The $80.1-million first phase of the Maley Drive extension opened No. 29 at 2 p.m.
This phase of the project connects Lasalle Boulevard west to the Falconbridge Highway. The cost of the phase was shared by the municipal, provincial and federal governments.
Mayor Brian Bigger called the extension a "critical infrastructure asset" in a news release today.
“The Maley Drive Extension Project is a critical infrastructure asset and demonstrates the value of building safe and efficient roads that will get our residents and economy moving," Bigger said.
The first phase of the project includes a new four-lane road from Lasalle to Lansing Avenue; a new interchange on Notre Dame Avenue, north Lasalle, to access the new road; widening Notre Dame to six lanes north of the improved area; roundabouts at Collège Boréal (now open), Barrydowne Road and Lansing Avenue; and rebuilding Maley Drive between Lansing and Falconbridge Highway.
Once the first two phases are completed, the extension is expectedc to remove some 3,000 vehicles a day from Lasalle near Falconbridge Highway, up to 10,000 per day from Lasalle east of Notre Dame Avenue, and between 2,000 and 4,000 a day from the Kingsway.
"It will also reroute an estimated 1,000 to 1,500 heavy mining trucks per day from the Kingsway, Lasalle Boulevard, and MR 80 and MR 15 corridors for improved traffic safety, eased congestion and extended lifespan of these roadways," the city said.
In order to fully open the road, the city said, short, ten-minute closures of sections are required to ensure traffic safety.
Due to the arrival of winter weather and scheduled construction activity next spring, an official grand opening of Phase One of the Maley Drive Extension will take place in summer 2020.
For more information on the project, visit www.greatersudbury.ca/maleydrive.
