After much anticipation, ground has officially been broken on widening part of Ray Gibbon Drive to four lanes this summer.
The first phase of the $54.2-million road twinning project officially kicked off May 20, with a groundbreaking ceremony attended by local and provincial dignitaries. Twinning Ray Gibbon Drive will take place over a decade and is being cost-split 50-50 with the Alberta government.
Not only will twinning ease traffic congestion across the city, Mayor Cathy Heron said the upgraded arterial will also serve as an economic boon to the growing north and west regions of St. Albert.
Without Ray Gibbon Drive twinning, Heron said recent major investments would not have happened. In March, the city announced two major private sector investments in St. Albert, with the 600,000 square foot U-line distribution centre expected to become St. Albert’s biggest non-residential tax base.
“Those private sector investments came because of the investment into Ray Gibbon to make sure the transportation network is working, so that is beneficial,” Heron said, noting improvements will also serve the up-and-coming Lakeview Business District. “Not only do you get jobs from construction, we'll get long-term permanent jobs.”
After years of lobbying from successive councils, Alberta officially announced it would partner with St. Albert on this project in February 2019, making an agreement that would see the city cover up-front costs for the first half of the decade-long project.
Alberta Minister of Transportation Ric McIver said during a recorded ceremony posted on St. Albert’s website twinning Ray Gibbon Drive will “pave the way for economic success” as the province begins to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Albertans recognize the value of a well-integrated and well maintained highway network, and the importance of reliable infrastructure that allows for the effective, efficient and timely movement of goods, services and people,” he said.
Morinville-St. Albert MLA and Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity Dale Nally and St. Albert MLA Marie Renaud also attended the ceremony.
Construction is set to begin June 1 and work this summer will widen Ray Gibbon Drive to four lanes from the south city limits to just north of LeClair Way. Cost of that first phase is budgeted at $7,914,000.
The project is being funded through borrowing, and council green lit borrowing up to $36.6 million in August.
Improvements to two key intersections are now being included within the scope of work completed this summer, after city council approved a half-million-dollar scope increase on Tuesday.
Those intersections – where Ray Gibbon Drive meets 184 Street and the old 137 Avenue intersection – are in City of Edmonton limits and costs will be reimbursed by Edmonton.
Long term, the plan is to close the old 137 Avenue intersection and allow access to Edmonton by extending LeClair Way to the west. However, that construction is not within any approved funding plans.
“We need to alleviate congestion at that intersection because we could twin, or we could even make Ray Gibbon six lanes, but if it has a pinch point – and that intersection is definitely a pinch point – we're just building a parking lot,” Heron said.
Photos and videos from the groundbreaking ceremony are posted on St. Albert’s website.
The Gazette was not permitted to attend the post-groundbreaking ceremony at the Enjoy Centre, which featured speeches, as the city said attendance was limited for physical distancing. Only after learning about the event on May 19 and requesting an invitation was a Gazette photographer allowed "as a courtesy" to attend the outdoor groundbreaking ceremony itself.
The city later explained in an email to the Gazette that plans for the event had come together at the last minute the week prior when Alberta’s public health order still limited outdoor gatherings to 15 people or less. Alberta changed that order May 15 to allow gatherings of up to 50 people outdoors. Indoor gatherings remain restricted to 15 people or less, requiring limited attendance for the indoor portion of the event.
