Saskatoon road, bridge and water main construction projects wrap up for 2022
Another construction season has drawn to a close and with City Council’s annual $64 million investment, City and contractor crews have again improved several kilometres of roadways and sidewalks and replaced water mains and service connections in historic neighbourhoods.
A major rehabilitation project on Circle Drive North involved rebuilding severely deteriorated curbs and medians between Alberta Avenue and Millar Avenue. The east bound lanes were also repaved. It’s just one of many high traffic areas of Saskatoon to receive major improvements this year.
“We’ll return in the spring of 2023 to resurface the westbound lanes,” says General Manager of Transportation and Construction, Terry Schmidt. “This was our plan from the beginning of the construction season because we wanted to avoid major traffic tie ups and restrictions to business access points on this section of Circle Drive over such an extended continuous timeframe.”
Other major projects included intersection resurfacing and adding a right-hand turning lane on Warman Road southbound onto 33rd Street, rehabilitating the Spadina Crescent Bridge, repaving the Attridge Drive overpass at Circle Drive, and the continuation of water main replacement projects in several neighbourhoods. Schmidt says approximately 24 kilometres of water mains and sanitary sewer mains were replaced or rehabilitated in 2022, which is about the distance from Downtown Saskatoon to Warman.
“We truly appreciate the patience of residents in neighbourhoods where water main replacements took place,” Schmidt says. “In some areas, we ran into unexpected circumstances which caused delays. The water main replacement program will continue next year.
Also in 2023, construction will have an impact to commuters using the nearly 40-year-old Circle Drive North Bridge. One side will accommodate two-way traffic while the other side is rehabilitated. The pedestrian bridge underneath will not be affected. Several more construction projects will be planned over the upcoming winter months.
Sidewalks are also a major focus every summer with City departments working collaboratively to make significant improvements to the management and execution of the Sidewalk Repair Program. In 2022, crews repaired or rehabilitated approximately 59 kilometers of sidewalks and curbs.
For more 2022 construction highlights, please visit saskatoon.ca/construction.