Road Improvements for Northern Nova Scotia

TRANSPORTATION/PUBLIC WORKS--Road Improvements for Northern Nova Scotia

Residents and visitors in the northern area of the province can look forward to more road improvements.

Three contracts, worth more than $1.6 million, have recently been awarded for road work in Cumberland and Pictou counties.

"Improvements to our roads means safer travel and better access to goods and services for all Nova Scotians," said Ron Russell, Minister of Transportation and Public Works.

In Cumberland County, a contract was awarded for repaving about 6.5 kilometres of Trunk 2, from the Route 302 and Trunk 2 intersection, northerly towards Springhill. The contract, worth more than $1 million, was awarded to Chapman Bros. Construction. Work will be completed in summer 2005.

The second contract in Cumberland County is for repaving two sections of road. One section is Riverbend Drive, from Route 204 southwesterly. The other section is on Route 204, east of the Nappan Road and Route 204 intersection. The contract was awarded to Dexter Construction for $188,000. Work is expected to be completed by the end of October.

The contract for Pictou County is for repaving Granton Abercrombie Road, from the Trenton connector southerly to the New Glasgow town line, about two kilometres. The contract was awarded to S.W. Weeks Construction for $423,000. Work is expected to be completed by the end of October.

The Department of Transportation and Public Works highways division manages more than 23,000 kilometres of roads in Nova Scotia. It maintains 4,100 bridges and operates seven provincial ferries. Staff provide services from district offices located in Bridgewater, Bedford, Truro and Sydney.