Smooth sailing for drivers

Fredericton's first hours of a one-bridge summer appeared to go without a hitch Monday, but officials say this morning's commute will be the true test of whether the planning has paid off.

[IMG]http://harvest.canadaeast.com/image.php?id=534252&size=265x0[/IMG]
[IMG]http://harvest.canadaeast.com/image.php?id=534251&size=265x0[/IMG]

Just hours after the Princess Margaret Bridge was closed to traffic for the beginning of five weeks of refurbishment work, the end-of-day drive home was without incident.

Traffic appeared to be lighter than normal as drivers got their first taste of what the closure of one of the two vehicle bridges spanning the St. John River will mean.

It seemed many commuters heeded the city's advice and opted to bike, carpool, or finish work early to avoid contributing to traffic congestion.

City officials say they will be closely monitoring traffic again this morning.

"I just hope they made alternate plans because (this) morning will be the real test," said Darren Charters, traffic engineer for the city.

Afternoon peak traffic is usually spread over a two-hour period, he said, while the morning rush is concentrated between 7:30-8:30 a.m.

As of 6:30 p.m. Monday, police, fire and transit officials had reported no incidents tied to the Princess Margaret Bridge closure.

"It seems the public heeded our warnings; the traffic was light this evening. We're cautiously optimistic people have made use of the alternate commuting options offered to them," said city spokesman Wayne Knorr.

But Knorr said people shouldn't be lulled into a false sense of security. He said there could be problems in coming weeks if people fall into their old habits.

Traffic engineers are forecastiing an almost 50 per cent increase in the number of vehicles using the Westmorland Street Bridge every day now that the Princess Margaret Bridge has been closed.

An average of 2,800 vehicles cross the Westmorland Street Bridge every hour during peak periods. That's expected to increase to 4,000 vehicles an hour until Aug. 8. Officials originally planned to close the bridge in mid-June, but contractor SNC-Lavalin said it could complete the work over a shorter period.

"Two weeks makes a big difference," Knorr said. "This is a prime vacation week, the week after Canada Day.

"A closure on June 19 would have been different. School would not have been out.''

The bridge closure is necessary so the 53-year-old span can be refurbished.

The work will involve cutting out sections of deck for replacement.

"There are going to be massive gaps in the bridge. We're replacing it with new pre-fab components," said Denis Lachapelle, the Department of Transportation's manager for the project.

The work will see the structure upgraded to handle heavier loads than it was intended to carry.

The park-and-ride bus service between Brookside Mall and downtown Fredericton had 14 riders Monday morning.

"That's a fairly positive sign on a morning when they didn't have to be (using the service)," Knorr said.

Commuters appeared to be so intent on following the advice of city officials, that in the end, the only tie-up of note was on the information superhighway.

"The only traffic problem seems to have been on the webcam," Knorr said.

Many commuters who took to the City of Fredericton website to get a view of webcams on the bridge were getting error messages instead of pictures of the bridge.

"Our IT division is looking into that," Knorr said.