To address this risk, and in recognition of the difficulty in predicting how the COVID-19 crisis will unfold, should Council proceed with one or more temporary closure, it is recommended that Administration do the following once the province begins lifting COVID-19-related restrictions:
- monitor traffic operations on Riverside Drive and other impacted roads,
- periodically consult with the Windsor Essex County Health Unit, and
- remove the detour immediately should the mitigation measures prove to be ineffective. The decision to remove the detour would be made at the discretion of the City Engineer in consultation with other departments.
The government of Ontario issued an Order for the mandatory closure of non-essential business which took effect at 11:59 on Saturday, April 4, 2020. This order addresses businesses including construction, maintenance, transportation services, as well as government operations and community services. A review of the City’s projects was conducted to determine if the work was permitted by the Order. Where the work was permitted, the projects were allowed to continue. If the work was not permitted under the Order, departments were asked whether proceeding with the work was critical to maintaining public health and safety or to maintaining municipal operations as such work is permitted by the legislation. If a project was deemed critical by the department, the work was permitted to continue. As a result of this review, some City projects have The setting out of barrels for temporary lane or road closures to been put on hold. allow for social distancing may be viewed as being non-essential work.
Financial Matters:
The costs associated with lane/road closure will vary depending on the physical length of the closure and the requirements to ensure safety. No source of funds for these expenditures has been identified. It is noted, as well, that there are many unavoidable and significant costs being incurred by the municipality during this pandemic; this discretionary initiative would add to those costs by the amounts noted below.
The chart below provides the estimated costs per 200m for any parking lane or multi- lane road location. This estimate includes barrels, signs, ramps off of and onto curbs, set-up and take down as well as daily monitoring of the barrels and signs.
If the lane/road closure is on an arterial road, a flashing arrow board is needed. The monthly cost to rent an arrow board would be an additional $1,000 per month plus setup and take down costs of $250.
All costs are exclusive of HST.