MELFORT — Drivers can expect delays on Saskatchewan Drive due to resurfacing work.
According to the City of Melfort, traffic interruption along Saskatchewan Drive will be kept to a minimum, with access to streets intersecting Saskatchewan Drive only being impacted when work is occurring in the immediate vicinity.
During construction, large trucks will be directed to alternate routes: north along Shadd Drive and McDonald Avenue, or south along Highway 41.
“It is going to be a big improvement for people travelling throughout Melfort,” said Brent Lutz, the city’s community relations director.
“We got used to the condition of the road the way it is right now, so until we see what it’s like to drive down a new pavement there without all the cracks and bumps we’re all used to driving over — we can’t really appreciate how much better it’s going to be.”
The construction is expected to begin around the end of the first week of September. The entire paving process is expected to take a few weeks.
Crews will begin by milling the driving lanes on the north side of Saskatchewan Drive. While this is being done, two-way traffic will be accommodated in the driving lanes on the south side of the street. The directions will then be reversed to complete the work.
The milling process strips off a portion of the existing pavement and is then followed by the application of new pavement.
The resurfacing is being funded through the Saskatchewan Urban Highway Connector Program. In 2009, the province and the city entered into an agreement where the management of the highways within city limits was transferred to the city. At the same time, the province agreed to fund a share of any future resurfacing and committed to the first rehabilitation of portions of the highway.
In this case, the city is responsible for a share of the cost of resurfacing from the rail crossing at the Canalta Hotel to Anderson Street and the province is responsible for the cost of the first rehabilitation from Anderson Street to the Highway 41A intersection.
The cost for the city is about $670,000 for both the curbing, which has already been completed along Saskatchewan Drive, as well as the cost for the paving.
“We’re really happy to see the province was able to find funding in order to commit their share for the project,” Lutz said. “We waited a number of years, we were prepared to put in our share but the province didn’t have the funds available for this.”
The city is encouraging motorists to slow down and watch for workers along the side of the road during construction.
