Regina Bypass forcing major intersection changes in northwest Regina

Drivers in northwest Regina are going to have to find a different route for the next six weeks, and maybe longer, as the city makes traffic changes for the Regina Bypass.

Starting on Wednesday, the intersection at Ninth Avenue North and Pinkie Road is going to be closed for construction. The work will change the lanes to restrict movement in the intersection.

After it’s all done, traffic on Pinkie Road won’t be able to go straight across the intersection, and the only left turn allowed will be from westbound Ninth Avenue North to southbound Pinkie Road.

The intersection is about a kilometre away from what will be an exit from the west portion of the Regina Bypass, which prompted safety concerns from the provincial Ministry of Highways.

According to ministry spokesperson Steve Shaheen, an independent safety officer was hired to come in and check out the bypass in 2016, and he found the problem with the proximity of the intersection.

It’s too close to the bypass, so there’s a safety concern for people who come off of the bypass at highways speeds and could come up to a traffic backup at that intersection caused by drivers trying to turn.

The province decided something needed to be done, so it presented the problem to the City of Regina in September of 2016 and started negotiations on a solution. They jointly funded a study and eventually reached an agreement for the changes. The province will reimburse the city for the cost of the construction.

The province had already done the design for the bypass and started construction on the project when the problem was identified.

However, Shaheen said that even if the problem had been identified sooner, that section of the bypass couldn’t have been moved further west for three reasons: It would be too expensive; drivers would be less inclined to use it if it were further away from the city; and, there would be too many obstacles in the way.

Shaheen said if it had been moved slightly to the west, things like the Regina Wastewater Treatment Plant and the Condie Nature Reserve would be in the way. If it were moved past those, then the bypass would swing all the way out near Grand Coulee.

The City of Regina hasn’t said much about this, directing questions to the province. But in responding to questions on Facebook, the city wrote that because of intersection safety and feasibility, the province wouldn’t allow any restrictions to northbound traffic on the bypass that gets off and heads east on Ninth Avenue North.

“This meant no eastbound left turns, no traffic signals and no yield to enter a roundabout,” the city said on Facebook.

Drivers responding to the City of Regina’s Facebook post on the matter seem uniformly frustrated by the changes, with hundreds of comments.

Gerry Gartner wrote: “I take that road several times a day both going north and south, this morning in a five-minute time space, I counted over two dozen vehicles going north and south! I believe you need to rethink this.”

Other people suggested the changes would be extremely confusing and could cause more crashes, with others saying this will push traffic into the surrounding rural communities.

Teena Neugebauer said: “Clearly looking into the future for impact & possible issues is not a thing for the City.”

For the duration of the construction, starting 6 a.m. on Wednesday, traffic will be detoured onto Fairway Road and Sherwood Drive.

The construction is being done now so it’s complete in time for the Regina Bypass opening, which is expected before the end of October.