Days after girders installed on the new 102 Avenue Bridge over Groat Road buckled, leaving a major roadway closed and delaying construction on the project, officials have made changes to traffic signals, parking restrictions and transit detours to better accommodate the closure.
“We have traffic engineers out pretty much all day and during the peak hours looking at where we can make improvements,” Gord Cebryk, with Transportation Operations, said.
Traffic signals have been changed on major detour routes to handle higher traffic volumes – more signs have been added to inform drivers of the closure.
Signals have been changed in the following locations:
- 116 Street at 100 Avenue to have longer green lights at peak hours
- Groat Road at 107 Avenue and Groat Road at 111 Avenue to improve east to west traffic flow, due to a decrease in traffic heading north and south
- 107 Avenue at 117 Street and 116 Street now have longer green lights for afternoon peak traffic times
The City also said parking restrictions put in place over the weekend will stay in effect. As a result, there will be no parking allowed on both sides of the following roadways:
- 109 Street from 88 Avenue to 82 Avenue, and between the High Level Bridge and 104 Avenue
- 116 Street between 100 Avenue and Jasper Avenue
- 124 Street between 102 Avenue and 107 Avenue
- 105 Street from 102 Avenue to 104 Avenue
Meanwhile, the existing detour for ETS Route 128 remains, with extra service added to make up for the delay.
As for work on the bridge, the City said a 1,200 tonne crane on Groat Road, to stabilize the bridge structure. Once that crane is in place, crews will inspect and repair or remove the damaged girders.
Officials said Tuesday that Groat Road would remain closed for up to three weeks as officials investigate the structural failure – it’s expected to reopen April 7.
With files from Ashley Molnar
