Province releases Liverpool Street ramp report
Engineer finds better lighting, signage insufficient to improve safety at exit from highway onto residential street, reconfiguring it would require extra redesign of Route 8 connection
A safety study commissioned on the Vanier Highway off-ramp into a Skyline Acres residential neighbourhood found closing the ramp was the best option and wouldn’t affect traffic flow in the area.
In the wake of an announcement Feb. 29, the provincial Department of Transportation and Infrastructure had a crew at work Monday to close the exit ramp from Route 7 onto Liverpool Street.
The announcement and the quick turnaround to do the work to shut off the exit drew criticisms from residents of the Skyline Acres neighbourhood, Fredericton South MLA and Green Party Leader David Coon, and Ward 8 city counsellor and deputy mayor Greg Ericson.
The department cited a study it commissioned on the safety of the exit, performed by Englobe, stating it said the best course of action to ensure safety at the unusual highway exit was to eliminate it.
However, Coon and Ericson said Monday they hadn’t seen the report, and the Fredericton Independent’s request for a copy of the report that day went unanswered - until Thursday.