Last week, notifications about the Earl Grey Drive Extension Construction Project were sent out to residents who live in the area. You can read that notification at Earl Grey Extension- Notice of Construction.
Construction will be starting in late August with the Earl Grey Drive extension passing under Terry Fox Drive and requiring the construction of a new bridge structure to connect Earl Grey Drive and Didsbury Road. As part of the project, the intersection of Terry Fox Drive and Didsbury Road will be upgraded to meet the requirements of the City’s protected intersection guidelines.
Earlier this week, we heard from City staff that vegetation clearing is to start next week, with initial contractor mobilization, utility investigations and soil sampling expected through to the end of August. Additionally, subject to permit approvals and utility locates, temporary lighting and temporary traffic signal infrastructure may begin on Terry Fox Drive as early as late-August. You can expect to see a lot going on in the area.
For all information related to the project you can view the project page on the City’s website at Earl Grey Drive extension | City of Ottawa.
I have had some residents reach out to me with comments about the project, and I wanted to provide some background on the project. The Earl Grey underpass was originally proposed in 1995 as a growth-related project, with 95% of its funding coming from Development Charges, and 5% from tax. Back in 1995 when the roadway/tunnel was designed, development charges were collected for it (from Kanata Centrum’s developers) and held in trust until they could work out all of the legal and land agreements (there were many!). It almost got sorted out in 2013 and then again in 2015. Finally, now in 2025, the original plan is being completed with this roadway. The development charges cannot be used for anything else, as they can only be used for the reason they were collected.
The traffic engineers, who plan out for 30-50 years, have modelled the traffic flow now and in the future and tell us that it will help significantly with the bus routes and to alleviate traffic off Terry Fox Drive and other nearby roads. OC Transpo will send a high number of buses that way… more when there is LRT there, too. That will enable faster transit times and less traffic on nearby roads.
The one other thing I would point out is that the intersection at Terry Fox and Didsbury has to be upgraded no matter what. It is on the City’s project list. Now, this project will allow the City to get that done at a huge discount as it is part of the larger project. So, the City is actually saving money with this project (in the long run). If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me at cathy.curry@ottawa.ca.