Depending on who you talk to, there聽are more road-improvement projects going on around the region so far in 2018 than there has been for quite some time.
And since roadwork is a fair-weather phenomenon, expect to see a lot of it through the rest of the spring and into the summer and fall.
Count Chris Foord among those who think the amount of roadwork is on the rise.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if it鈥檚 because municipalities in the last few years have cut down on their maintenance budgets and are having to do more, I don鈥檛 know if that鈥檚 a factor,鈥� said Foord, vice-chairman of the Capital Regional District Advisory Traffic Commission and a retired transportation consultant.
In any case, he said the seasonal aspect of road-related projects is simply the way it has to be, Foord said.
鈥淧eople are pretty patient and I think it doesn鈥檛 matter what city you go in, you see the same kind of stuff,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 pave when it鈥檚 snowing outside or you can鈥檛 paint lines when it鈥檚 raining.鈥�
Still, there is always a lighthearted way to look at things.
鈥淧art of me says we dig up the roads to amuse the tourists,鈥� Foord said.
Ben Williams, who represents sa国际传媒 Transit drivers as president of Unifor Local 333, said this year seems to be 鈥渦nprecedented鈥� in the level of roadwork taking place.
鈥淚t seems to be everywhere, the construction,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 absolutely a challenge for the operators. t鈥檚 creating a lot of issues with regards to trying to be on time and so forth.鈥�
For sa国际传媒 Transit officials, staying in communication with those behind road projects helps to control at least some of the variables in keeping buses moving as efficiently as possible.
鈥淲ith construction, it鈥檚 always preferable, if it鈥檚 a private developer or a local government, that we work as closely as possible,鈥� said sa国际传媒 Transit spokesman Jonathan Dyck. 鈥淏ecause then we can make adjustments and do what we need to do with our side if we know the time frame and that sort of thing, and also get information out to our customers.鈥�
Dyck said there are a number of factors at play on local roads.
鈥淲hen you look at the road network and what鈥檚 happening out there right now, there鈥檚 a lot of things going on,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 construction, it鈥檚 congestion, it鈥檚 changes to speed limits. For us, the big thing is giving our riders certainty about when their bus is going to arrive so that we can provide a reliable transit system.鈥�
He said NextRide 鈥渁utomatic vehicle location鈥� technology, already in place in Nanaimo, will make a difference in Greater Victoria when it arrives this winter. People will be able to use a mobile device to access real-time data telling them when a particular bus is likely to arrive.
For Brad Dellebuur, the City of Victoria鈥檚 assistant director of transportation, the perception of a busier-than-normal time for work affecting traffic has some merit.
鈥淚 would say the development activity is really driving a lot of work, particularly downtown,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou look at our major east-west streets 鈥� there鈥檚 something on Pandora right now, there鈥檚 something on Johnson right now, there鈥檚 something on Yates right now.鈥�
There are also many more being considered. 鈥淲e鈥檙e talking about 2019 projects right now and how we鈥檙e going to schedule them,鈥� Dellebuur said.
A map of some major projects around the region
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