People traveling to and from downtown Halifax should expect increased delays as work on the Cogswell Area project enters a new phase, according to the Halifax Regional Municipality.

Barrington Street will be reduced to one lane in both directions approaching Nora Bernard Street until at least Oct. 28, according to a municipal planner.

“While this work is ongoing, we have been very careful to maintain as many two lanes in each direction as possible,” said Elora Wilkinson, project manager. “This is one of our first… compressions.”

The lane reductions this week will allow crews to build a section of the roundabout connecting Barrington Street, she said. Wilkinson said the roundabout is expected to be open by late October or early November.

“Expect delays, plan your route accordingly as we will likely see a little more congestion,” she said.

This is the first of several phases of reopening Barrington Street by mid-December, she said.

Once traffic clears the roundabout, crews will move to an area on Upper Water Street in front of the municipal wastewater treatment plant before starting further work on Barrington Street near Cogswell and Dukes streets, Wilkinson said.

“This means we can bring transit back to their main space in front of Scotia Square,” Wilkinson said.

Late or stuck in traffic

Continued construction in the Cogswell area and detoured bus routes have become a headache for some commuters.

“I’m either 10 to 15 minutes late almost every day because of traffic,” said Michelle Falle, who takes the bus to work on Upper Water Street from her home in north Halifax.

What used to take 10 minutes to travel now takes up to 30 minutes, Falle said. She said not only are buses late due to traffic congestion, but they are also overcrowded.

“A lot of people, I think, are as upset as I am,” she said.

Michelle Falle says her job has been significantly impacted by construction in the Cogswell area. (Paul Poirier/CBC)

Falle said she understands the recent work in the Cogswell area could worsen traffic congestion, so she will try to leave early but can’t do anything about the buses being late.

The municipality is three years into the four-year project, which is expected to be completed by December 2025.

“It’s been a tough four years and we really appreciate the public’s patience with us as we do, you know, construction is just at scale, there’s always a little bit of unrest,” Wilkinson said.

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