Construction Season Fully Underway Across City
As we approach the midpoint of summer, Saskatoon residents are seeing widespread evidence of the investment in the City’s roads and road network infrastructure. Construction projects are underway across the city that will result in improved road and sidewalk surfaces, reduced delays at major intersections, and new infrastructure including significant water and sewer upgrades.
“The volume of construction we’re undertaking this year is unprecedented, and there will be a very noticeable improvement at the end of this construction season,” says Celene Anger, Director of Construction and Design. “Since 2013, residents have been telling us through our annual Civic Services Survey that the condition of our roads is the single biggest issue facing Saskatoon. We’re working to answer that call and have made tremendous progress since we started the Building Better Roads program.”
Intersection Improvements
- Complete – 22nd Street & Diefenbaker Drive
- On schedule – 51st Street & Warman Road; Taylor Street & Preston Avenue
This work will result in reduced delays, easier movements, and increased safety at each of these high traffic intersections.
Resurfacing
Beginning tonight, resurfacing work will begin on stretches of Airport Drive, Circle Drive and Idylwyld Drive. Resurfacing means removing a layer of deteriorated pavement and replacing it with a new layer of asphalt, leaving a smooth and stable driving surface. This work will be undertaken overnight (7 p.m. to 7 a.m.) to minimize traffic impacts.
Microsurfacing
Beginning this weekend, the City will start microsurfacing which needs warmer temperatures for successful application. Microsurfacing is a preservation surface treatment that leaves the road in ‘like-new’ condition. It’s applied to weathered or worn surfaces that are structurally sound.
Other Progress
- Close to 4,000 sidewalks panels have been replaced; an additional 765 panels have received a maintenance treatment
- Close to 700 km of roadway and crosswalk lines have been painted
- Sealing of city bridges is taking place throughout July and August
- Grading of gravel back lanes is taking place in more than 40 neighbourhoods
- Pothole repair crews are working seven days a week to fill potholes with hot-mix asphalt
- Significant water and sewer upgrades are underway in neighbourhoods across the city which includes the replacement of dated underground infrastructure and approximately 900 lead water service pipes to homes and businesses
- Work continues to progress on the construction of the new Traffic Bridge and North Commuter Parkway, as well as the construction of new interchanges at Boychuk Drive & Highway 16 and McOrmond Drive & College Drive
“With so many active construction projects underway around the city, we know what a pain it can be for people trying to navigate the roads,” says Anger. “We plan our construction season to lessen these impacts as much as possible, but of course it’s not possible to avoid traffic delays altogether. We’re asking everyone to remember the work is necessary and will be worth it in the long run.”
For 2017, City Council invested more than $61 million on the construction and maintenance of roads, sidewalks, back lanes, plus water and sewer infrastructure. This is roughly $2 million more than last year, and around $8 million more than in 2015.