Freezeway


Councilor Tooker Gomberg, a man I knew and liked was defeated
in city elections due in part to his suggesting this plan.
Alas Tooker died after jumping off the Old Halifax bridge
some years later in the depths of depression. I thought his
plan just would not work and I told him so. I am sorry he
is gone. I believed that he had more to give in his quest to
make life better for his neighbours.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tooker_Gomberg

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If our ancestors rubbished all ideas & concepts, we would not be where we are today.

When I was in Law School, I would ski to class in the winter. Since ice skating requires level or nearly level surfaces, wouldn't a skiway be better?

I think a freezeway is a fine idea. However, Edmonton probably gets far less
snow than the Boston-bay area, even excluding this past extraordinary winter.
The challenge for DPW's, would be in removing the snow from the ice. We
barely keep up with removing it from the streets.

If anyone would come up an idea for doing that -- at a minimum extra cost -- he
might be well-received.

I think a freezeway is a fine idea. However, Edmonton probably gets far less snow than the Boston-bay area, even excluding this past extraordinary winter.

You don't need snow to skate, just cold and water. Edmonton has LOTS of both. It also has lots of people that know how easy it is to create a rink (water is self leveling if applied in thin layers), and relatively easy to maintain. Shoveling level ice on skates is much easier than shoveling a paved driveway. Every town of any size in 90% of Canada maintains outdoor skating rinks, at fairly low cost.

As a youth, my parents bought a house in a new suburb, on the edge of a small town. There were paved roads back into town to get to my school, or a gravel road and a large field if you took a short cut through the uncompleted part of the suburb. The road and the field froze up quite nicely two winters in a row, and water is self leveling. As a result, my sister and I skated to and from school several weeks each winter. It was great fun, great exercise, and faster than walking the long way through town.

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A brief elaboration, Bill: Snow is not desired, certainly, on top of ice. Removing it could be a problem.

As for wanting snow on a trial, there is plenty of it on the Minuteman Bikeway, which runs from Arlington to Bedford. It's used, in the winter months, by cross-country skiers. My family skied on it, years ago, when it was still the (unused) B&M railroad corridor.

It can be done. Just think of the heavy freight haulers that use ice roads. A person weights next to nothing in comparison.

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It can be done. Just think of the heavy freight haulers that use ice roads. A person weights next to nothing in comparison.

Exactly. Ice roads are cheap to build when the weather is right (water is self leveling), and cheaper to plow than a equivalent area of gravel or even paved road.

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I agree that ice roads are easy to maintain, in certain areas of the
country (or, a state, for that matter). Having lived in Alaska (Fairbanks),
I was aware of the many more miles of good roads in the winter; in the
warm months, those roads were water/marsh.

But, again, Boston could never have very many ice roads. Come on out here,
and see for yourselves.

Three cheers for Edmonton, and similar cities, which would install them. I,
personally, enjoy ice-skating (on ponds), and would give a specialized right-of-
way a try. It should prove interesting, as to where this thread might go. . .