INVERNESS COUNTY: The deputy premier says some of his constituents have felt forgotten at times when trying to deal with or even get answers on local roads.
In a phone interview, Allan MacMaster, who is also the MLA for Inverness, highlighted numerous paving projects happening throughout the riding that will make commuter’s drives that much smoother.
Speaking on Route 19, Mabou is set to see seven kilometres of paving from the bridge in Mabou to the Blackstone Road be completed this construction season.
“The company that won the bid is Northern Construction, they will decide when they will actually do it; we give them that flexibility,” MacMaster told The Reporter. “And this will be a nice project because Mabou is definitely a destination community and Route 19 is one of the busiest routes on Cape Breton Island and we need to keep it in good condition.”
Highlighting the fact Route 19 connects many of the communities in Inverness County, the MLA explained while the construction of divided highways are essential, maintenance of local roads are just as important.
“The Marble Mountain Road is in dire need of being paved, it’s in really bad shape; it should have been paved long ago,” MacMaster said. “This section in Mabou is not near the condition that we see in Marble Mountain, but this section receives an awful lot more traffic.”
A three kilometre section of Route 19 at Strathlorne is also expected to finish this construction season, now that local water and sewer infrastructure work has been completed. The local MLA suggested the next section on Route 19 being looked at is between Port Hood and Mabou.
“I’d say the big thing with the roads in this province is there are so many freeze and thaws cycles, even in the run of a day, that it’s hard on the roads, which is why we have weight restrictions on some roads in the spring time,” MacMaster said. “And that’s what makes having good roads a bit more of a challenge that you would see in other places on the continent.”
Additionally, a tender for 3.3 kilometres of paving has also been awarded to Northern Construction for work to start along Route 219 in Dunvegan.
MacMaster explained Route 219 is a coastal drive with some beautiful scenes along the route.
“There are sections that are pretty rough, and we are starting to look to pick away at the roughest sections of the route in getting them re-paved,” he said. “Paving will continue over the next few years to see this road completed.”
Two local gravel roads are planned for reconstruction – the Northeast Mabou Road will see 4.2 kilometres and the Foot Cape Road will see 4.1 kilometres of work completed respectfully.
“Reconstructing gravel roads is just that,” MacMaster said. “Many of these roads need a complete overhaul: ditching, brush cutting and a brand new road base.”
The provincial government’s Gravel Road Reconstruction Program capitalizes significant road work on local gravel roads. Previous programs did not allow the level of investment that were needed on some roads that were getting old and worn out.
“Local roads are a priority for this government,” MacMaster said. “Because we know they are a priority for the people who live and visit here.”