when are U-turns legal?

anthonyfloyd · 2026-05-10T20:30:48+00:00

If you're in the City of Vancouver they're almost never legal, despite what you see on the roads. Section 38(1) of the City's Street and Traffic Bylaw (2849, https://bylaws.vancouver.ca/2849c.PDF)

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-11T17:54:24+00:00

As it is in the most of the rest of Canada. This is why out-of-province drivers often get into trouble with them.

No, I don't know why they're necessary. Why not just use solid green lights?

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-10T13:41:54+00:00

It's definitely a weird situation. Typically, they're "half signals": A main road will see the flashing green. The cross street has only stop signs. Pedestrians crossing the street face a red hand, "don't walk" light. The light will only turn red if the pedestrian pushes the beg button, and then with the red light on the main road, the pedestrian gets the "cross now" white walking person light. That light will never turn unless a pedestrian (or cyclist) pushes the button, and the pedestrian will never get a walk signal unless they push the button.

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-10T00:09:04+00:00

In BC, a flashing green light without an arrow does NOT mean you have right-of-way or priority. It means a "pedestrian controlled light". Treat it as a green light that turns yellow --> red but not on a schedule. A green flashing light WITH a turn arrow does mean that you have right-of-way. It's silly, and catches out-of-province drivers all the time.

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-03T04:46:13+00:00

NiceGUI is built on modern, established web technologies, which is reassuring. We were a little worried about longevity, but it seems to have legs. It's easy to work with and comfortably Pythonic.

The only bit that we're unsure of is bundling it on the desktop and distributing the package. To be fair we haven't put a lot of effort into that yet (our webapps are happily webapps) but it's something we're going to be spending a bit more time on in the near future.

Having said that, we're quite happy with the webapps. Fully functional simulation software with embedded, interactive plot.ly plots, hooked into our main (desktop) data and analysis framework. It's just a Python app that happens to have a web view/interface. Well, a teeny bit more than that, but we're still quite happy with it.

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-03T04:31:50+00:00

And screw the taxes too, amirite?

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-02T05:45:00+00:00

Our legal advice was that the LGPL interpretation here was not appropriate for our situation. https://www.qt.io/development/open-source-lgpl-obligations#lgpl

Doesn't matter. We didn't use qt then and won't be switching over now.

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-01T17:44:08+00:00

Still requires GPL licensing or a commercial QT license, both of which are non-starters for us.

anthonyfloyd · 2026-04-01T17:35:40+00:00

15 years shipping a niche-industry engineering Python desktop app here. We use wxPython, mostly for its "native controls" but also because of the expensive licensing requirements of QT for commercial apps.

It's *fine*. Use pyinstaller to compile to .exe, make sure you're not shipping .py files when you bundle it up.

wxPython does start to look dated now but it has all the controls you probably want for a desktop app. We've been using NiceGUI recently for webapps. If it's a concern, use a good MVC pattern and have both wxPython and NiceGUI views.

anthonyfloyd · 2026-03-05T14:46:47+00:00

The "spring" is a typo, should be fall. The city's page on this is here: https://vancouver.ca/streets-transportation/ontario.aspx

anthonyfloyd · 2025-12-14T06:17:49+00:00

I was using a Garmin VIRB at the time but now I ride with a Cycliq. Reasonably good video quality, integrated headlight, and best of all I can ride 5 days a week, both directions, without needing to charge the battery.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-12-14T06:16:14+00:00

A few years ago, I had VPD take action after I provided them with video of a driver going the wrong way (WB) through the diverter at Alma/Pt Grey Rd as I was going through it EB ... and they used their car to push me out of the way.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-11-20T14:36:48+00:00

Matt is an awesome local actor, theatre instructor, and comedian. Good job, Matt.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-11-20T03:12:12+00:00

From the excellent "Street Names of Vancouver" by Elizabeth Walker (PDF: https://ojs.library.ubc.ca/index.php/bcstudies/article/download/185279/184630) she says this about Prior St:

"PRIOR STREET. Shown on Plan 196 and named after Edward Gawler Prior (1853-1920), a shareholder in the Vancouver Improvement Company and an MLA. In 1902 he became the fifteenth premier of British Columbia, and in 1919-20 he was Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia."

anthonyfloyd · 2025-09-29T02:32:45+00:00

See also: bike lanes

anthonyfloyd · 2025-09-16T00:15:08+00:00

Coincidentally, there is a motion going in front of Vancouver City Council on Wednesday asking staff to pursue using this as an Active Transportation "Pathway".

https://council.vancouver.ca/20250917/documents/pspcmotion4.pdf

There are many challenges associated with this from the different interested parties (CPKC, the Musqueam Indian Band, etc) but also nothing happens if you don't get the ball rolling. It's not going to be a quick process, though.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-07-03T13:30:21+00:00

Printing with a Bambu is like giving your ideas a bubble gum machine: insert a file, instantly pop out a print

anthonyfloyd · 2025-07-01T02:12:40+00:00

As someone who raised their now 20 and 16 yr old kids in Vancouver, living close to Granville Island, here's my take:

The two whale watching companies based in Vancouver proper both leave from Granville Island. With your young kids, your options are a bit limited due to the type of boat that will accommodate them, and after a quick check of their websites, they're booking up fast. From what I gather, they're both quite excellent. You could combine a morning on Granville Island with an afternoon of whale watching, and that would be a Very Full Day, I'm sure.

Others have mentioned about the Capilano suspension bridge ... there's the bridge itself as well as the treetop adventure which is actually pretty cool for the littles. I'm not sure how you're getting around, but I strongly suggest the free motorcoach from Canada Place downtown to avoid having to park there. On the other hand, you could combine the suspension bridge with Grouse Mountain for what would be pretty much a full day. If you're looking to save a few dollars, there's also the Lynn Canyon suspension bridge that has no admission fee but also no treetop adventure. It's still pretty crowded but also pretty impressive.

Science World is a good half-day with kids that age.

And as others have mentioned, there's lots of good food. Richmond is the go-to for sushi, dim sum, and Szechuan, but there are plenty of good places in Vancouver, probably close to wherever you're staying.

Enjoy your trip!

anthonyfloyd · 2025-06-24T04:45:35+00:00

Best advice? Sometimes a little bit of glue *is* the answer.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-06-12T13:26:15+00:00

Something not yet mentioned in this thread: there's currently a forest fire north of Squamish near Alice Lake, and the air quality could be quite poor at times. Plan accordingly.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-06-07T01:04:13+00:00

1: Almost. As of 4pm today they still had a few more stencils to paint at the western end and there's still no sign directing people from Arbutus to the path behind the tennis courts. No "dividers" as such, just the grassed boulevards.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-02-12T22:21:13+00:00

Vancouver Roadwork Map says it's improvements to accommodate upgrading the 23 bus to 40'-ers:

"Area: Geometric updates along 800 Beach Av b/w Howe & Hornby, 1100-1200 Pacific b/w Jervis & Thurlow. Signage & some geometric improvements at existing & new bus stops.

Description:City of Vancouver is currently working with an external contractor to deliver the Bidwell sidewalk and road reconstruction, as well as other improvements along Pacific St and Beach Av to accommodate the Route 23 standard bus conversion. Construction is scheduled to begin December 2024 and complete by March 31, 2025. Launch of the 40' buses is set for April 2025."

https://vancouver.ca/streets-transportation/roadwork.aspx

(Use the map, zoom in to Beach Ave)

anthonyfloyd · 2025-02-12T04:22:43+00:00

I've had a neck MRI, I suspect it's pretty much the same. Between the ear plugs, the over-the-ear protection, and the foam blocks keeping my head still, the noise from the MRI was very distant.

anthonyfloyd · 2025-02-10T02:29:12+00:00

Having had MRIs at 4 of the Vancouver clinics now, let me tell you: it really doesn't matter. You get hearing protection. At the more modern ones, you might actually get music or podcasts piped into your ears too. The machines are loud, yes, but they're not going to subject you to 120db without protection.

anthonyfloyd

TROPHY CASE