Project Description
Robinson Consultants Inc, was retained by the City of Ottawa to complete the preliminary design, detailed design, tendering, and contract administration and inspection for the integrated reconstruction of Albert Street, from Brickhill Street to City Centre Avenue, as well as the reconstruction of Empress Avenue, Lorne Street, Perkins Street, and Booth Street. The project included the realignment and separation of the Preston Street Combined Trunk Sewer, relocation of the large brick collector, separation of local sewers, and roadway realignment and reconstruction. Sewer work ranged in diameter from 250mm to 3000mm. Two jack and bore crossings of the high-pressure transmission main (HPTM) were also designed with sewer sizes of 900mm and 1676mm. The relocation of the large brick collector was fast tracked near completion of design when it was found that the existing large brick collector was in conflict with the proposed LRT Pimisi Station.
Due to the project’s proximity to the City of Ottawa’s proposed Confederation Line, LRT construction, and the adjacent National Capital Commission property, significant changes to the project requirements were encountered throughout the design process, including development and review of multiple collector sewer alignments and roadway configurations to mitigate impacts on adjacent federal lands.
Additionally, given the requirement to utilize the Albert Corridor as a temporary detour route for rapid transit during the construction of the Confederation Line, it was decided during the project that construction would be incorporated into the contract for the light rail construction, resulting in tight scheduling requirements for the completion of the design and tender package and extensive coordination with the City of Ottawa’s Rail Implementation Office and the Design-Build contractor for the light rail construction.
During the detail design of the project, the City of Ottawa initiated the functional design of the East-West Bikeway project, which included the Albert Street Corridor. Given the timing constraints imposed by the requirement to incorporate the Albert Street project into the Confederation Line contract, significant efforts were required to advance the design of the segregated cycling facilities for inclusion in the Albert Street project as a means of providing a ‘Complete Street’ upon completion of the transit detouring and Albert Street reconstruction.
Additional Complete Street features of the project include a comprehensive streetscaping plan, including pedestrian lighting and enhanced median plantings and boulevard buffer areas, and enhanced pedestrian and cyclist crossing facilities. Property Requirement Plans were prepared and submitted to the City for property acquisitions. A slope stability design was completed in order to replace a section of the retaining wall along the open aqueduct. Consultation with the environmental approval agencies was completed early in the design process to ensure that all required approvals were received prior to tendering.
