Westchester lane closures to last six weeks
Lane closures that turned Westchester Avenue into a parking lot during morning rush hour this week will be re-scheduled to alleviate traffic congestion.
Niagara Region said they’ve asked the contractor rebuilding traffic signals at the intersection of Westchester and Geneva Street to not close lanes before 9 a.m. or after 4 p.m. daily.
Regional spokesperson Andrew Korchok said they’ve also made changes to the timing of the traffic signals to try and handle increased traffic more efficiently.
The closures at the intersection earlier in the week meant traffic heading towards the downtown on Westchester Avenue, coming off the Hwy 406 ramps and trying to turn right on Geneva Street, had to merge into a single lane.
The signal rebuild is expected to take about six weeks. It’s being done prior to Ministry of Transportation rehabilitation work on the Geneva Street bridge over Hwy 406 beginning May 1. The signals have to be completed before the MTO begins its work.
Regional manager of traffic operations, Howard Murray, explained in an email that the traffic signal at the intersection was last rebuilt over 20 years ago and the underground portion was beginning to fail.
It was due for a replacement, as the average life of a traffic signal is 15 to 20 years.
The region replaced the electrical power supply to the signal last year. The new signal system will include accessibility features for pedestrians such as audible pedestrian buttons, a countdown clock and tactile walking indicators.
It will also have a battery backup in the event of a power outage.