Black Gold Drive Road Reconstruction
2020 Update: Frequently Asked Questions
Year 2 - Spring 2020: QEII West undergrounds and removals to commence mid-May. Culvert replacements at Fred John's Park Reservoir scheduled for mid-May. Read full update below.
Funding support: Provincial grant (MSI), federal gas tax fund
Timeline: 2019-2020 (two-year project)
Overview: As roads age, freeze-thaw cycles and the weight of traffic wear on their structure. Although Black Gold Drive may appear in good condition from the surface, the road structure beneath requires work. From 2019 through 2020, nearly 2.5 kms of Black Gold Drive from Grant MacEwan Boulevard to 50th Street will be excavated and reconstructed in phases to improve the road and proactively repair damages before they become larger safety concerns. This work will increase the overall lifespan of the road.
Year one of this two-year project will focus on widening the road to create areas for traffic detours when work begins on existing lanes in year two. Although widening is primarily to keep two-way traffic moving during construction, the increased width will be used to create left turning lanes at intersections to alleviate congestion.
Year two of this two-year project will focus on reconstruction of the old drive lanes. Work will commence on the North lane, West of the QEII underpass and proceed West towards Grant MacEwan Boulevard. This stretch will include curb, sidewalks, and the lane reconstruction. The South lane from the QEII underpass to 50th Street will follow, complete with multiway reconstruction. Expect two new culverts under Black Gold Drive at Fred John's Park Reservoir to replace the existing. To finish, concrete medians will follow road reconstruction and a final lift of asphalt is to be installed across the entire road.
Project Maps
Questions about this project?
Email: engineering@leduc.ca | Phone: 780-980-7107
Phasing
2019: work includes road widening exavation and removals, underground utilities, granular base, concrete curb, paving and landscape restoration in the following phases:
- Alton Drive to QEII overpass
- QEII overpass to 50 Street
- Grant MacEwan Boulevard to Alton Drive.
2020: reconstruction of existing road. Once complete, the road will be two lanes with median and the space created by the widening will be used to create left turning lanes and additional lanes at intersections (Alton Drive, William Bell and east of Grant MacEwan Boulevard) to allow traffic to queue and alleviate congestion along Black Gold Drive.
Traffic control
Construction has been planned to maintain two-way traffic where possible, sequencing the 2.5 km of road repairs into smaller phases. The initial phases of construction will focus on widening the road to create a third lane where traffic will be detoured when work begins on existing lanes.
Project Updates
*Updates provided on a regular basis
| Date | Status | Details |
| Apr. 29, 2021 | On-time | Landscaping restoration has begun and will continue through May. |
| Dec. 17, 2020 | On-time | All surfacing work is complete, including roads, curbs, gutters, sidewalks and multiway. All line painting, crosswalks and sign installations are complete. Culvert abandonment and fence installation are complete. Lighting relocations (by FORTIS) are also complete. Final landscaping restoration will be completed in the spring. |
| October 7, 2020 | On-time | All concrete walk is complete. Final asphalt trail tie-ins to be completed this week. Line painting is mostly complete and will finish this week. Permanent sign installation will begin in the next two weeks. Landscaping restoration is on hold until FORTIS finishes work in the area. Plugging and abandonment of the old culvert at Fred Johns Park Reservoir will occur when water flow can be reasonably managed and redirected through the new culverts. |
| September 30, 2020 | On-time | Paving of the top lift of asphalt is complete. Line painting has begun from 50th Street working west. The last remaining concrete walk section over the Fred Johns Reservoir culverts has commenced. All multiway is now paved with the exception of the Fred Johns Park sidewalk tie-ins, which will follow concrete. Landscaping restoration is on hold until FORTIS completes work in the area. The plugging and abandonment of the old culvert at the Fred Johns Park Reservoir will occur over the winter due to water volume issues during the spring/summer season. |
| September 24, 2020 | On-time | All asphalt foaming and base preparation is complete. Forming of the concrete median at Grant MacEwan has begun. The top lift of asphalt is scheduled for overnight installation between Sept. 25 - Oct. 4. Line painting will follow, and then FORTIS will complete their light pole installations. Landscape restoration will be completed in the spring. Plugging and abandonment of the old culvert at the Fred Johns Reservoir will occur over the winter due to water volume issues during the spring/summer season. |
| September 15, 2020 | On-time | All pulvarizing for the full-depth reclamation of the old lanes is complete. Foaming and compacting of the base has begun and is complete from 50th Street to just west of Fred Johns Park. All foaming is anticipated to be complete this week. Base lift paving of the south two lanes is complete between 50th Street and the QEII underpass. Paving of the base lift in all other areas will follow foaming beginning Friday. Installation of concrete medians at Grant MacEwan, and the final top lift of paving everywhere will follow. The plugging and abandonment of the old culvert at Fred Johns Reservoir will occur over the winter due to water volume issues in the spring/summer seasons. |
| September 1, 2020 | On-time | Reconstruction and paving is complete on the north 50th Street lanes, and the intersection is re-opened to westbound traffic from 50th Street southbound. Road construction of the temporary north detour at the culverts at Fred Johns Reservoir is complete and paving starts today. All curb replacement is complete, and all sidewalk and multiway sections are complete excepting the section over the culverts and a short stretch on the north side from Grant MacEwan to just west of Alton. Pulvarizing for the full depth reclamation of the old lanes has begun between 50th Street and the QEII, and Alton, moving east. Please expect to see crews jump between different sections to balance excess material to areas requiring fill. Foaming of the pulvarized base will begin next week, followed by asphalt work. Traffic lane configurations for back to school will be posted on the City's Facebook account (https://www.facebook.com/cityofleduc) this week. |
| August 11, 2020 | On-time | Asphalt paving is complete on the 50th Street widening to the south. Traffic has moved to these lanes while the north lanes are reconstructed. Weather pending, these lanes will be reopened by the end of the month. Landscaping between Highway 2 and 50th Street is mostly complete, aside from the intersection area. Paving of the south lanes over the culverts at the Fred Johns Reservoir is complete, and permanent road construction of the temporary north detour has commenced. Curb and sidewalk replacement is complete between Alexander Drive and Alton. Curb and sidewalk removals and base preparation is ongoing on the north side of Black Gold Drive from Alton to Grant MacEwan Drive, QEII to Crestview, and from the culverts at Fred Johns Park to Alexander Drive. Concrete install in these areas will begin next week. The full depth reclamation of the old asphalt lanes will commence in early September. |
| July 23, 2020 | On-time | Subgrade prep and base installation is complete at the 50th Street widening. Concrete curb and sidewalk install on this section is complete. Paving is scheduled for late next week. Paving of the multiway between Highway 2 and 50th Street is also complete. Landscaping will commence this week between Highway 2 and 50th Street. Pedestrian access will be diverted to the back lane adjacent to Black Gold Drive. Culvert installation and restoration at the Fred Johns reservoir is complete. Third party utility work is ongoing and reconstruction will begin in the coming weeks. Curb and sidewalk replacement is complete between Alexander Drive and Alton. Curb and sidewalk removals and base preparation is ongoing on the north side of Black Gold Drive from Alton to Grant MacEwan Drive. Base installation has commenced and is anticipated to be complete in the next two weeks. Concrete curb and sidewalk work will begin next week. Removals and base prep has commenced between Alton and William Bell Drive. Multiple detours for both motorists and pedestrians are in place as this work continues. Removals, base prep and granular has also begun on the north side of Black Gold Drive from Highway 2 to Fred Johns Park. |
| July 7, 2020 | On-time | Subgrade prep and base installation is complete at the 50th Street widening. Concrete curb work on this section will commence this week pending weather. Paving of the 50th Street tie-in, and potentially the multiway from 50th St to Hwy 2 is planned for late next week. Culvert installation at the Fred Johns Reservoir is complete with the restoration work to be completed this week. Third party utility work will follow in this area before road reconstruction can begin. Curb and sidewalk removals and base preparation have been completed on the North side of Black Gold Drive from Alexander Drive to Alton Drive. Concrete curb and sidewalk work will commence next week. Removals and base prep has commenced between Alton Drive and William Bell Drive. Multiple detours for both motorists and pedestrians are in place as this work continues. |
| June 30, 2020 | On-time |
Curb and sidewalk removals have begun on the North side of Black Gold Drive from Alexander Drive to Alton Drive. Crews will continue West this week with subgrade prep and granular installation anticipated for next week; concrete to follow. Multiple detours for both motorists and pedestrians are in place as this work continues. Landscaping is complete for the South boulevard from Grant MacEwan to the Hwy 2 overpass, and North boulevard from Hwy 2 to 50th Street. Due to saturated base and with weather conditions, multiway paving between Hwy 2 and 50 Street has been delayed and is temporarily reopened for pedestrian traffic. Instead, crews began work on road reconstruction in this area, with curb removals and replacement complete in this section. Subgrade prep and base installation at the 50 Street widening is complete. Concrete curb installation is to begin this week with paving to follow, weather permitting. Culvert installation at the Fred John's reservoir is projected to be finished next week. Third party utility work will follow in this area before road reconstruction can restart. |
| June 10, 2020 | On-time | Landscaping of the South boulevard from Grant MacEwan to Fred Johns Park is complete. Traffic diverstions are in place to divert both lanes onto the newly constructed North lanes between Hwy 2 and 50th Street. Multiway removals, subgrade prep, and granular installation in this section are complete and paving will be completed next week. Installation of the culverts adjacent to Black Gold Drive has commenced with the South half of both completed. Traffic will be flipped onto the temp road currently under construction in this area so that culvert construction can continue on the North next week. |
| May 25, 2020 | On-time | Landsaping of the South boulevard between Grant MacEwan Blvd and Eileen Faller Park is complete. Culvert installation at Fred Johns Park will commence this week. Traffic diverstions are in place to divert both lanes onto the newly constructed North lanes between Hwy 2 and 50th Street. Multiway removals in this section are complete and reconstruction will commence this week. |
| May 13, 2020 | On-time | Landscaping of the boulevards along the newly widened South lanes has commenced at Grant MacEwan Blvd and is continuing towards Hwy 2. Traffic will be diverted to the North lanes between Hwy 2 and 50th Street this week as reconstruction of the multiway in this section commences. Reconstruction of the lanes will follow. |
| Mid-May | Scheduled | QEII West undergrounds and removals to commence mid-May. Culvert replacements at Fred John's Park Reservoir scheduled for mid-May. |
| Year 2: 2020 | ||
| Nov. 8, 2019 | On Time | Final update for 2019 construction: 50th St. tie in curb paving is completed. Toboggan hill landscaping completed. Trail reconstruction from the toboggan hill to the QEII paving is complete. Storm line connection tie-ins across the old section of the road are complete. Delineator installation for winter lane configurations is ongoing. Westbound traffic will be the far North lane and Eastbound traffic the far South lane. Reconstruction of the old lanes is scheduled to commence in the 2020 construction season. |
| Oct. 15, 2019 | In Progress | 50th St. tie in curb paving deferred to this week. Fencing is complete and landscaping is being finalized at Aileen Faller park. Trail reconstruction from the toboggan hill to the QEII overpass to be paved this week, weather dependent. Sidewalk from William Bell Dr. to Alton Dr. is complete. Storm line and FORTIS light standard replacement is ongoing. Some landscape restoration work has begun. |
| Sept. 30, 2019 | In Progress | 50th St. tie in curb paving to be completed this week. Landscaping of the toboggan hill continues, as does multiway reconstruction. Storm line connections and FORTIS light standard installation from Grant MacEwan Blvd. to Aileen Faller park will begin later in the week. Landscape restoration between the QEII overpass and 50th St. will begin this week. |
| Sept. 20, 2019 | In Progress | 50th St. curb is complete, gravel and paging to follow. Landscaping on the toboggan hill continues, and multiway reconstruction from the hill to QEII overpass has started. Storm line connetions and FORTIS light standard installation from Grant MacEwan Blvd. to Aileen Faller park is scheduled for early October, with landscaping to follow. |
| Sept. 10, 2019 | In Progress | Curbing and installation for all widened areas is complete, with the exception of the final tie-in near 50th St - this work is scheduled for later this week, weather permitting. Temporary line painting and traffic accomodations are set up until reconstruction is completed in 2020. Landscaping on the toboggan hill continues, with tree planting scheduled for next week. Landscape restoration adjacent to the widened road will happen in the coming weeks to accomodate FORTIS light standard replacements. |
| Aug. 23, 2019 | In Progress | Curb installation from Aileen Faller parking lot to Grant MacEwan Blvd is complete and the stretch is being prepped for paving to happen in the coming week. Intermitten closures are happening on Alton Dr. and William Bell as the area is being finalized. Fencing along Aileen Faller hill has begun. Curb installation from the QEII overpass to the Golf Course is complete and being prepared for paving in the coming week. Paving east of QEII overpass to 50 St. is complete and excavation and base preparation for the final tie-in section is ongoing. After road widening is complete, crews will move to working on multiway replacement and landscape restoration. |
| Aug. 19, 2019 | In Progress | Grant MacEwan Blvd. to west of Alton Dr. is paved. Pavement stabilization is happening west of Alton Dr. with concrete curb and paving scheduled for next week. Curb from Alton Dr. to Aileen Faller park was delayed due to weather, but is rescheduled for this week, paving included. Paving is complete east of Aileen Faller Park to the golf course, as is multiway around the toboggan hill. Landscaping at the hill has been delayed due to weather, but is expected to start next week. Curb install east of the golf course towards QEII overpass is scheduled for this week, paving will happen next week. Paving east of QEII overpass to 50th St. is complete. Once all widened areas are paved, crews will continue landscaping and replacing multiway. |
| Aug. 6, 2019 | In Progress | Underground service work is complete in all widened areas and curb has been installed from Grant MacEwan Blvd. to west of Alton Dr and east of the QEII overpass. Alton Dr. to Aileen Faller park curb installation will begin later this week. Gravel base from the golf course to east of Aileen Faller Park is complete with curb installation scheduled to begin this week. Landscaping of the toboggan hill has started. Crews will be out next week to begin paving in all areas where curb has been installed. |
| July 26, 2019 | In Progress | Underground service work for widened areas is complete and the intersection at William Bell Dr. has been graveled and re-opened. Road between William Bell Dr. and Alton Dr. is being prepared for gravel, while Alton Dr. to Aileen Faller parking lot is ready for gravel. Road base preparation and stabilization takes place next week between Aileen Faller parking lot and the QEII overpass, and gravel preparation is complete from the overpass half way to 50th St. with cement stabilization ongoing.Concrete work will continue next week in all road sections where garvel preparation. is complete. |
| July 17, 2019 | In Progress | South road widening between Alton Dr. and QEII overpass continues, with half of the length now paved. Road preparation between Aileen Faller parking lot and ALton Dr. is complete and the parking lot remains closed. South road widening between Alton Dr. and Grant MacEwan Blvd. continues. Gravel base has been installed at William Bell Dr. and the the intersection will re-open shortly. Gravel based has also been installed on the west portion of the road between the QEII overpass and 50th St. |
| July 7, 2019 | In Progress | A portion of widened south road between Alton Dr. and QEII overpass has been paved and additional concrete work will continue in the area this week. Excavation on the north side of the road is complete between QEII and 50th St., and water line relocation and sanitary manholes replacements along the stretch are scheduled for this week prior to subgrade preparation. Excavation for south road widening between Alton Dr. and Grant MacEwan Blvd. has begun, including light pole removals and replacements. |
| June 28, 2019 | In Progress | Road widening continues and concrete curb has been installed along half the length of Alton Dr. and QEII overpass, paving is scheduled for next week. Underground services work continues on the remaining half, including intermitten lane closures. Road excavation on the north between QEII and 50th St. in complete, and manhole replacements and waterline relocation will take place next week. South road widening between Alton Dr. and Grant MacEwan Blvd. is scheduled for next week, and will require intersection closure at William Bell Dr. The parking lot at Aileen Faller park will also be closed during this time. Fortis' light poles have been relocated which results in no street lighting for roughly one week. |
| June 24, 2019 | In Progress | Road widening between Alton Dr and QEII overpass continues. Cement stabilization is complete for a portion of this length and crews have begun installing the granular base and underground utility work continues, requiring intermittent lane closures. Excavations and removals for widening have moved on to the portion of the road between QEII and 50th St. Manhole replacements and water line relocations in the area begin this week. FORTIS is replacing light poles between Alton Dr and Grant MacEwan Boulevard, there will be no street lighting for approximately one week during the transition. |
| June 17, 2019 | In Progress | Road widening between Alton Dr and QEII overpass continues, with subrgade preparation and cement stabilization beginning this week resulting in intermittent lane closures next week. FORTIS has completed light standard relocations between QEII and 50 St., excavation and removals for widening will begin in the area next week. |
| June 6, 2019 | In Progress | Widening to the south has begun between Alton Dr. and QEII overpass with excavation/ removals completed this week. Reshaping of the Aileen Faller Park toboggan hill has started. FORTIS is intalling new light standards between QEII and 50 St. in preparation for widening. Next week, subgrade preparation and light standard work will continue. |
| -- | Scheduled | -- |