News Online: Tuesday traffic nightmare in Edmonton area

Published online at GlobalTVEdmonton.com on March 22, 2011.


Linda Hoang, Global News: Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Tuesday traffic nightmare in Edmonton area

Many drivers experienced a traffic nightmare in and around the Edmonton area Tuesday morning that included rollovers, ditched and spun-out vehicles, and problems caused by another water main break.

Overnight sleet mixed with windy conditions resulted in slick road conditions on Highway 2.

Snow and freezing rain caused cars and trucks to roll over or spin into ditches while a “spun around” semi-trailer near the Edmonton International Airport made traffic flow even worse during rush hour.

Drivers had limited visibility due to blowing snow and advisories had been put into effect south along that highway.

A water main break in the city’s west end also contributed to traffic headaches for drivers as motorists had to manouever around a miniature lake in the area of 111 Avenue and 140 Street.

Epcor crews were on hand working on shutting off valves in the area while graders worked on pushing the water further down the street.

The water main break has reduced traffic in that area down to one lane in each direction while crews continue to work on fixing the problem.

But while it may seem like there’s been a lot of breaks lately, we’re actually seeing about 10 less a month than in previous years.

“We’ve significantly reduced it through a cast iron main replacement program we spend between $10 to $20 million a year replacing the cast iron mains,” said Tim Leriche with Epcor.

“We plan to accelerate that going forward to match a city neighbourhood incentive program.”

Meanwhile potholes continue to cause problems for local motorists.

The city says this year’s pothole season is going to be bad, with crews expected to fill up to 30,000 more potholes than last year’s average number.

With files from Shane Jones

Click here to read the article on the Global Edmonton website.

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