Century Road Redesignation Diverting Some Heavy Truck Traffic

By David Brown, Ward 21 Councillor

As we head into what I hope is going to be a warm and enjoyable summer for our ward, I thought it would be appropriate to reflect on my past 17 months in office and provide an update.

Over the past year and a half, our communities have experienced a fair number of successes.

For the village of Manotick, perhaps one of the largest wins has been the redesignation of Century Road from Manotick Main to First Line as part of the truck route. This change has diverted some of the heavy truck traffic away from driving through the heart of the village.

When I came to office, the City would not even consider adding Century Road to the truck network, and after many meetings and discussions, we were able to accomplish this significant first step toward reducing truck traffic in the village. We are now working with the Traffic Services staff on removing Manotick Main Street from Century Road to Bridge Street from the truck route.

I have been working on securing the funding for a truck route study. This is a necessary review that will examine the impacts of heavy trucking not only in Manotick but will look at the other rural villages who suffer from an extraordinary amount of trucks running through their communities. This is a priority for me because reducing the volume of trucks from Manotick requires a truck route study.

Although progress is frustratingly slow, if it were easy to reduce the number of trucks in Manotick, one of my predecessors would have surely done so. Consider that none of these accomplishments or efforts had been seriously undertaken from amalgamation to now. This proves that a determined community can have a positive impact with the support of their elected official.

This year a speed camera will be installed on Bridge Street in front of Manotick Public School. This will be the single most significant road safety improvement that Manotick has seen on Bridge Street. This camera will help slow traffic on Bridge Street, helping our community combat the rampant speeding through a school zone.

Free Wi-Fi has been installed in the Manotick Arena and the new Centennial Skate Park will open soon. This has been a tremendous effort between the Manotick Community Parks & Recreation Association, the City, Province, Federal Government and private donors.

Along with minor capital works in the village, Manotick will start to see significant investment into its infrastructure over the next few years. Roundabouts at Main and Bridgeport, and Rideau Valley Drive at Barnsdale, the resurfacing of Manotick Main, Bridge Street, Bankfield, and more will all be moving forward within the next few years. This year Rideau Valley Drive from Bankfield to Barnsdale will be resurfaced.

I have been working diligently to secure the funding required to construct a sidewalk from Bridgeport to Eastman and to build a pedestrian crosswalk from Eastman to Mahogany Harbour. These needed pedestrian links will ensure that the village is walkable and accessible to all members of the community.

Closing our infrastructure deficit has been a top priority of mine, and I am grateful to the Mayor and my Council colleagues who share in this priority. As a result, our communities are now receiving the infrastructure investments that they so desperately need and deserve. With ten of millions of dollars of expected investment over the next two years, I am excited to see our community receive much needed improvements.

Though progress is being made, I am aware that there’s much more left to do.

The single greatest challenge is that I am only one voice at City Hall. Prior to amalgamation, Rideau Township had five dedicated individuals representing its interests. Our ward now covers more than 720 square kilometers of area including Rideau, the former Goulbourn Township and the rural portion of the City of Nepean. As we have grown, our rural voice has been diminished.

The Rural Summit that many residents participated in last month will help redirect some attention back to the needs of rural Ottawa. This fall, we will see the results of the summit, which I have confidence will set rural Ottawa on a better track for the future.

As always, I’m here to help in anyway I can.

See you at Dickinson Days!