In Nov. of 2019, a 24-year-old woman was taken to hospital following a late night collision at Albion St. and Bruce Ave. in Harewood. Another woman was killed at the same intersection after being struck by a vehicle in 2016. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

upcoming upgrades

Pedestrian safety top of mind for upcoming Nanaimo road construction season

Mar 16, 2022 | 5:28 AM

NANAIMO — Safety and traffic flow improvements are the focus of several major road upgrades currently scheduled in Nanaimo.

Long-awaited upgrades to Bruce Ave. headline the list, including safety enhancements to the Albion St. intersection, which has seen a number of pedestrian collisions in recent years, including one fatality.

Phil Stewart, City manager of engineering projects, said those enhancements include accessibility upgrades such as tactile warning indicators, which help people with visual impairments more easily identify where to cross.

Tactile warning strips for visually impaired pedestrians are a common new feature included in roadway enhancement projects in Nanaimo. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

“We’re going to look at a raised crosswalk like we put in on Front. St. We’re going to look at lighting upgrades, pedestrian flashers and…improvements to the curbing and approaches for pedestrians.” Stewart told NanaimoNewsNOW.

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He said these are techniques used in other areas of the city and things like raised crosswalks force drivers to slow down even if no pedestrians are in sight.

Past discussions on upgrades to the Harewood intersection identified vehicle speeds coming down dimly lit Bruce Ave. hill between Fourth and Fifth streets as a major factor behind the area’s poor safety record.

Construction is expected to start this spring and be completed by the end of summer.

Other road projects on this year’s agenda include ongoing upgrades to Fourth St., an important active transportation link between VIU and downtown. Work began in January and is expected to be complete by June.

Phase two of the $10.5 million Metral Dr. upgrades from Turner Rd. to Aulds Rd. are also continuing and scheduled for completion in the summer. Phase one of the upgrades to Metral Dr., which included a makeover from Mostar Rd. to Turner Rd., were completed last year.

City crews also recently began prep work for the Mid-Town Water Supply Upgrades Project, which will replace aging and undersized infrastructure for potable drinking water to the central and northern areas of the city.

Sidewalks are also set to be installed to the 700 block of Haliburton St. and select intersections along Hammond Bay Rd. and Uplands Dr. round out major projects on the road rehabilitation docket this summer.

Expected capital spending for 2022 comes in at $88.1 million, with over $57 million carried forward from the previous year due to projects already in progress by the year-end.

Poul Rosen, City director of engineering said there were a number of logistical challenges they needed to overcome last year, with the pandemic being a big part of those issues.

“The City competes for the same resources as the private sector both consultants and construction contractors and so on, so there’s a lot of market demand for the services out there we are procuring. There’s been a lot of challenges to supply chains, as we’ve all experienced.”

Planning is well underway for 2023 with $2.5 million worth of projects already deferred including underwater infrastructure upgrades on Vancouver Ave., Townsite Rd. and Departure Bay Rd.

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jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow