KITCHENER - Construction is set to start this year on an extension of River Road across Highway 8 and into an environmentally sensitive area, 40 years after the Region of Waterloo first began planning for it.

The need for a new east-west route to ease traffic congestion was first identified in 1979. But environmental concerns delayed the project and forced the region to rethink the route.

Under the original 1981 plan, the road would have crossed right through the middle of Hidden Valley, a natural enclave of forest, wetlands, rolling hills, streams and open fields that is home to many rare and unusual plant and animal species. The valley includes provincially significant wetlands and an environmentally sensitive area.

The River Road extension will build a four-lane, 60 km/hr road that runs 3.6 kilometres from Manitou Drive, uses existing road allowances to skirt around sensitive wetlands and woodlands, then crosses the highway to link up with King Street at River Road.

The original plan was for the extension to be built between 1995-2000, at a cost of $4.1 million. Under the current plan, the project will wrap up in 2024, and cost $72 million.

All those delays, and the extensive public consultation that went with them, led to a design that strikes a balance between the need to move traffic, maintain existing neighbourhoods, and address environmental concerns, said Jason Lane, a senior project manager with the region.

"The design that was approved absolutely was a product of the amount of collaboration," Lane said. "I think we've been successful in finding that balance."

The project is a major one that includes two bridges, four roundabouts and ramps on and off the highway.

A new east-west route is badly needed to divert through traffic from "critically overloaded" Fairway Road, one of the worst areas in the region for collisions. At rush hour, Fairway, Manitou, and sections of King Street become choked with traffic.

Buses are also regularly delayed by traffic on Fairway, which is a busy, unpleasant road for both cyclists and pedestrians.

"What we're trying to do is create a route for those that want to get across the city or get to Highway 8, without having to use Fairway Road," Lane said. Fairway will still be busy, but should serve mainly those who want to access its shops and services.

Finding a route has been challenging. During the many years of planning, environmental laws tightened, forcing planners to redo environmental studies to more stringent standards. The discovery of the rare Jefferson salamander on the site in 2007 further delayed the project, as scientists mapped the habitat of the endangered amphibian.

Hidden Valley is unique and special, said former city councillor Yvonne Fernandes.

It is criss-crossed with eskers formed by retreating glaciers. Its beech and maple woods and its wetlands shelter rare plants and animals. The area is home to fish, snapping turtles, milk snakes and 71 bird species, as well as a herd of white-tailed deer.

"I love that there's still eskers and ecohabitats that have been there for centuries," she said.

The area is a groundwater recharge area and contains several wells that the region relies on for drinking water.

The environmental assessment imposes strict requirements for monitoring and for reducing impacts on the environment, Lane said. But the project will cut down some trees, and the road is close to sensitive areas in a couple of spots. And the new road will mean there will be road salt.

"It's inevitable that a four-lane corridor of this type requires winter maintenance," Lane said. "Through the design, we are trying to minimize our requirement for that (salt)."

The new road will bring further pressures. It is expected to carry 25,000 vehicles a day, including heavy trucks.

The road will spur more development. Kitchener is working on a plan for future development along the route that could allow for retail, office and mixed uses.

Development will bring more hard surfaces, Fernandes said. "Those impervious surfaces are going to change the way water is going to run into that valley," she said. More development will mean more salt use on parking lots that could harm the water supply, she said.

Work on the project should start soon, as crews begin relocating utilities. The first phase of construction will bring the road from Manitou to Wabanaki and Hidden Valley Road, while the second phase will link to King Street.

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