Work gets underway on removing underground utilities in way of LRT tunnel

Work gets underway this week in Calgary's Beltline to clear the way for construction of a Green Line LRT tunnel downtown.

The $100-million project will see new utility lines installed underground so that various lines nearby can be removed, allowing for tunnel construction in the years ahead.

As part of the initial phase of the $5.5-billion Green Line, the city will be constructing a two-kilometre tunnel that will run from East Victoria Park through the core to Eau Claire.

The director of stakeholder relations and communications for the Green Line, Wendy Tynan, said the underground utility work will be hard to miss.

"There's no doubt. It's going to be disruptive," she said.

Work gets underway this month in the east Beltline near 12th Avenue S.E. between Third Street and Sixth Street S.E.

She said new utility lines must be installed first, including telephone, cable, water, stormwater and natural gas lines.

Once the new lines are in place, then the existing lines which are in the way of the tunnel can be removed, said Tynan.

She said there are benefits to doing this work now, ahead of the tunnel construction.

"We're getting the work done now. We're investing into the local construction industry, creating jobs and making sure that when main construction starts, they can hit the ground running and have the space needed to actually build the tunnel."

Tynan said there will be impacts on traffic, pedestrians and businesses as the project progresses along 11th and 12th avenues through the Beltline and along the Second Street S.W. corridor downtown.

The city has been communicating with businesses along the construction route so they are aware of when they might be affected.

"We are on the ground actively communicating with businesses," said Tynan.

"We are really trying to ensure that there aren't any surprises and that there's as much notification as possible so people can really plan."

Tyson Bolduc, director of planning with the Beltline Neighbourhoods Association, said it appears city officials have learned from the problems businesses and residents experienced during the lengthy reconstruction of 17th Avenue on the Beltline's southern edge a few years ago.

"Certainly from our point of view, it's clear that they've done a lot more to engage than perhaps we've seen in the past, like 17th Avenue, for example," said Bolduc.

He said the Green Line team has committed to providing regular information to the community on the potential for disruptions in specific areas.

"The proof will be in the pudding when the work really gets going here, but they've assured us, and so far, it certainly appears they've made improvements."

The project will pause during the busy Stampede period in July and then resume.

Tynan said the utilities work will continue through until 2024 when it will complete and then main construction on the LRT tunnel is expected to commence.

In March, the city put out the request for qualifications for companies interested in building the Green Line.

It will then put out a formal request for proposals from qualified companies, and a development partner will be selected in early 2023.