OTTAWA – Mayor Jim Watson and Somerset Coun. Catherine McKenney today celebrated the reopening of Elgin Street, between Laurier Avenue and Catherine Street, with residents and local businesses.

“Elgin Street has been closed to traffic for almost a year, and I want to thank the local residents and business owners for their support and patience throughout the construction project,” Mayor Jim Watson said. “I look forward to seeing the final result in 2020, and I know Elgin Street will quickly become a bustling pedestrian destination for residents and visitors alike.”

The road has been closed since January as part of a $40-million investment to revitalize Elgin Street and renew underground infrastructure, some of which dated back to 1874. The project will be completed in fall 2020, with wider sidewalks putting a renewed focus on Elgin Street as a pedestrian destination and public space. The street will also feature shared-use lanes, transit facilities, traffic-calming measures, flexible street parking spaces, trees, benches, bike racks and public art.

Work on Elgin Street will resume in early 2020, with crews connecting underground utilities and removing hydro poles along the west side of the street. Crews will then lay asphalt, landscape and install public art and streetlighting.

The city will communicate traffic impacts, including any lane closures, before construction begins and throughout the construction season.