Morse announces paving projects

BY JOHN DECOSTE

jdecoste@kentvilleadvertiser.ca

NovaNewsNow.com

Both lanes of the twinned portion of Highway 101between Avonport and Falmouth will be open to traffic by Dec. 1, according to Kings South MLA and provincial Natural Resources Minister David Morse.

Morse confirmed Tuesday, Aug. 26 that tenders have been awarded for two paving projects in Kings County.

First, a 6.8 km portion of the Ridge Road above Wolfville, from the White Rock intersection east to approximately the Wolfville Ridge United Baptist Church, has been awarded for a total cost of $2,079,000 with a completion date of Oct. 31, 2008.

This, Morse said, represents “good news for the very patient people of the Gaspereau Valley” who have been waiting for improvements on that stretch of road that will enhance their access to Highway 101 at Exit 11.

Tender for 101 paving awarded

Second, and much larger in scope, Morse announced that a tender has been awarded for paving of the twinned portion of Highway 101 between Avonport and Falmouth, including the new interchange at Ben Jackson Road and the Halfway River bridge.

This project will see an additional 11 km of twinned highway paved at a total cost of $16,382,000.

The newly-twinned highway is scheduled to be open to the public Nov. 30, with a tentative completion date for the entire project of June 30, 2009, by which time “some miscellaneous things that can’t be completed this year” will have been finished.

Morse said the most exciting thing about the twinning project for him is the Ben Jackson Road interchange, replacing the level crossing currently in place with the result that there will be “no more adventures trying to cross the busy 101 highway.”

Morse confirmed that Lafarge Construction has been awarded the tender for the Ridge Road paving, while Dexter Construction has been awarded the 101 contract.

Further twinning a priority: Morse

As well, he said he had received a response to a letter he had sent to Transportation Minister Murray Scott asking that the further twinning of Highway 101 between Avonport and Coldbrook be made a priority.

In his letter, Morse had stated his belief that it is more important to begin work on the fourth phase of the twinning project - the 27 km between Avonport and Coldbrook - ahead of the 3 km of the Windsor causeway.

Scott’s response, dated July 30, indicated the province will continue to work at extending the twinning of the 101 to Coldbrook and beyond, but it will like take several years before it is even ready for construction.

Scott noted his department staff “are currently doing the planning and design work necessary to prepare this section of highway for construction tender readiness.

“I would like to clarify that the project limits will be from the existing twinning at Hortonville to just west of the Cornwallis River, 1.5 km west of Exit 14 at Coldbrook, a distance of 27.5 km.

“This is a big project,” Scott said, “and staff estimate it won’t be ready for construction for a number of years. As the construction will take an additional four to five years, the completion of this section will not be possible by 2012.

“The upgrading of Highway 101 continues to be one of our key priorities,” Scott said. “However, even with increased federal funding, the timelines required to prepare for projects of this size remain substantial.”

Morse is especially eager to see the twinning reach New Minas to allow for the completion of the new interchange and access road east of the County Fair Mall, “which should help alleviate some of the congestion on Commercial Street.”

He considered Scott’s reply good news. “It’s not going to be done by 2012, but we should see steady progress,” he said. “As long as we keep adding kilometres every year, Halifax becomes a little more accessible and the drive becomes safer for everybody.”