Grand Marais Trail
Encyclopedia
The Grand Marais Trail is the name of a small bicycle trail that follows Turkey Creek (also known as the Grand Marais Drain) in the middle of Windsor, Ontario
. It starts off as a minor spur route
, connecting the West Windsor Recreationway with Huron Church Road and the neighbourhood of South Windsor (via a tunnel under Huron Church Road, and light at Grand Marais Rd. if the tunnel is closed).
Bike lanes continue along both sides of Turkey Creek (Grand Marais Road West, and West Grand Boulevard), with a trail bypass heading along Academy Drive and Radisson Court West, before becoming its own trail between houses and Turkey Creek. The trail's three branches all meet up at Bruce Avenue (which is the main thoroughfare for vehicular traffic as well as cycling traffic heading to and from Grand Marais Road), where the routing continues along West Grand Boulevard. In between the three alignments, a bridge connects the Grand Marais Road bike lanes to the "bypass" (along Academy Drive) and to West Grand Blvd.'s bike lanes at Virginia Park Avenue.
The trail continues as a separated path again from intersection of West Grand Boulevard and South Cameron Boulevard on the north side of the road to intersection with Howard Avenue. As it crosses two tracks of the CASO Subdivision CN Rail line at-grade, it continues due north along the west side of Howard Avenue, serving Devonshire Mall and Roundhouse Centre. The path then crosses the Roundhouse Centre
/Devonshire Mall
plaza entrances and switches to the east side of Howard Avenue, heading due north.
The path then crosses the northbound-to-eastbound onramp to E.C. Row Expressway, which currently presents a dangerous situation (high-speed cars and transport trucks driving by without a safe crossing light for pedestrians or cyclists). After this onramp, the path travels underneath E.C. Row Expressway, meeting the already-open stretch of trail just north of the traffic lights serving the westbound offramp.
Between Grand Marais Road East and the E.C. Row ramp intersection, the trail heads northeast, with a spur joining it from the intersection of Grand Marais Road. The trail leads north-east, while a second branch continues due north before terminating at Remington Avenue.
The main trail heads between Turkey Creek and a few industrial offices. All trail sections and branches are a minimum of four lanes wide (enough width for four bikes to ride side-by-side).
The road crosses Elsmere Avenue and Langois Avenue before having a spur branch off to link the trail to Brookview Crescent (and a small playground at the corner of Brookview Cres. as it curves).
Langois Avenue and Parent then lead towards the Remington Booster Park and its trail system, and eventually, towards bike lanes on Parent Avenue, with the final end at Riverside Drive
and the Riverfront Bike Trail
.
The next spur heads due south to meet Conservation Drive (which indirectly links the trail to the Devonwood Trail.
As the trail passes the Fogolar Furlan club, it splits into two alignments: one curves to the south to meet Parkdale Place, while the main route heads north to meet Turner Road. A "temporary crossing for pedestrians and cyclists" (as said by the City of Windsor) exists between Grand Marais Road and Memorial Drive, at the intersections of the discontinuous segments of Turner Road, to allow pedestrians to access shops while Walker Road
is re-built below the CP Rail line. The current trail (temporary or not) meets the single CP line at-grade, with crossing signals. At Memorial Drive, the trail then meets Walker Road at the Grand Marais intersection, and heads west towards Memorial Park, meeting the trail network in that park.
East of Walker Road, the trail continues in several discontinuous segments, though these are expected to be linked together as one long trail serving the Chrysler Minivan Plant. The trail resumes at the south side of the intersection of Chrysler Centre Drive (formerly the southern extension of Drouillard Road) and Grand Marais Road East, continuing until Meldrum Road.
on the other side of E.C. Row Expressway. The road has a major junction with Langois Avenue, as it provides one of two links to the Bike Route along Parent Avenue (and ultimately, Riverfront Trail and Ganatchio Trail
), via a short jog on Grand Marais Road. The second is at Ellsmere Avenue. The trail continues west between industrial
lots, and the creek, before meeting Howard Avenue and Grand Marais Road, with three branching paths: One north to Remington Street, one straight to the intersection, and one curving south to the E.C. Row/Howard Avenue Interchange, where it will eventually meet up with another extension of the current path under construction to improve access via bike and walking to the Devonshire Mall
. The extension has been paved, but it is not open yet, however, and the freeway ramp from Howard Avenue (northbound) to E.C. Row Expressway (eastbound) represents a considerable obstacle, and a safety hazard for pedestrians, cyclists, and automobiles, and is quite busy. It may be possible to link the Devonwood Bike Trail
(east of the mall) to the mall from the rear, where traffic is far lighter.
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
. It starts off as a minor spur route
Spur route
A spur route is a short road forming a branch from a longer, more important route . A bypass or beltway is never considered a true spur route as it typically reconnects with the major road...
, connecting the West Windsor Recreationway with Huron Church Road and the neighbourhood of South Windsor (via a tunnel under Huron Church Road, and light at Grand Marais Rd. if the tunnel is closed).
Routing and path description
The trail begins as a link to the West Windsor Recreationway, and travels along Grand Marais Road, with a spur branch heading south and under Huron Church Road. The trail continues along its own alignment before leading to bike lanes at West Grand Boulevard. The original path only travelled as far as Balmoral Avenue and California Avenue (both residential streets) until very recently, having been constructed as either a gravel or concrete-paved trail.Bike lanes continue along both sides of Turkey Creek (Grand Marais Road West, and West Grand Boulevard), with a trail bypass heading along Academy Drive and Radisson Court West, before becoming its own trail between houses and Turkey Creek. The trail's three branches all meet up at Bruce Avenue (which is the main thoroughfare for vehicular traffic as well as cycling traffic heading to and from Grand Marais Road), where the routing continues along West Grand Boulevard. In between the three alignments, a bridge connects the Grand Marais Road bike lanes to the "bypass" (along Academy Drive) and to West Grand Blvd.'s bike lanes at Virginia Park Avenue.
The trail continues as a separated path again from intersection of West Grand Boulevard and South Cameron Boulevard on the north side of the road to intersection with Howard Avenue. As it crosses two tracks of the CASO Subdivision CN Rail line at-grade, it continues due north along the west side of Howard Avenue, serving Devonshire Mall and Roundhouse Centre. The path then crosses the Roundhouse Centre
Roundhouse Centre
The Roundhouse Center is a shopping plaza located across the street from Devonshire Mall in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.The plaza has a number of shops including a Toys R Us, Penningtons women's plus size clothing store, a McDonalds, an Outback Steakhouse, HSBC Bank Canada bank and office , a LCBO,...
/Devonshire Mall
Devonshire Mall
Devonshire Mall is a shopping center located in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The mall has Zellers, The Bay, Sears, and other stores, totaling over 200. The mall currently occupies over 1 million square feet in retail space, and it dominates the retail landscape in Windsor and the lower southern...
plaza entrances and switches to the east side of Howard Avenue, heading due north.
The path then crosses the northbound-to-eastbound onramp to E.C. Row Expressway, which currently presents a dangerous situation (high-speed cars and transport trucks driving by without a safe crossing light for pedestrians or cyclists). After this onramp, the path travels underneath E.C. Row Expressway, meeting the already-open stretch of trail just north of the traffic lights serving the westbound offramp.
Between Grand Marais Road East and the E.C. Row ramp intersection, the trail heads northeast, with a spur joining it from the intersection of Grand Marais Road. The trail leads north-east, while a second branch continues due north before terminating at Remington Avenue.
The main trail heads between Turkey Creek and a few industrial offices. All trail sections and branches are a minimum of four lanes wide (enough width for four bikes to ride side-by-side).
The road crosses Elsmere Avenue and Langois Avenue before having a spur branch off to link the trail to Brookview Crescent (and a small playground at the corner of Brookview Cres. as it curves).
Langois Avenue and Parent then lead towards the Remington Booster Park and its trail system, and eventually, towards bike lanes on Parent Avenue, with the final end at Riverside Drive
Riverside Drive (Windsor, Ontario)
Riverside Drive is one of the main roads in Windsor, Ontario, travelling along the Detroit River, between its riverfront parks and high-rise office towers and apartment buildings. The road travels through Downtown, and towards the east end...
and the Riverfront Bike Trail
Riverfront Bike Trail
The Roy A. Battagello River Walk Bike Trail is the current backbone of the "Windsor Loop" bike trail network in Windsor, Ontario. The bike trail travels from the foot of the Ambassador Bridge , to traffic lights at Riverside Drive and Lincoln Avenue...
.
The next spur heads due south to meet Conservation Drive (which indirectly links the trail to the Devonwood Trail.
As the trail passes the Fogolar Furlan club, it splits into two alignments: one curves to the south to meet Parkdale Place, while the main route heads north to meet Turner Road. A "temporary crossing for pedestrians and cyclists" (as said by the City of Windsor) exists between Grand Marais Road and Memorial Drive, at the intersections of the discontinuous segments of Turner Road, to allow pedestrians to access shops while Walker Road
Walker Road
Walker Road was one of the busiest roads in Windsor, Ontario before the road closure. It has an average annual daily traffic level of 32,000 cars per day at the CP Rail crossing.- History :The road is named after Hiram Walker, distillery baron...
is re-built below the CP Rail line. The current trail (temporary or not) meets the single CP line at-grade, with crossing signals. At Memorial Drive, the trail then meets Walker Road at the Grand Marais intersection, and heads west towards Memorial Park, meeting the trail network in that park.
East of Walker Road, the trail continues in several discontinuous segments, though these are expected to be linked together as one long trail serving the Chrysler Minivan Plant. The trail resumes at the south side of the intersection of Chrysler Centre Drive (formerly the southern extension of Drouillard Road) and Grand Marais Road East, continuing until Meldrum Road.
Development of the trail
Much of the Grand Marais Trail can be considered the newest bike trail of the network, as most of the trail has been recently constructed (in 2006, with ongoing extensions currently under construction) along Turkey Creek, around 650 feet (200 m) south of Grand Marais Road, bypassing this very busy, dangerous and heavily-travelled two-lane road (by bikes and cars). The path extends from an intersection with Turner Road, along the creek, with a short (30-ft /10 m) cut-off to Byng Road (a residential street), with a cut-off to Parkdale Place near the Fogolar Furlan club and park, westerly with off-shoot trails leading a short distance to nearby streets in the Remington Park subdivision, leading to Conservation Street, which also links to the Devonwood Bike TrailDevonwood Bike Trail
The Devonwood Bike Trail is a fairly straight and flat bike trail in the southern end of the city of Windsor, Ontario. The path starts just south of E.C. Row Expressway at the intersection of Hallmark Avenue and Conservation Drive. The path has several short branches less than 100 m long to connect...
on the other side of E.C. Row Expressway. The road has a major junction with Langois Avenue, as it provides one of two links to the Bike Route along Parent Avenue (and ultimately, Riverfront Trail and Ganatchio Trail
Ganatchio Trail
The Ganatchio Trail is a bike trail in Windsor, Ontario, the second to be built in the city. Construction on the trail started upon the closure of Clairview Avenue. The trail currently extends over 5.3 km, and passes through several neighbourhoods, such as Riverside and Little River, and...
), via a short jog on Grand Marais Road. The second is at Ellsmere Avenue. The trail continues west between industrial
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
lots, and the creek, before meeting Howard Avenue and Grand Marais Road, with three branching paths: One north to Remington Street, one straight to the intersection, and one curving south to the E.C. Row/Howard Avenue Interchange, where it will eventually meet up with another extension of the current path under construction to improve access via bike and walking to the Devonshire Mall
Devonshire Mall
Devonshire Mall is a shopping center located in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The mall has Zellers, The Bay, Sears, and other stores, totaling over 200. The mall currently occupies over 1 million square feet in retail space, and it dominates the retail landscape in Windsor and the lower southern...
. The extension has been paved, but it is not open yet, however, and the freeway ramp from Howard Avenue (northbound) to E.C. Row Expressway (eastbound) represents a considerable obstacle, and a safety hazard for pedestrians, cyclists, and automobiles, and is quite busy. It may be possible to link the Devonwood Bike Trail
Devonwood Bike Trail
The Devonwood Bike Trail is a fairly straight and flat bike trail in the southern end of the city of Windsor, Ontario. The path starts just south of E.C. Row Expressway at the intersection of Hallmark Avenue and Conservation Drive. The path has several short branches less than 100 m long to connect...
(east of the mall) to the mall from the rear, where traffic is far lighter.
See also
- Ganatchio TrailGanatchio TrailThe Ganatchio Trail is a bike trail in Windsor, Ontario, the second to be built in the city. Construction on the trail started upon the closure of Clairview Avenue. The trail currently extends over 5.3 km, and passes through several neighbourhoods, such as Riverside and Little River, and...
- Little River ExtensionLittle River ExtensionThe Little River Extension is one of the newest and busiest recreational trails in Windsor, Ontario, having been built in 1996. The trail is used mainly as a link between the large subdivision of Forest Glade, to Ganatchio Trail, Sandpoint Beach, Stop 26 Beach, and Lakeview Park And Marina...
- Russell Street Neighbourhood TrailRussell Street Neighbourhood TrailThe Russell Street Neighbourhood Trail is a short bike trail that travels through the historic Sandwich Town neighbourhood in western Windsor, Ontario...
- Devonwood Bike TrailDevonwood Bike TrailThe Devonwood Bike Trail is a fairly straight and flat bike trail in the southern end of the city of Windsor, Ontario. The path starts just south of E.C. Row Expressway at the intersection of Hallmark Avenue and Conservation Drive. The path has several short branches less than 100 m long to connect...
- Riverside Drive Vista Project
- Bike Trails in the City of Windsor
- Trans-Canada Trail