News Releases

On Monday, September 15, the Standing Policy Committee on Environment, Utilities and Corporate Services, will receive the Integrated Waste Management Annual Report for 2013.  The report highlights the following key findings:

*Recycling programs, including the new blue-cart program for houses and recycling depots across the community achieved a 67% increase in diversion over 2012 by diverting 12,622 tonnes of material from the landfill.

*The new blue-cart program collected a broad range of materials for recycling including the following by weight:

-Paper and cardboard: 74%
-Household glass: 7%
-Aluminium and tin: 5%
-Plastics: 5%
-Deposit beverage containers: 1%
-Residuals from processing: 4%
-Contamination from collections (garbage in carts): 4%

*Recycling helped recapture 10% of the landfill airspace in 2013, equivalent to adding 5.5 years to the life of that facility.

*The Waste Disposal Rate per household continues to decline in Saskatoon and the amount of garbage collected per home in 2013 was 0.95 tonnes (or 252 kilograms per person).  This is still higher than the national average of 0.64 tonnes.

*New specifications for garbage carts are helping to bring the cart failure rate down to 0.55% compared to the rate of 15% experienced in some neighbourhoods.

*The cost to deliver residential garbage services remains constant over 2012 at $144.27 per household in 2013 (or $12.02 per household per month).  This cost is comparable with other municipalities across Canada.

*Availability of vehicles and equipment has been an issue in 2013 with significant hours of downtime logged for mechanical or maintenance-related issues.  This is affecting both service delivery and cost.

*Saskatoon has one of the highest rates of residential garbage self-hauled to the Landfill in Canada, creating site management challenges for the operations of that facility.  These challenges, along with equipment downtime, contribute to rising operating costs that have now nearly doubled since 2008 to $29/tonne.

*Landfill tipping fees must cover both operating costs and capital improvements.  The range of fees for tipping waste among 26 municipal landfills across Canada is $32.65 to $125 per tonne.  Saskatoon’s fees (at $90 in 2013) fall in the middle of this range (near the median).

Since 2013, recycling and composting programs are showing signs of continued growth and success.

The blue-cart recycling program for houses has already recycled more than 7,500 tonnes of recyclables so far in 2014.  Cart set-out rates on each collection day remain high at an average of 67%.  The contamination rate (garbage placed in carts) has dropped to under 4%.

The green-cart yard waste program now has 3,900 subscribers, an increase of 30% over 2013, contributing to the diversion of organic waste to compost depots rather than the landfill.

For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca or connect with the City of Saskatoon on Twitter and Facebook.

“This is the first time in Saskatoon’s history that we will have an objective, technology-based condition assessment of our complete road network,” says Mike Gutek, Director of Major Projects. “An increase in funding has allowed us to invest in this new technology to better assess the condition of our roads.”

In the past, City engineering staff would manually inspect portions of roadway and rate the condition based on three visible defects; dips, cracking and roughness. This manual data collection would take up to four years to gather and provide data of various ages.

The new method, implemented earlier this year, uses a semi-automated road rating vehicle which can detect up to 11 different surface and structural defects in the roadway. Not only does this new method allow the City to inspect the entire roadway, it will help determine patterns, predict future distresses and determine the best long term treatments. It will also establish a new baseline network condition and provide an up-to-date road condition report card every four years with yearly report cards updated using deterioration prediction models.

“Through this new process, data from the more than 4,000 kilometres of road network can be collected in just a couple of months as opposed to four years,” says Gutek. “As we analyze the data we’ll be able to make more informed decisions as we deploy the rehabilitation budgets.”

Focusing all funding on roads that are in the worst condition would lead to a relatively rapid decline in the overall network condition; this is because it would cost the same to completely reconstruct one kilometre of the worst road as it would to repair 20 kilometres of road that may be in fair condition with a minor roadway treatment. 

The new assessment system will help to improve the City’s road network in the most cost effective way and allow a more proactive approach.

For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca or connect with the City of Saskatoon on Twitter and Facebook.

For Release: September 11, 2014

Starting today, residents can now access Service Alerts on Twitter by following @YXEServiceAlert. 

Service Alerts are RSS feeds issued when service disruptions, such as power outages, and traffic restrictions will have a direct impact on the lives and routines of residents and visitors.

Currently, when each alert is issued it is automatically posted to Twitter and Facebook, which often clutters the City’s main Twitter feed – @CityofSaskatoon.

By pushing Service Alert tweets to their own feed, followers are now able to access the information they need about service disruptions with greater ease.  This also means information about programs and initiatives will be more accessible for those using social media through the main account, @CityofSaskatoon.

Both channels will be regularly monitored during normal City business hours, Monday through Friday.

This switch does not affect the delivery of the RSS feeds, which residents can subscribe to by following the links on Saskatoon.ca.

As the City continues to move forward with the new website redesign project, more improvements may be made to how the City engages with residents on social media.

For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca or connect with the City of Saskatoon on Twitter and Facebook.

The waterslide at Lakewood Civic Centre is currently not in operation as a result of ground movement issues in the mechanical crawlspace affecting the pump that supplies water to the slide.  The City of Saskatoon (City) reassures the public that there are no concerns with the safety of the swimming pool and hot tub, which remain open at this time for all regularly scheduled activities. 
The City is currently working with a consultant to develop a solution to fix these issues as quickly as possible while having the least impact to patrons and the operation of the pool.  At this time, it is anticipated that the waterslide will remain out of service for the next several weeks.  Further updates will be provided as the repairs progress, and a timeline for the reopening of the waterslide is identified.  The City apologizes for the inconvenience, and thanks the public for its patience and understanding.
For hours of operation and drop-in programming information at Lakewood Civic Centre, refer to www.saskatoon.ca/go/dropinonline or call 306-975-2944.
For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca or connect with the City of Saskatoon on Twitter and Facebook.

MILLAR AVE NB CURB (OUTSIDE) LANE CLOSED AT MOLARO PL
(Curb box maintenance)
Start: September 11, 9:00 a.m. End: September 11, 5:00 p.m.
MILLAR AVE SB CLOSED FROM MARQUIS DR E TO 68TH ST E
(Valve repair)
Two-way traffic in NB lanes
Start: September 11, 10:00 a.m. End: September 11, 6:00 p.m.
ONGOING
TAYLOR ST CLOSED FROM MUNROE AVE S TO MCKINNON AVE S
(Water main lining)
Start: September 8, 8:00 a.m. End: October 8, 7:00 p.m.
IDYLWYLD DR N SB CURB (OUTSIDE) LANE CLOSED FROM 25TH ST W TO 24TH ST E
(Streetscaping)
Traffic will merge to one lane. Right turn from 25th St EB to Idylwyld Dr SB will be maintained
Start: September 2, 9:00 a.m. End: September 14, 6:00 p.m.
CENTRAL AVE SB CLOSED FROM 110TH ST W TO 112TH ST W
(Streetscaping)
Two-way traffic in NB lanes
Start: August 25, 10:00 a.m. End: September 20, 7:00 p.m.
33RD ST W EB LANES CLOSED FROM AVE Y N TO AVE W N
(water main lining)
Two-way traffic set in WB lanes of 33rd St
Start: August 22, 10:30 a.m. End: September 19, 6:00 p.m.
AIRPORT DR NB LANES CLOSED ON FROM GATEWAY BLVD TO THE AIRPORT
(roadway improvements)
Two-way traffic accommodated in the SB lanes. 45th St closed from Airport Dr to Koyl Ave
Start: August 20, 1:00 p.m. End: October 29, 6:00 p.m.

All restrictions will be lifted as indicated, weather permitting and barring any unforeseen circumstances.

Slow down, pay attention and respect work zones. Watch for pedestrians and work crews, and for everyone’s safety, please obey all detours, signs and barriers.

Know before you go! Plan your route around road work by checking our Road Restrictions and Construction Projects interactive map. Find traffic detour information on our saskatoon.ca homepage or subscribe to our Traffic Detour Service Alerts. You can also follow us on Twitter @cityofsaskatoon and with #betterroadsYXE and like Saskatoon City News on Facebook.