Smoother and safer roads – just in time for winter

As winter weather arrives, it often signals a halt to much of the annual road upgrades in construction around most of Greater Sudbury.  But with the changing seasons, Mayor Brian Bigger wants to ensure credit is given where credit is due.

“During the last election I heard loud and clear that roads were the number one priority of residents in our City,” said Mayor Bigger. “Council followed that direction and today I wanted to give credit to our hard-working staff, road crews and contractors who have been working hard to improve our roads for drivers, commuters and cyclists in Greater Sudbury.”

In 2019, the City of Greater Sudbury invested more than $80 million in capital roads construction projects, a record amount of money in the improvement of roads. 

Those projects and upgrades include:

• Resurfacing on Barry Downe Road, the Kingsway and Regent Street
   
• Maley Drive Extension
   
• Widening of MR35
   
• Dominion Drive

Also, as the snow is now beginning to fly – I wanted to take the time to share our plans for taking care of plowing, cleaning and maintaining our roads this winter.

We’re responsible for maintaining 3650 lane kilometers of roads, 425 kilometers of sidewalks and approximately 500 bus stops clear and 5000+ fire hydrants. In recent years, we have been seeing significant snowfalls and to date, we received 8.6 feet of snow in 2019 versus the 30 year average of 5.4 feet. Last winter, the City also applied approximately 80,000 MT of winter sand and 25,000 MT of salt.

In order to provide more efficient services, the City has hired an additional 6 new employees to deliver things like snow removal on a 7 day schedule compared to the previous 5 day schedule. This means less reliance on contractors, less need for overtime and greater flexibility in delivering emergency road maintenance.

 “I want to thank everyone for the patience during construction season as we worked to make these improvements in our community as well as for their input when it comes to how we navigate and get around Greater Sudbury,” Mayor Bigger reiterated. “I also am looking forward to delivering more efficient snow removal service this year. Last winter we had exceptional amounts of snow so we’ve changed our approach on how we’ll be tackling plowing and making sure our roads are safe for cars, buses and anyone who needs to travel this winter.”

For more information, simply visit: https://www.greatersudbury.ca/live/transportation-parking-and-roads/

Mayor Brian Bigger
City of Greater Sudbury

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Media contact: 
Melissa Zanette
Office of the Mayor
City of Greater Sudbury
Phone: 705-674-4455 ext. 2521
E-mail: melissa.zanette@greatersudbury.ca