Achi news desk-
The City of Fredericton plans to raise more of its roads this construction season, hoping to keep them open longer should another significant flood hit the area.
The city has experienced several difficult years of flooding, the most recent in 2019. Over the past few years, it has selected sections of roads – those which are usually the first to be covered by water – and raised them bit by bit .
This year, a second section of Riverside Drive will be constructed, from Sumac Street to Corbett Avenue, while the area’s water and storm sewer system is updated. Doing both jobs at once ensures that road construction won’t be needed again for some time.
“We’re trying to find a balance where we’re not raising the road to create a berm or a dam situation so we won’t prevent flooding,” said Melissa Steeves, the city’s assistant manager for engineering, design and construction. department. “But what we’re trying to do is leave the road open to create a safer route for the people who live there and for emergency vehicles.”
A flooded residence on Riverside Drive in Fredericton. (Courtesy: Wyatt Dutcher)Wyatt Dutcher lives along the section of Riverside Drive that is to be built this summer. He is hopeful it will make a difference.
The Dutch are already prepared for the next flood. They have lived through many and raised their home.
“You watch all your numbers, you watch what it’s doing upriver, the weather in Edmundston and in Maine, you watch how much snow is up there and how much that comes down, how much comes through the dam,” he said. “And then you start planning from there.”
A flooded residence on Riverside Drive in Fredericton. (Courtesy: Wyatt Dutcher)Steeves acknowledges that this construction shutdown is a headache for commuters, but flood mitigation is a “big priority” for the city. Sections of roads in Lincoln have also been raised.
“The longer the road stays open, the safer it is for the people of the area,” he said.
Construction won’t begin until late June or early July, as the city is waiting for the province to complete work on the Princess Margaret Bridge – which is scheduled to close for five weeks in May and June.
Riverside Drive connects directly to that bridge.
