City says Bryne Dr. project's southern connection ahead of schedule

Meanwhile, property acquisitions have delayed northern portion of the project, which is expected to ease traffic congestion in south Barrie

Work continued Thursday on the southern extension of Bryne Drive in Barrie.Bob Bruton/BarrieToday

It’s looking like a fall finish for Barrie’s Bryne Drive street construction project, from Harvie Road to Caplan Avenue.

This southern extension will have four through lanes, two in each direction, a two-way, left-turn lane, buffered bike lanes and sidewalks on both sides.

City officials have said this project is in its final stages and is expected to wrap up this fall, which is ahead of schedule.

Connecting this section of road will help with traffic flows across the city’s south end and add options for travel in southwest Barrie.

18072024brynedrmap — This map shows the Bryne Drive extension's project limits, north and south. | Image supplied

It will also reduce traffic congestion at the Essa Road and Mapleview Drive interchanges by redirecting east-west traffic to the Harvie Road crossing.

This portion of the project is about one kilometre in length and carries a cost of approximately $13.8 million, paid for from development charges and the city’s tax capital reserve. Development charges are designed to recover the capital costs associated with residential and non-residential (commercial, industrial, institutional) growth within a municipality.

Bryne Drive's northern extension, from Harvie to Essa, is in its design stage. It’s to be a new five-lane road, with off-road bike lanes and sidewalks, along with a new sanitary sewer, new watermain and new stormwater management ponds.

Property acquisition was expected to occur in 2025, with utility relocation anticipated in 2026, but construction wasn’t expected to start until 2027. Now property acquisitions have pushed the expected completion of this design project to 2029.

This portion carries a total project cost of $21.9 million, funded from development charges and taxes, for these 800 metres of road.

In late June, Mayor Alex Nuttall announced the city is spending more than $110 million on infrastructure improvements, new road construction, including Bryne, and repaving projects in Barrie this year — more than 20 construction projects, as well as paving and re-paving 20 kilometres of city streets.

Road resurfacing projects proactively prevent deterioration and costly repairs, according to the city.