NANAIMO — One more round of night work and a new traffic signal pattern will be active at a Parkway intersection.
Following work earlier this month to create a protected left‑turn lane from Jingle Pot Rd. to northbound Hwy. 19, along with two through lanes toward Mostar Rd., crews will return April 7 for overnight work to complete installation and activate a new traffic pattern.
A statement to NanaimoNewsNOW from the Ministry of Transportation and Transit said installation of the dedicated left-turn lane means traffic crossing the highway will no longer happen in two phases, but rather simultaneously.
“By adding a dedicated left turn lane from Jingle Pot Rd. onto Hwy. 19, we can remove the split phase. This lets left-turning vehicles from both Mostar Rd. and Jingle Pot Rd. go at the same time, before stopping them and allowing all straight-through traffic to move.”
The Ministry anticipates the move will reduce traffic backups at the intersection during peak times.
Work on April 7 will also include adjusting signal timing at the intersection to improve overall traffic flow.
According to the ministry, the cost of the project is approximately $250,000.
It comes after a 2021 Nanaimo Parkway and Nanoose Bay Corridor study, which recommended the intersection be converted from signal-controlled to an interchange style.
Then-B.C. Conservative candidate John Rustad made a vague campaign promise of “grade separation” for the Nanaimo Parkway ahead of the 2024 election, providing no further details despite multiple requests.
No major capital projects speak to the Hwy. 19 or Nanaimo Parkway sections of highway in the recent B.C. government budget, which includes the Ministry’s service plan through the 2028/29 year.
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