An 18.5-million dollar upgrade of Highway 26 from Thornbury to Meaford is the subject of a public information session today.
Staff of the Ministry of Transportation met recently with both The Blue Mountains and Meaford Council to outline the plans for the 9.8-kilometre project.
The road will be widened to meet the new 3.75-metre standard for each traffic lane with a 2.75-metre shoulder on either side of the roadbed.
New left and right turn lanes will be installed at most intersections.
All the existing intersections will be realigned so that sideroads meet the highway at a 90-degree angle.
There won’t be any new traffic signals, now, but stoplights are due to be installed at Lora Bay Drive whenever Phase 2 of the subdivision goes ahead.
Work will start this spring as Union Gas installs a new, bigger pipeline to serve the Thornbury area.
Dan Leake, the MTO Project Manager, says there will be some lane closures while that work is under way.
Work on the road itself could get under way either early Spring or late this year.
There is a public information session about the project from 4 PM to 8 PM tonight at the Beaver Valley Community Centre in Thornbury.
One councillor wondered whether any steps will be taken to steer deer away from the highway, but Leake says the only method proven to work is fencing.
That would mean a two-metre tall fence along the entire length of Highway 26.