclave for Native Canadian expression in the culinary arts and in the broad realm of music and theatre (that is a discussion for a later date)
#2 a station at Irene Pariby Park that serves the Rossdale residential community and provides an alternate way to access RE/MAX Field (no car required)
#3 a station that would provide access to Gene Dub's proposed residential mid-rise complex
(stations #4, #5, and #6 are not shown on this panel they are covered in the next segment on Panel #2)
#7 a station serving the river flats area that is the northernmost extension of Strathcona Community
 
Panel #2 the Low Level Bridge locale and the Muttart Conservatory:
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This would see the Low Level twin bridges revert to their original defined purposes -- a rail-conveyance bridge and a pedestrian/wheelie function, all central to an expansive River Valley Trail network.

Stations:
#2, #3. and #7 discussed in Panel 1 above
#4 a station mid-span on the south Low Level Bridge twin (the north span would be reserved for pedestrians and wheelie conveyances with marked bike lanes separated from pedestrian way). The spaghetti entanglement of vehicle loops and turns would be streamlined in favor of the James Macdonald Bridge.
#5 accessed by a side rail loop, a station that connects to the Edmonton Queen Riverboat Dock (built in 1995, the riverboat has become an Edmonton favorite and another means of exploring River Valley wonders)
#6 a station adjacent to the LRT station and Muttart Conservatory aiding in broad City connectivity, the line from there loops to go back to the main line at the Low Level Bridge.
 
Panel #3 -- an excursion through the Mill Creek Ravine...
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The Mill Creek Ravine railway would try to emulate the historic route of the Edmonton, Yukon and Pacific Railway to the greatest extent possible amended only to conform to more modern conveniences placed in the Ravine. Also I would envision the waterway in the ravine being daylighted and extended to connect to the North Saskatchewan River, the process also engaged in restoring the natural character of the waterway and its riverine biome.

Stations:
#7 previously discussed with Panel #1
#8 a station aligned with the crossing of 88th Ave, and serving the communities both east and west of the ravine
#9 (I just realized that I mis-numbered the map and that there are two #8s) so the second #8 would be a station that has a vertical connection to Whyte Avenue and also provides service to the Mill Creek Pool
 
The Final Panel would have a number of interesting stations and, I believe, a fairly thoughtful route.
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Stations:
#9 a station connecting vertically to the new bridge 😞 spanning the ravine at 76th Avenue and thereby also serving the adjacent communities east and west
#10 a station accessing one of Edmonton's predominant athletic parks, Argyll Park
#11 a station midpoint along 68th Avenue a route that was the rail entry point to Mill Creek. It too would serve the residential communities north and south of the railway
#12 a station along 99th Street (Craft Beer Alley) that highlights the community of Ritchie currently going through a bit of a rebirth
#13 a second more northern station along 99th Street
#14 a station at the historic roundhouse (hopefully scheduled to be rebuilt to its original glory then expanded to function as a railway museum
#15 a reprise of the Southside CPR station while still maintaining its current uses
#16 the development of a new Radial Railway main Hub Station right on Whyte Avenue
 

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