Full assessment of causeway being requested
Municipality of Barrington wants province to look at link that connects Cape Sable Island to the mainland
The Municipality of Barrington is calling for a full assessment of the Cape Sable Island Causeway.
Municipal council has written the provincial minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal, Lloyd Hines, urging his Department to complete a full assessment of the link that connects Cape Sable Island to the mainland.
In 2018, the department performed a geotechnical assessment of the Causeway which concluded that it was sound and in good shape.
“Unfortunately, since that time, the condition of the causeway has deteriorated considerably,” says the municipality in a press release.
“Due to the population on Cape Sable Island and the inability to access its residents if the causeway were to close, its rapidly deteriorating condition is concerning to us,” said Warden Eddie Nickerson.
This is not the first time the Municipality has called on the Provincial and Federal governments to assess the causeway and develop a plan for its inevitable repair or replacement.
Since 2002, the municipality has been corresponding with both levels of government to emphasize the importance of this vital piece of transportation infrastructure and the need for proper planning.
The municipality hopes that in this instance, the department will work with the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, whose minister is Bernadette Jordan, MP for South Shore-St. Margaret’s, to remediate the issue and clearly communicate any findings and intentions.
“The municipality recognizes the complexity of assessing, reviewing and deciding to substantially repair or replace such a large piece of infrastructure, but that speaks to the importance of planning ahead to avoid a potential disaster.”
The causeway was officially opened on Aug. 5, 1949. Approximately 7,280 vehicles travel over the causeway daily. Cape Sable Island is home to about 3,000 residents, seven commercial fishing ports for hundreds of fishing vessels, as well as numerous other commercial enterprises in the fishing industry such as processing plants and boatbuilding facilities.
In 2018, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure drilled three bore holes for testing the structural integrity of the Cape Sable Island Causeway. Two of the bore holes went all the way to solid bedrock, which is approximately 14 metres (around 50 feet) below asphalt.
Dips in the Cape Sable Island Causeway road surface is what prompted that report. The migration of finer building materials during construction of the causeway is the explanation for cause, according to the report.
The structural integrity of the causeway is not the only concern for the Municipality of Barrington. The ever-growing sand spit on the North East Point Beach is also worrisome. The sand spit was non-existent prior to the construction of the causeway.