May 22, 2015 – You know how the old saying goes: Cities in Canada have two seasons – winter and construction.
The City announced plans for spring and summer construction at a technical briefing last week. Projects include road resurfacing, continuing work on the downtown tunnel of the Confederation Line, ongoing work on Belfast Yard where the new light rail vehicles will be stored and maintained, and more.
So what does this mean for commuters? Here are some highlights from the technical briefing:
Light rail construction is shifting east June 28
East-end commuters: plan for a longer commute this summer. OC Transpo will be rerouting buses along the Queensway between Blair and Campus stations.
In order to convert the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) to rail, transit service along a section of the Transitway between Hurdman and Blair stations will be relocated to new bus lanes on Highway 174, Highway 417 and other parallel corridors. OC Transpo will also be introducing a new route (Route 91) which might even be faster than the current 95.
Traffic hot spots
While there will be many road construction projects throughout the city, only some areas are expected to cause delays of more than 15 minutes. Those areas include:
- Opening of the fourth lane of Highway 417 between Nicholas and the Split
- Main Street
- Beginning May 25, northbound traffic on sections of Main Street will be detoured via Riverside Drive, Bank Street and Isabella Street. Only southbound traffic will be maintained during construction
- Nicholas Street
- Sussex Drive
- Macdonald-Cartier Bridge
Ottawa is on the move with major construction and renewal projects underway to ensure our city’s continued development as a global capital, and one of the best cities in Canada to live, work and invest. So hang in there, everyone! Remember: short-term pain for long-term gain (or as Councillor Stephen Blais, Chair of Transportation Committee says, long-term train).
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