Major commuter route into Ottawa set to close

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An upcoming closure of a stretch of Bank Street – otherwise known as County Road 31 within North Dundas – is sure to affect local commutes beginning next month, and a Winchester resident has vowed to make sure that North Dundas residents have an early heads-up. 

Mona Zahiri lives in Winchester but works in Findlay Creek, right in the area that a planned road closure of approximately 7 months is set to soon take effect. Mona reports that a short stretch of Bank Street will be closed right in Findlay Creek, between the Starbucks at Shuttlworth Drive, and Miikana Road / Blais Road to the south. 

Mona’s claim was independently verified with the City of Ottawa. The section she specified will indeed be fully closed to traffic between June and December of this year to facilitate several different upgrades, including the construction of an intersection and a culvert, as well as water and sewer work, and roadway revitalization. 

Mona is part of a group of businesses who are petitioning the City of Ottawa and meeting with Council there to propose other potential options that may be faster or less disruptive to the businesses and commuters in Findlay Creek. 

Mona wanted to spread the word about the upcoming closure specifically because she herself wouldn’t have known about it if a friendly neighbouring business owner hadn’t told her. “I’m really just trying to get the word out there,” she said. “As the biggest lover of Winchester, I really thought that the residents should know, and be able to pre-plan.”

Detour signs will be up for the duration of the closure, but as is usual with this kind of road work, commuters should expect delays, learn their alternative route, and leave in plenty of time to drive safely to the destination.