There will be eastbound lane closures on College Drive between Clarence Avenue and Hospital Drive beginning Tuesday, as part of a six-month watermain maintenance project. Two-way traffic will be maintained in the westbound lanes. This part of the project is expected to take about two weeks.

The City of Saskatoon warns there will be a zipper merge, and drivers are reminded to use all available lanes and take turns at the end to help everyone get through the work zone faster. Saskatoon Transit will be affected by these detours.

This is a major watermain lifespan extension project. City Director of Construction and Design Matt Jurkiewicz says two-way traffic will always be maintained, but there will be numerous lane restrictions in place over the next six months. “We are asking those that don’t need to travel down College or 25th Street to try and avoid it, if possible, to minimize traffic. Of course, during peak times, it could get congested, depending on the traffic situation.”

He assures that access to the hospitals, university, and cancer centre will be maintained, however those who use College to get to school or work should give themselves some extra commute time. “Some of the closures are around the median lane, so the centre of the road, and then some of the closures are on the curb lanes, but it is phased block-to-block wherever possible.”

Because the watermain will have to be shut down for the duration of the project, temporary above-ground water mains will be installed to service the properties that are impacted. “Prior to any of that (construction) work, we will set up the temporary water mains, commission them, and connect them to people’s houses, so they should not see any disruption in service.” The project is expected to be complete by October.