City of Saskatoon wraps up summer construction season

The City of Saskatoon is celebrating the end of another summer construction season highlighted by big projects.

Wrapping up the two-year Sid Buckwold Bridge rehabilitation project two months early was the biggest feat to note. New barriers were added, the sidewalk was widened and new asphalt was added to the deck repairs.

Water main replacement projects helped make up the brunt of the major work in the city.

Clarence Avenue, 8th Street and Avenue C were the major roadways where water mains were replaced and new asphalt was laid.

That helped add 175 kilometres of new pavement to the city and an additional 19 kilometres of water mains.

Terry Schmidt, the general manager of transportation and construction with the city, noted roughly 27 kilometres of new sidewalks were also rebuilt in the city, with many of them being part of those major projects to increase efficiency and drive down costs.

“Additionally, we continued to make significant progress toward improving the condition, safety and longevity of Saskatoon’s road and sidewalk network,” he said in a city news release. “Millions of dollars have been invested into Saskatoon’s most aggressive construction program since the establishment of a $61 million annual levy in 2014.”

However, the arrival of COVID-19 in Saskatoon did delay some lead water service connections where workers would have to enter a person’s home.

“When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we revised our 2020 construction plan to place the safety of our crews and residents at the forefront,” Schmidt said.

As long as provincial guidelines allow it, the City plans to complete those replacements in Caswell Hill, Riversdale and Nutana in 2021.

It was also a banner year for safety. No life-threatening incidents of any kind were reported during the summer construction season.

“There has been less traffic on our roadways due to the pandemic, but we also believe drivers are getting the message through our annual marketing campaign,” Schmidt said.