Construction season kickoff: 22 road construction projects to hit Fredericton streets

Construction season is on the way — and drivers should be prepared for a bigger season than usual.

The City of Fredericton unveiled its plans Tuesday night for 22 major road construction projects, worth $34 million.

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Jody Boone, the city's project engineer, said the projects will be spread out more over the season, compared with last year, when the city undertook $26 million worth of repairs.

"We don't want too much traffic going on in the same area," he said. "We like to spread the traffic out so we aren't closing off other routes that are important. We like to keep the detours out of local neighbourhoods and streets."

City's major road construction

Some construction projects are expected to create significant traffic problems, he said.

Among the projects coming up this spring and summer:

Waterloo Row: Replacement of a culvert along Waterloo Row will keep the road closed to through traffic from Dunns Crossing Road to Forest Hill Road. During the closure, traffic will be re-routed through to Wilsey Road, Kimble Drive and Forest Hill Road.

Woodstock Road: Replacement of a culvert at Phyllis Creek will close Woodstock Road from Marlborough Drive to Hanwell Road. Truck traffic will be re-routed to the Hanwell Road and Prospect Street West. 

"There's probably four or five culverts down in there that have over time been degrading and they're not sized for a new climate," Boone said. "The storms we've had … have been a lot more intense, provided a lot more rain water, we have to plan away for the future." 

Claremont Drive: A water main will be extended on the trail from Claremont Drive to Ruby Street in the Sunset Drive area of the north side. Crews will also be paving.  

Sunset Drive: When the Claremont Drive project is finished, Sunset Drive will have a full street closure from Main Street to Bailey Avenue to upgrade water, sanitary sewer and storm sewer mains on Sunset. Curbing, sidewalks and asphalt surfacing will also be done.

The project will take four to six weeks and will be carried out between the end of the school year and the start of the school year. Alternate bus stops will be required, and drivers will need to take a detour along the Ring Road. 

Lincoln Road: Installation of the Lincoln sanitary force main and an upgrade of the Aquarius lift station, which will mean a full trail closure from Aquarius Street to Lincoln Road and from Lincoln Road to Wilsey Road.

About one kilometre of paving and curbing will take place on the Lincoln Road from Draco Road to Adams Street. 

Residents who would like to receive notifications about when construction is expected to start in their area can sign up by visiting fredericton.ca, Boone said.