FAQs

Recent monitoring by the City has shown movement within the south bank of the Assiniboine River between Assiniboine Park and Doncaster Street. Riverbank movement damaged the walk bike path along Wellington Crescent in 2017, and further movements could damage the road and underground utilities.

The City owns over 100 km of riverbank on the Red and Assiniboine rivers, and faces multiple competing priorities when it comes to riverbank stabilization projects. These types of projects are prioritized based on the risk to public land and infrastructure, and are undertaken as part of a long-range plan with consideration to available funds.

Repairs to the walk bike path are not feasible without undertaking riverbank stabilization improvements first.

Riverbank work is expected to begin in the winter of 2020/21 and will take approximately 10 weeks, depending on the design selected and subject to Council approval of the project and funding. Construction on the street and path, landscaping and other utility work along Wellington Crescent is expected to occur in 2021.

There may be some noise associated with the stabilization portion of the work; however, the project team will be taking noise into consideration when planning the construction activities and schedule. The City will work with residents to ensure construction impacts are mitigated as much as possible.

A traffic management plan will be developed to minimize traffic impacts in the area during construction. A notice will be delivered to residents prior to the start of construction outlining any changes in access to local streets and paths. The City will work with residents to ensure construction impacts are mitigated as much as possible.

The paved walk bike path has been closed for safety reasons since July 2017 when the riverbank failed. A temporary gravel path was installed to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists during the closure. The temporary path will be left in place or a detour will be provided during construction until repairs on the paved path are complete.

A Class 3 estimate (expected level of accuracy of -20% to +30%) of $9.65 million was developed for the project. The estimate will be updated after each design phase.

An aquatic habitat assessment was conducted and the aquatic aspects of the project must receive approval from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) before construction begins. The City expects to submit a plan to the DFO for approval in July, 2020. The plan will include the recommended riverbank stabilization methods and measures to mitigate impacts to fish and fish habitat. The non-aquatic aspects of the project are not part of the DFO approval, including the Wellington Crescent realignment, potential changes to vehicular traffic operations, and the walk bike path enhancements. The project team will continue to evaluate these non-aquatic aspects of the project.

Construction of riverbank stabilization features (such as shear keys) will require some tree removals along those areas of the riverbank. Replacement trees will be planted to restore the riparian forest in these areas once the stabilization work is complete.  Realignment of Wellington Crescent will require removal of some individual trees along the boulevard.  The recommended design map shows trees that are expected to be saved (in green) and those that are expected to be removed (in red). The loss of significant, high-value boulevard trees along Wellington Crescent has been minimized as much as possible. The boulevard landscaping plan will include new plantings, with the goal of maintaining the current park-like character of the area.

The recommended design shows Wellington Crescent shifting to the south at the intersection of Wellington Crescent at Doncaster Street (near Fulham Avenue). Because the intersection of Wellington Crescent and Doncaster Street is shifting south, there is not enough room remaining to safely connect Fulham Avenue to Doncaster Street, while continuing to maintain all turning movements. To address this, the City is proposing to change Fulham Avenue into an eastbound one-way from Doncaster Street to Frank Street, accessible from northbound Doncaster Street only. On street parking would be available on the north side of Fulham Avenue for the one block.

Closing parts of Wellington Crescent to vehicles was raised at stakeholder meetings as a possible solution warranting further investigation. The City conducted a traffic study to better understand the impacts of a partial closure.

The study used data collected on-site and through previous traffic counts to provide an understanding of the existing conditions and traffic forecasts to 2029. The study also forecasted the performance of five conceptual scenarios, where Wellington Crescent was either fully or partially closed. Each scenario considered:

• Impacts to vehicular traffic;
• Access to properties; and
• Municipal operations (refuse collection, emergency access).

Overall the traffic study found that:

• The existing road network operates well, supporting both local and through traffic movements.
• In every closure scenario, existing at-risk infrastructure would still require riverbank protection of outfalls, roadway segments, pathways, and surface drain pipes.
• The closure scenarios do not offer any project cost savings, as riverbank stabilization would still be required.
• The closure scenarios indicate that traffic will increase on neighbouring streets beyond their intended capacity.

For specific results from each closure scenario, please view the June 1, 2020 presentation in the Document Library.