After thorough public consultations, the province will move ahead with new plans to re-align the Trans-Canada Highway in Churchill, New Haven and Bonshaw, says Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Robert Vessey.
“Islanders spoke, and we listened,” said Minister Vessey. “The new alignment we plan to build not only addresses safety concerns in all three communities, but it also steers clear of Strathgartney Provincial Park and nearby protected lands. We believe this new alignment greatly improves safety and efficiency, and strikes a balance between the goals of the Atlantic Gateway and the wishes of residents.”
In total, six public meetings were held in late October and early November which allowed residents an opportunity to view proposed re-alignment plans for the Trans-Canada Highway in Crapaud, Tryon and Churchill, to ask questions and to submit feedback. The province received over three hundred submissions from Islanders as well as a petition to preserve Strathgartney Provincial Park which contained over 2,700 signatures. The province also met with local community councils, organizations and land owners to gauge their opinions on the three proposed projects.
“Over the past two months, the province worked very hard to ensure Islanders were heard,” said Minister Vessey. “The vast majority of the submissions we received asked that the provincial park be protected as well as ecologically sensitive areas nearby. At the same time, Islanders generally agreed that something needed to be done to improve safety and efficiency along this section of highway. This new plan accomplishes both of those goals.”
The new design will improve access to the park, to the lookout and to Riverdale Road. It will add turning lanes and will expand the bridge in Bonshaw to improve safety at the Green Road intersection. It will eliminate five sharp curves and reduce the grade of the highway through Churchill, and it will eliminate thirty-five driveway accesses. The estimated cost of the project is close to $15 million.
“Islanders deserve a lot of credit for their participation in this process and I want to thank them for that,” said Minister Vessey. “From the very beginning we asked Islanders to be part of this decision and, in the end, the feedback we received played an important role in the alignment we chose.”
Over the coming weeks, officials will begin detailed design work and property acquisition. Public consultations will be held in the new year so residents have an opportunity to view the new alignment and ask questions. A full environmental assessment process will begin immediately and will have to be completed before construction can proceed.
BACKGROUND
Features of the new alignment:
• Eliminates thirty-five driveway accesses.
• Eliminates five sharp curves (one in New Haven and four in Churchill) and reduces the vertical grade of the highway.
• Improves access to Strathgartney Provincial Park and Riverdale Road by realigning the entranceway to the park to form a four-way intersection with improved sight distance.
• Improves safety at “the lookout” by restricting access from the highway.
• Expands Bonshaw bridge to accommodate new turning lanes for Green Road.
• Improves safety at Cameron Road, Crosby Lane and Colville Road by reducing traffic count.
• No loss of parkland, no affected protected lands.
• Allows for new accesses onto former Trans-Canada Highway which were previously not permitted.