Regina city councillor pushes to ban trucks on 9th Ave N., ministry and industry opposed

A Regina city councillor is continuing to push for a ban trucks along Ninth Avenue N., even after the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure wrote a letter opposing the ban to Regina's mayor. 

On Oct. 28, Regina city council will debate banning commercial trucks on Ninth Avenue N. between Pinky Road and Courtney Street. 

The motion was originally brought forward by Ward 9 councillor Jason Mancinelli, who said he started watching the road in 2017 and initiated a traffic count monitoring program in 2018 to see what would happen when the Bypass opened. 

The Regina Bypass has an exit onto Ninth Avenue N. After it opened, there were about 75 trucks in that stretch that had never been there previously, Mancinelli said. In July 2020 there were more than 170 trucks that weren't there previously. 

"With the growth in truck traffic, I also witnessed what was happening in the wintertime with a lot of sets of tire tracks leading to the ditches," Mancinelli said.

"I started looking at what type of options there are, planned to rectify the situation. I got estimates on road work, which were over $10 million," he said. "There's been just no budget for that."

Mancinelli said he is requesting a ban for commercial trucks on that route and would instead like to see trucks continue on the bypass until it connects with Highway 11, then enter the north end of the city.

"It looked like a really efficient way to carry the traffic to the northern parts," he said.

The Saskatchewan Trucking Association (STA) said taking Ninth Avenue N. has reduced commute times by as much as 45 per cent for some companies. Without the route, trucks have to go around to Pasqua Street and add about 32 kilometres to each trip, the STA said.  

Mancinelli said by his estimation, if trucks just went to Highway 11, it would add at most nine or 10 kilometres.

Mancinelli said when following trucks himself he found that if they followed it to Highway 11 and entered the city, it added only about 50 seconds to travel time. 

"With respect to Councillor Jason Mancinelli, having day-to-day trucking operations and travelling these routes, vs going out on a weekend and following trucks around the bypass are two different things," the STA said in a statement. 

The STA said the additional time added significantly impacts employers and customers. 

Mancinelli said there are important safety concerns on the road, such as there being no shoulder, it not being twinned and it not being meant to accommodate large trucks. 

"It's a mess and it's over 10 million bucks to fix," Mancinelli said.

When asked about safety concerns about the specific road, the STA said the road is in no better or worse shape than many of the secondary highways in Saskatchewan. 

"It is important that all road users work together with large trucks to ensure the safety of everyone on the road. Please remember that commercial drivers are professionals and are not just driving for themselves but for everyone on the road," the STA said. 

The STA said the Ninth Avenue N. commercial truck route is the "most logical option" to access northwest Regina but that it welcomes opportunities to improve the road. 

Mancinelli said the maintenance of the road is going to be highly impacted by the new trucks on the roadway and that all drivers will be affected by the congestion, as the road has four sets of traffic lights. 

"I think that there's not a single Regina driver who would not enjoy a little bit of relief from congestion."

Then-Minister of Highways and Infrastructure, Greg Ottenbriet, wrote a letter dated Sept. 25, 2020, to Regina mayor Michael Fougere asking him to reject Mancinelli's proposal. In the letter, it said this ban would increase travel time and emissions. 

"While we appreciate the concerns raised it is my understanding that these concerns have been addressed already and that the city is planning additional solutions to ease these concerns (e.g. upgrading Ninth Avenue N. to improve connectivity of traffic from Ring Road to the bypass)," the letter said. 

"Even as a temporary measure, this proposal to remove Ninth Avenue N. as a commercial trucking route is not advisable, as there are no viable alternatives for simple, efficient and safe access to the northern portions of Regina for commercial trucks."

Mancinelli said he was a bit surprised by the letter, but guesses the province didn't want to be seen as stepping on the trucking industry. He said he would have preferred to speak to the ministry himself, as it was his motion, and hopes they can work together in the future.

It showed that he was aware that the city did have some type of a plan for the long term area, but maybe not so much aware of the funding implications that the city had to go through.- Ward 9 city councillor Jason Mancinelli

"I'd really rather have co-operation in this, because when I look at the problem and what comes from experience, let's start investigating and focusing on what could be done with the governments," Mancinelli said. "I'd rather follow and make investments. It makes more sense to fix the problem."

Mancinelli said he isn't sure if the province took into consideration the stopping and starting that large vehicles need to do on that section of Ninth Avenue N. and what that means for emissions and fuel consumption. He also said the letter showed the minister may not know about Regina's finances.

"It showed that he was aware that the city did have some type of a plan for the long term area, but maybe not so much aware of the funding implications that the city had to go through," Mancinelli said.

Mancinelli said he was also surprised the minister wouldn't want the truck drivers to use the full length of the Bypass and benefit from the large project.

The Ministry of Highways said that because it was governed by The Elections Act, it could not comment publicly on issues until after the provincial election on Oct. 26.