Road repair season is here

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 24/04/2018 (2783 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Spring is emerging and with it the beginning of the 2018 road construction season. St. James residents continue to tell me that fixing roads is their No. 1 priority.

Winnipeg City Council is listening and responding. This year’s budget, a record investment, includes $116 million directed towards road repairs. A significant portion of this budget will be devoted to the St. James-Brooklands-Weston ward. What follows is a highlight of the industrial, regional and local street locations in the ward scheduled for renewal in 2018.

Industrial roads are critical to our economy. They are the arteries that move employees to jobs and goods produced by manufacturers to market. This year commercial road investments will continue in the Murray Industrial Park area with Moray Street (Saulteaux Crescent to Murray Park) and Saulteaux Crescent (east leg) slated to be reconstructed. 

Many regional streets in the ward will be rebuilt in 2018. Motorists can expect road crews on Empress Street, St. Matthews Avenue (Ferry Road to Century Street) and St. James Street (Sargent Avenue to Ellice Avenue). The Empress Street project will include reconstruction of the street, work on the overpass and a new active transportation pathway. These projects continue the significant infrastructure spending in the Polo Park area that has been ongoing for several consecutive years.

Work on St. Matthews Avenue between Ferry Road and Century Street should be completed this summer. When finished, the street will be ready to handle traffic needs in the area for decades to come. New traffic lights will be installed at the intersection of St. Matthews and Ferry Road to improve traffic flow and safety. This project also includes an active transportation component which will connect the Yellow Ribbon Greenway Trail to the Empress and downtown networks of bike paths. 

Finally, investments in local street renewal will once again be important in this construction season. Even though the 2018 budget includes record funding for local streets, there are more streets annually that need renewal than there is budget available. However, year by year, conditions are improving and streets that were once blocks of pot holes and rutting are now changing to smooth asphalt. Over the last five years, the City of Winnipeg has invested over $75 million in St. James regional street repairs.

In 2018, five local streets will be rebuilt: Lodge Avenue (Booth to Moray), Bruce Avenue (Conway to Woodlawn), Woodhaven Boulevard (the bridge to Emo), Winston Road (Portage Ave to Assiniboine Crescent) and Fidler Avenue. Local residents will be notified in advance of road construction.

That you in advance for your patience during road work. Please remember to drive safely through construction zones.

Contact me at 204-986-5848 or email scottgillingham@winnipeg.ca. Visit my website, scottgillingham.ca to sign up for my e-newsletter.