Downtown drivers facing changes today
Posted Sep 19, 2011 04:42:29 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
We can all be a little groggy on a Monday morning, but you’ll have to be wide awake if you’re driving downtown today.
Some downtown streets that were one-way are now two-way – and vice versa – and some one-way streets are changing direction.
HRM spokesperson Michaelyn Thompson says everything is clearly marked.
“There is signage posted in the downtown, so motorists and pedestrians are being asked to look for the signage and be cautious about these changes,” she said.
Halifax Regional Police Cst. Brian Palmeter says he expects the changes will take some people by surprise in the first few days.
“We likely may have more than one or two vehicles maybe make the wrong turn, or go the wrong way down the street,” he said. “But there’s been a lot of publicity about these changes, so we would ask motorists driving in the downtown core to pay extra attention, to make sure that none of the streets you’re used to driving on haven’t been changed.”
Palmeter is urging all motorists to take it steady to day and be on the lookout for people who may not be aware of the changes.
A release posted on the city’s website says the changes were recommended after traffic modelling analysis and developed through public consultation.
The changes in street directions will result in better organization of one-way street patterns and will allow for new bike lanes and increased on-street parking.
This is the first set of changes to traffic direction downtown. Two more phases, which will include additional downtown streets, are scheduled for October 2011 and March 2012.
The list of changes effective today is as follows:
- Converting to one-way: Blowers (between Grafton and Barrington), Market (between Prince and Carmichael), Sackville (between Brunswick and Barrington), George (between Barrington and Hollis) and Granville (between Salter and Sackville).
- Converting to two-way: Grafton (between Prince and Sackville).
- Changing direction: Market Street (between Sackville and Prince).
More information is available on the city’s website.
