Line painting and landscaping remain the last items on the to-do list for upgrades to Bowen Rd. (Alex Rawnsley/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Alex Rawnsley

COMPLETE STREET

Major upgrades to Bowen Rd. corridor substantially complete

Oct 30, 2020 | 5:52 AM

NANAIMO — A five month long project to upgrade a major traffic artery through Nanaimo is nearly complete.

Line painting and finishing touches are the final items on the City’s $2 million upgrade to Bowen Rd. between Hwy. 19 and Labieux Rd., which sees about 20,000 vehicles a day.

Annalisa Fipke, capital project management specialist with the City, told NanaimoNewsNOW the enhancements to Bowen Rd. were focused on users of all types through the Complete Streets framework adopted by the city.

“We’re trying to build roads for all users, pedestrians, seniors and cyclists. For pedestrians there is more separation from traffic, we raised the sidewalk so those using mobility devices don’t have to go up and down at every business driveway entrance.”

Along with water and sewer upgrades, raised bike lanes will provide extra safety and separation for cyclists to connect with the expansive E&N Trail, while yellow tactile warning strips were installed at curbs and bus stops for pedestrians.

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The redesign added landscaped medians and narrowed driving lanes to single-use for vehicles only. Previous lanes on Bowen Rd. were designed to be multi-use with vehicles and cyclists sharing the road.

“When a road has trees, people automatically drive closer. Same with right-sizing our travel lanes, that is a safety measure,” Fipke said.

Final invoices must still come in, but Fipke estimated the project would be between five to 10 per cent over budget.

She added any extra spending would likely be offset by the ongoing Metral Dr. project which is operating under its approved $11.3 million budget.

alex.rawnsley@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @alexrawnsley