Construction work to tie up the long weekend drive

CALGARY (660 NEWS) — If you’re cruising around Calgary on the long weekend, don’t be surprised by the amount of work happening on the roads.

“August long weekend gives us a really good opportunity to stay on schedule with our projects,” said Roads Department spokesperson Ryan Murray. “It is necessary, we’ve got a short construction season.”

We are deep in the throes of that season, and since the weather is also forecasted to be very nice over the weekend crews are taking advantage.

There is a long list of work happening, including a pair of major projects.

“On northbound Macleod Trail, between 17th Avenue and 14th Avenue SE, we’ve got some utility work happening there, so Macleod trail will be down to one lane,” explained Murray. “The Crowchild Trail flyover, that in particular will have one lane closed, one lane open. So we expect there to be traffic delays moving south on Crowchild Trail on to eastbound Glenmore Trail.”

The work on Crowchild and Macleod Trails will continue until early Tuesday morning.

Remember that there is also major work continue on 17th Avenue SW, with the road closed from 8th Street to 10A Street because of the 17th Avenue Reconstruction Project.

In addition, there’s a litany of other work, but fortunately, it is more localized, and some of it will be happening overnight when traffic is much lighter.

Another factor to consider, since it is so warm, is the health of crews working these jobs.

“We certainly want to make sure that the contractors have their crews hydrated,” said Murray. “And I know the contractors are super responsible and accountable for the safety of their workers.”

Most of all, Murray said they want to make sure drivers don’t get too frustrated.

“There’s a lot of things going on this weekend, there’s a lot of festivities, it’s Heritage weekend, so we want to make sure people can still enjoy the outdoors, enjoy the parks and pathways and get to their fun times over the weekend.”

Ideally, this work will go smoothly, and soon enough drivers will be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“I don’t want to sugarcoat August at all,” said Murray. “For sure come September, and into October, citizens will absolutely start to move easier through Calgary.”

Some special weekend events will cause closures as well, including the Inglewood Sunfest on Saturday, Chasing Summer festival affecting Barlow Trail SE, Tour de Bowness Hill Climb and the Bow Cycle Tour de Bowness and Street Festival causing closures in the northwest Sunday through Monday.

You can head to the City of Calgary’s website for more information, or tune in to 660 NEWS throughout the long weekend for traffic updates every ten minutes on the ones to make sure you stay on the move.