Road closures and traffic delays, week ending Oct 13, 2023

The following is a selection of the most significant road closures and expected traffic delays in and around the city of Kingston for the week ending Oct. 13, 2023. Full lists of closures and delays provided by the City of Kingston and the MTO can be viewed here and here.

Drivers should expect delays at Bath Road and Queen Mary for the Utilities Kingston NETS project. 

Bayridge Drive from Woodbine to Cataraqui Woods will see delays until November 30 for Phase 1 of the Bayridge Drive cycling and pedestrian improvements.

Dunham Street will experience delays at Dunham Park Entrance from Oct. 10 to 13 while contractors are completing intersection upgrades. 

Drivers can expect a lane closure along Duff Street, from Patrick to the end of Duff, until Oct. 15 to facilitate the replacement of a watermain on Duff St.

Intersection upgrades are taking place at Lancaster Drive and Bentley Terrace. Drivers should expect delays Oct. 10 to 13 while contractors are completing the work. 

Delays can be expected along Mona Drive at the intersections with Humberside and Lynwood until Oct 13 while contractors are completing intersection upgrades.

Delays are expected along Princess Street from Collins Bay to Bayridge until Oct. 31 for the construction of new sidewalks and traffic signals along Princess Street. Please note that one lane of traffic will be maintained in each direction at all times on Princess St. 

Drivers can expect a closure along Queen Mary Road from Notch Hill to Greenview for the Utilities Kingston NETS project.

The intersection of Sir John A. MacDonald Blvd and Johnson Street will experience delays for the installation of a new high-pressure gas line for Utilities Kingston.  

Sydenham Street will be closed from Queen to Princess until Oct. 12 for Downtown Kingston activations.

Taylor Kidd Boulevard from Collins Bay Road to 100 metres West of Collins Creek Bridge will experience a lane closure until Nov. 15 for the Collins Creek Bridge Rehabilitation project. Please note, Taylor Kidd will require the reduction from a two-lane to a single-lane roadway and the lane closures will be controlled with Temporary Traffic Signals for the duration of the project.

University Avenue will be closed from Union to Earl until Dec. 22, 2023, at 7 p.m. for the removal of debris from demolition and concrete deliveries at the Queen’s John Deutsch University Centre project.

Delays are expected along Westbrook Road from Princess to Windemere until Oct. 31 for the construction of new sidewalks and road rehabilitation. 

The sidewalk along Clarence Street will be closed from King to Wellington on the North side from Oct. 10 to 13 for construction within the British Whig Parking Lot. 

The Rideau Trail will be closed from Queen Mary to Parkway for crews to replace the sanitary main, install shoring and build a new gravel pathway. The City did not provide an expected completion date for this project.

Waaban Crossing Closure

The City shared that although the construction of the Waaban Crossing is complete, there are items that must be performed as part of a post-construction program that need to occur during the operation phase. 

“One of these tasks is to perform a measurement of the amount of streetlight illumination that is entering the river below the bridge,” the City explained. “As part of our permit conditions, the light survey needs to be performed during a new moon, during the night, and without river ice. The project team is scheduling the light survey work to be conducted during the new moon window of October 12 to 16, 2023. The light survey can be completed over the course of a single night but is weather-dependent and will need to be confirmed (via forecast) a day or two ahead of the actual survey night.”

The light survey work will take place adjacent to the bridge on the water from a boat with personnel and light-measuring equipment. The streetlights will need to be turned off during the survey work and then turned back on. The survey measuring is expected to take up to six hours throughout the night.

Planned Shutdown Time – One night only but date could change due to weather 

• Tentative: from 10 p.m. October 14 to 5 a.m. on October 15  

Impact to Users 

• The bridge will need to be shut down for the duration of the light survey work in order to limit vehicle-light spillover which may compromise the survey measurements. Staff are working on the traffic control plan and seeking input as it is developed, but the following can be expected: 
  • The bridge will be closed to all users with the exception of emergency services. Emergency service vehicles (Ambulance, Fire, Police) will be allowed to pass over the bridge at all times during the closure. Police patrol cars will be staged to facilitate this. 
  • Non-emergency vehicles (general traffic) will not be permitted on the bridge during the closure. 
  • Active transportation users will not be permitted to access the multi-use pathway nor cyclists using the road shoulders. 
  • The City has coordinated with paid duty officers for traffic control at both ends of the bridge. 
  • The traffic signals on both shores will remain operational during the survey work to limit impacts to adjacent residents. 
• The LaSalle Causeway planned repair work is not scheduled until November 2023 so general traffic can still use the LaSalle Causeway route during this temporary shutdown of the Waaban Crossing. 
• Electronic Message Boards have been deployed on both shores to inform the public of the upcoming closure sometime in Mid-October. Once the date is confirmed based on the weather forecast, the messaging will be updated to replace ‘Mid-October’ with the actual date. 

Parking Disruptions

Note: The Chown Memorial Parking Structure will be closed from Oct. 6 at 4 p.m. until Oct. 10 at 6 a.m. 

The Chown Memorial Parking Structure Restoration project is underway. The work will take place throughout all levels of the building, and will include efforts such as routine structural maintenance, renewal of waterproofing materials and upgrades to the building’s mechanical/electrical systems. The work is expected to conclude in late December.

The work will be completed in phases to allow the building to remain open to public parking for the duration of the project. Phased work areas will occupy a maximum of 40 per cent of the available parking stalls at a time. Up to 180 spaces will be out of commission. There is parking availability at the Hanson Memorial and Robert Bruce Memorial parking garages in the two adjacent blocks to the east.

Lower Brewers Swing Bridge – closed until further notice. Temporary bridge closure signs and detour signs have been installed. Parks Canada is continuing with their efforts to replace the bridge.