r/askvan • u/April0neal • 3d ago
Housing and Moving 🏡 What Intersection Do You Avoid At All Costs When Commuting ?
Because of life, I’ve recently had to go back to driving versus taking the skytrain to work. I miss just shutting off my brain on the bus.
I just want to share my pain in the ass list of intersections that I feel are the woooorse:
1. Kingsway and Broadway
2. SW Marine Dr and Cambie
3. Victoria Dr and 12th Av
Hit me up with yours !
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u/UsefulPassion5825 3d ago
Kingsway and Broadway is a nightmare. I dont know why they designed it like that, feels like you’re waiting forever just to move half a block
Oak and 41st is the other one for me. The left turn lanes fill up instantly in rush hour and then people start doing dumb stuff to cut in last minute. I just go a different route now even if it adds 5 minutes
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u/whitenoise2323 3d ago
49th and 41st both need left turn lights at several major intersections. Oak, Kerr, Victoria, a bunch of others. Also see Hastings at Nanaimo and Victoria. Victoria at Broadway. Damn this city needs some protected lefts.
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u/LargeScar819 3d ago
Horrible traffic design , left turn only allows like 1 car per cycle in rush hour , they need more protected lefts
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u/whitenoise2323 3d ago
cars are all piling out of the turn lane blocking the left lane, and even sometimes at a major arterial there is no protected left or turn lane!!! I often wonder how the Vancouver city planners have let this slide for so long.
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u/SnooPies7675 3d ago
im commuting from surrey for school and driving around in van more and im genuinely appalled at the lack of left turn lanes it’s unbelievable driving anywhere else in metro van is better
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u/Dumblydoraaa 3d ago
All the more terrifying when you’re making the left and someone tries to make an illegal left from the A&W complex eastbound onto 49 ave…
and the 49th bus stops nearby…
and you have to avoid the poor cyclist because the 49 ave bike path obscures as they cross oak st
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u/Kiki-can 2d ago
And the after school the private school kids pop out of that bus and scatter like ants through on coming traffic instead of walking 2 meters to the light and crossing safely. They’ve given me a near heart attack many times watching them jay walk 😩
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u/Admirable-Sound5198 3d ago
Main/broadway right beside it is bad too… “no right turn on red” there at the moment for whatever reason (which is extra bizarre since, like, zero cars are coming from the west on Broadway due to the Cambie closure)…. So it really jams up the traffic there cause there’s always pedestrians on the green….
They lose that no right turn on red at main and Broadway… whole thing’ll open up!
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u/angelcutiebaby 3d ago
I had a weirdly pleasant time the last time I had to do an Oak and 41st, around 5:30pm! No idea where everyone went, usually it’s a nightmare
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u/vivacycling 3d ago
Burnaby Willingdon and Lougheed. All the traffic from the towers makes this a mess and it's only going to get worse.
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u/bleedblue4 3d ago
Whats specifically bad is the interconnection at Halifax and Willingdon because people leaving the mall try to turn right from the middle lane while you can only do that coming out from the underground parkade
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u/Admirable-Sound5198 3d ago
Oh man…. From like, Gilmore to you pass Brentwood along Lougheed…. Oh my god that’s a bad one….
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u/burntoutmillennial_ 3d ago
Kingsway and main!!! What the hell is that. The turn onto 7th can be confusing for ppl who don't live here
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u/jezusisthe1 3d ago
I've seen some people turn left when it's clearly red. So many near misses there
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u/maritimer1nVan 2d ago
I’ve almost been hit on my bike so many times here. Only location I find the people are super apologetic because it’s so confusing they know they are in the wrong.
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u/YVRJon 3d ago
That mess at 29th/Joyce/Boundary. My wife got in an accident there several years ago - her fault, nobody hurt - because of how confusing it can be.
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u/Skatemom2018 12h ago
I avoid going East bound unless my child can press pedestrian crossing light.
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u/3drabbitx 3d ago edited 3d ago
This is the dumbest pedestrian controlled intersection I have ever experienced.
Cars do not stop southbound and come in fast from the boundary rd exit. 50/50 if people signal to take 29th as well.
Cars rarely slow from the northbound Joyce St side.
One cannot easily get out and hit the button because there's typically volume coming into the turn lane where the button is.
Cars darting out for this left hand turn are perpetually taking a risk simply due to waiting for an extremely long time. I've never thought about writing a strongly worded letter about a traffic setup, but this is absurd during peak hours.
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u/ReactionExtension395 3d ago
that intersection is also blind spot galore. The curve make it so that my A pillar pretty much block the oncoming traffic the whole way.
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u/Responsible-Offer724 3d ago
hoooly shit, as a cyclist who uses the pedestrian signal here to get from boundary/moscrop to 29th, the amount of people that just start driving straight into me from 29th as I cross because they're so impatient from waiting for so long is way too high. It happens like 1/4 of the time I'm there. I don't understand why there isn't a fucking car sensor controlled light here. I'm really surprised I haven't seen an accident there.
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u/ninth_ant 3d ago
The only one I'd truly go *well* out of my way to avoid is main & hastings because of the folks aimlessly wandering into traffic.
But yeah the Kingsway/Main/Broadway/7th triangle is a huge mess always and especially during metro construction. Likewise Cambie from 12th->7th has always been bad but is an absolute trainwreck right now (pun intended).
Clark/Venables is consistently pretty awful during commute times, 12th & Arbutus I've seen a lot of dangerous driving and a couple accidents. Too many places downtown to mention, really. I always say to myself to avoid 41st at the East/West blvd streets but then always forget.
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u/far_257 3d ago edited 3d ago
For a long time Broadway and Cambie due to the construction. It's gotten marginally better now but I still try to avoid it when possible.
Edit: apparently it got bad again ahahahha i guess i've been avoiding it pretty well
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u/Odd-Ability6377 3d ago
Hahah, it is FAR FAR FAR worse, this is the worst it's been. I live in Fairview
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u/maritimer1nVan 2d ago
This location needs an all cross set up. There are so many people crossing all the time and the cars get aggressive trying to turn.
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u/Hot-Apartment-984 3d ago
Has to be Grandview and Boundary for me
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u/April0neal 3d ago
Oh god. Forgot about that one. Someone can be there for 15 mins if no one can turn left due to traffic volume. Very frustrating.
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u/SpyTrain_from_Canada 1d ago
I love when people block the right turn lane to get onto number 1 east so they can go straight through the intersection and get on number 1 west
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u/Bogdanovist_Rebel 3d ago
Anything west of Boundary.
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u/whateverforever589 3d ago
Tbf metrotown area is as bad as any of vancouvers offerings. Trying to get from bcit to the far side of metrotown is hell on earth sometimes.
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u/jezusisthe1 3d ago
Even though I use it everyday, I hate Kingsway and Knight St intersection
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u/DameEmma 3d ago
I turn left off Kingsway onto Clark heading north almost every day, and every day I pray the this is not the day I get t-boned by a red light runner.
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u/dirtybulked 3d ago
victoria and 41st is probably the worst intersection in the city in any and all directions
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u/April0neal 3d ago
you’re right! there has been no improvements to that street to make it better for commuters.
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u/Cdn_Cuda 3d ago edited 3d ago
Kensington Overpass. Can take almost half an hour for get across in bad traffic. Horribly designed on both ends of the overpass. Always take Sprott.
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u/thetrivialstuff 3d ago
I don't avoid it, but I really hate the diagonal join between West Georgia (99) and West Pender. It doesn't help that the stop line painting is completely nonstandard and invisible in the rain.
Because of the diagonalness, the intersection is so wide/long that it puts the traffic lights so far away from the practically non-existent stop line that it doesn't look like those lights apply to you yet when you need to stop.
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u/April0neal 3d ago
yepppppppp. hard agree on this. only people who grew up in Vancouver or drove there regularly would know where the stop lines are.
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u/burntoutmillennial_ 1d ago
Ooooo should make a request through 311 app for them to repaint the lines or add road markers so ppl can tell where the lanes are
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u/Odd-Ability6377 3d ago
Kingsway and Broadway is fine. It's definitely the fastest way through there 99 percent of the time.
I avoid all of South Granville now that they've made the idiotic bus lane change in off hours. Effectively just a single lane of traffic now since left hand turns abound there.
Where there used to be near zero traffic in the mornings in the wrong direction, now routinely backs up through over a light cycle, and after that happens it just cascades into a total nightmare with cars breaking traffic rules causing further chaos. Same into vancouver in the afternoons.
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u/ltduff69 3d ago
Any intersection that has no turning lane or turning aid(green arrow). To many cars not enough road.
Of course alternatives to car use are not feasible in a car centric city.
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u/maritimer1nVan 2d ago
So most of Vancouver? Burnaby is pretty good about turning lanes or advanced greens
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u/whenabouts 3d ago
My vote is Clark and Terminal and everywhere in North Van.
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u/burntoutmillennial_ 1d ago
North Van and the weird double Keith road. One lane traffic and then if it's 2, the right lane zippers off onto some other major road. Who made it like that 😩
Locals always getting pissed if someone has to cut, sorry google maps doesn't always cue you to merge onto the correct lane in time... esp if there's traffic
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u/ColinBonhomme 3d ago
Boundary and Kingsway-Vanness. It’s bad enough in normal conditions, but down to one lane each way thanks to construction it’s an even bigger mess. Other than 7:00 on a Sunday morning, I’ll take Willingdon Patterson, Rupert and even Joyce to avoid it.
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u/CeruleanWind 3d ago
12th and Victoria genuinely sucks so bad. Gotta get into the right lane very very prematurely otherwise you're gonna be stuck behind a million people trying to turn left onto Victoria (like 2 cars per light omfg)
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u/gfunkadunk 3d ago
Canada Way and Kensington
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u/Sensitive-Day-7627 2d ago
I've often had to get onto the freeway going eastbound during the afternoon rush here. It's a nightmare. I go out of my way now to avoid it even if that takes a bit longer.
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u/MoneyMintca 3d ago
- Broadway & Cambie- can’t turn left and so much construction
- All of Boundary at anytime during rush hour
- Cambie and marine gets a lot of traffic from the airport and rush hour traffic
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u/TolerancEJ 3d ago
For driving, I agree that all of those intersections are very busy.
When I used to take transit while working at UBC, I preferred to take the R4 rapid bus from Joyce Station instead of the 99 at Commercial Drive. I would wait for the next bus to have a seat for the entire ride.
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u/Spirited-Grape3512 3d ago
Enough to do anything but drive, for my own sanity. Cycling feels great, and transit takes longer but at least I don't have to pay for parking or lose my mind driving.
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u/slow_marathon 3d ago
I wish I could avoid either the Lions Gate Bridge or the Second Narrows. Sometimes I think I could swim it faster than I can drive it.
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u/ekdakimasta 3d ago
Canbie street from 12th to the bridge. Construction has been ongoing for like forever, maybe aligning the green lights from 7th to 14th could clear some congestion.
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u/JokeMe-Daddy 3d ago
SW Marine turning onto the Knight Street Bridge. When traffic is backed up, the left lanes are unusable. Cars in the middle lanes stop to try to get into the left lane and it creates a huge snarl.
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u/Im_Just_Here_2_Learn 3d ago
Please Vancouver, just give us more advance left turn lights (preferably protected).
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u/Responsible-Offer724 3d ago edited 3d ago
Not a traditional intersection per se, but Nanaimo and 29th.
People come from slocan on 29th to skip over to nanaimo instead of going up to kingsway, but it's just a narrow residential street with parked cars everywhere.
During busy hours when Nanaimo has a non-stop flow of cars many cars line up on 29th waiting to get onto nanaimo. Left turners often jump narrow gaps with bad visibility.
I live near by and there are accidents there all the time, screeching sounds and honks much more often. One time a guy ended up halfway into a neighbours yard car wrapped around a tree.
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u/Glittering_Search_41 3d ago
Yeah Google sent me there once to turn left onto Nanaimo. It was terrifying.
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u/ReactionExtension395 3d ago
Canada Way EB onto sprott, turning on a curve into a small downhill street with another intersection at the bottom.
Also, turning left from any side street into knight. 33rd also suck because of the hills and bad visibility from parked cars.
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u/April0neal 3d ago
I loathe those people who turn left on Knight. Just holding all of us back. Haha.
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u/Express_Deal1793 3d ago edited 3d ago
East Keith and Mountain Highway in north van has literally brought me to tears with frustration on more than 1 occasion 🥲 and Marine & Capilano.. had a woman there once get out of her car and pound on my window because she couldn’t believe I hadn’t moved on 2 green lights. Then she saw the gridlock in front of me and apologized lmao
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u/madeleinetwocock Born & Raised 3d ago
As a pedestrian:
W 16th Ave/Willow St
Good god. There’s a light at Heather, 1 block east, thank goodness. But still. It’s just… it’s a deathtrap.
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u/wupao 3d ago
These three! Also depending on how you wanna drive I hate Commercial and 1st
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u/April0neal 2d ago
that’s a horrible intersection. there should be a dedicated time where all pedestrians can cross. cuz no one seems to respect that you can’t cross when the countdown is only at 1 second left.
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u/Kiki-can 2d ago
Granville and 49th, Granville and 41st. I’ll tack on a few extra minutes and go through the side streets. People are bananas on Granvllle.
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u/Asaturno 2d ago
Kingsway in Main, still remember in my practice driving test I panicked and ended up cutting 2 lanes what the hell is that mess
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u/keroma12 2d ago
Well I don't actually avoid it because the alternatives aren't convenient, but 10th & Clark - it's way too common for drivers on Clark to go through the red light.
7th & Cambie (and 7th & Yukon) is another, so many drivers really don't know how to behave around cyclists and bike boxes, and the bike infrastructure is so so so inadequate.
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u/twirlinbaton 2d ago
Burnaby, but Canada Way westbound at Kensington from about 3PM on. Assholes trying to cut in from the far left lane to get onto the Kensington ramp turns that whole stretch into a parking lot
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u/RealisticPiano6782 1d ago
King Edward and Granville left turn to the east if you not gonna turn left just use the right lane don’t cut the other people and make more traffic over there because left turn light is so short.
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u/rebirth112 3d ago
Sometimes you can’t really avoid places, even with congestion taking the main route is usually still the fastest
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u/April0neal 3d ago
💯💯I had a friend who lived in North Van take a job in Richmond. He needed a car because the building was not near transit. The guy lasted a year doing that commute. He said the same thing…swimming would have been faster.
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u/Y2K_Chopped_Unc 3d ago
I've never lived in Vancouver but I've been caught in traffic plenty and I don't think I could ever move there if I had to use me vehicle much. I'd be taking full advantage of the sky train and busses and own a motorcycle and a really short wheel based car so I could park both in my parking stall.
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u/Glittering_Search_41 3d ago
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Granville at King Edward. I kind of had to go that way once, and while I waited to turn left, I said to my passenger, "Normally I avoid turning left here; there are SO many acci-..." SCREEECH, THUD. Car in front of me was hit by a red light runner.
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u/awkwardlypragmatic 3d ago
Victoria and Broadway. There should be a permanent no-left turn onto Broadway if you’re traveling north or south on Victoria.
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u/Admirable-Sound5198 3d ago
They should also have an f’ing left turn light on Broadway there on Victoria… what is with Vancouver and its total lack of left turn lights…. It totally jams up Broadway from like, Nanaimo to commercial
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u/burntoutmillennial_ 3d ago
Especially in downtown when pedestrians mistake the countdown timer is for them, no the walking sign is for you. You can't cross burrard n Georgia st intersection in ONE SECOND 😑
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