Plans to improve the flow of traffic on Millstream Road continue to roll forward in Langford.
The latest development in this project saw council give staff the green light to award the contract to construct dual left turn lanes on the Millstream Road overpass to the lowest bidder after the tender period closes on May 10.
While it usually takes a week or two once tender has closed to prepare the contracts, Langford’s director of engineering Michelle Mahovlich expects construction will be able to start on schedule in June.
She noted there has been some concerns expressed on social media regarding the construction process and that the City will be working closely with crews on a traffic management plan. Crews will be permitted to work at night but will not be on the roadway during long weekends.
The existing bridge deck features one southbound left-turn lane onto the Trans-Canada Highway (towards Victoria) as well as three southbound through lanes. But access to the TCH is often backed up during peak travel times and on weekends.
To help alleviate some of that congestion, last year City staff proposed installing a second left-turn lane while also improving pedestrian and cyclist access to the overpass with fully extended sidewalks, bike lanes and signalized pedestrian crossings. An additional traffic signal will be installed for northbound traffic turning left onto the TCH towards the Goldstream Park area. Traffic signals along this section of the Millstream Road corridor will also be co-ordinated to help improve traffic flow.
“We want to make sure we have the most access north to south for pedestrians and cyclists,” Mahovlich noted.
Back in November 2016, council awarded the detailed engineering design portion of this project, with the intention of sticking to a tight timeline that would allow for the project to be completed by Labour Day weekend. As staff noted in their most recent report on the project, traffic volumes increase noticeable in this area during the fall and approaching the Christmas shopping season.
“We try our best not to be on any major arteries when school starts,” Mahovlich added. The Labour Day completion will also hopefully prevent crews from encountering any weather delays that may result from working in the fall or winter.
This project – slated for completion by Labour Day – is funded through Langford’s road development cost charge program with some funding from ICBC. An estimated cost could not be released while the project is still being tendered.
The City is reminding residents that all construction sites are meant for construction access only. Staff are asking the public to refrain from entering active construction areas even on weekends and nights. This includes the Bear Mountain Parkway and West Shore Parkway construction projects as well.
