Construction is underway on a new emergency egress road in the Halifax suburb of Westwood Hills. It’s meant to improve emergency access and evacuation options for residents in that area. “That will connect between the subdivision of Westwood Hills and Highway 103. That road will be a gates emergency only road that will allow people in and out during emergencies only,” says Mike Connors," manager of transportation planning for the Halifax Regional Municipality. The project will feature a gated connection between Westwood Boulevard and Highway 103, that can be used when another access route is required in emergencies. In an outline on the municipality’s website, the project is described as an almost 500-metre gravel roadway, which will be eight metres in width with gates at each end. The project came about as part of city council’s direction following the 2023 wildfires. The aim with that initiative is to improve emergency access, evacuation options, and connection to roads in areas with limited access routes. This project supports the Strengthening Communities and Moving Better priorities in the 2026–2030 Strategic Plan. The Westwood Hills Residents Association says the project is overdue, but they still have concerns. “It doesn’t address all of the conditions that the neighbourhood faces with being able to safely exit with this one being placed so close to the neighbourhood there is still some issues with time and distance in order to get the people at the back of the neighborhood safely out in an emergency,” said Richard O’Fegan, president of the association. Residents in the area should expect increased construction-related traffic, including rock excavation and removal, and some blasting if required. There may be temporary stop-and-go traffic and lane reductions near the project site. Hours of construction are expected to be from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays only. Connector roads in the area This project is separate from the municipality’s ongoing community connector road study involving Westwood Hills, Upper Hammonds Plains and Highland Park North. While the construction of this road is being done as a near-term safety measure, the municipality continues to study long-term potential roadway connections in the area. “We are actually meeting with the Upper Hammonds plains community, and the following week with Westwood Hills, around permanent connector road options to connect those two communities. That was also directed by Halifax Regional Council in 2025,” says Connors. Project timeline The egress project is expected to be completed on the following timeline: Future connectivity plan Starting in the spring, once this egress project is complete, Connors says the municipality is looking at exploring connectivity within the communities in the Upper Hammonds Plains and Upper Tantallon area. “We are about to start a project that will explore wider connectivity along Hammonds Plains Road,” says Connors. “There is roadway connectivity challenges in several communities, so that wider project will explore potential roadway connections between and within those communities and will include an engagement process with a much wider community.” For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
