A roadway under construction in Saskatchewan is gaining attention due to the numerous bumps it seems to have in a short distance. The Betteridge Road Paving Project in White City is now in its third phase of construction. When complete, it will be a major roadway of the White City Town Centre. “The town centre is intended to be the heart of the community,” said Jeff Blyth, the business centre practice lead of prairies and territories for Stantec. When complete, the site will include residential, commercial, civic and recreational pieces, as well as an integrated walking space. According to an online post by the Town of White City, the road is designed to look the way it does, as it includes “traffic calming design elements” which are meant to slow vehicles down and improve the safety of pedestrians. The layers now visible are just the beginning. There will be more added in the future. Bill Krzysik is a councillor from the Town of White City. He recalls walking near the site and seeing fire hydrants installed higher than his head. “I can appreciate the fact that anything in isolation definitely looks odd,” he said. The area of White City is growing and there are long term plans in place to address infrastructure to accommodate future residents and businesses. The White City Town Centre Neighbourhood Plan was first adopted in 2014. Betteridge Road was chosen as one of the major roadways. According to the Stantec presentation at a White City committee meeting, the next Betteridge Road upgrade is yet to be determined. Krzysik hopes residents understand it is all a work in progress. “There’s going to be four lanes, trees down the middle, gigantic sidewalks and businesses on each side,” he said. “That is massively different from what we currently have.” Similar road construction can be found in Regina on Gordon Road and Chuka Boulevard.
