Construction companies that close roads to complete their builds will be paying more next year for the privilege, which City of Edmonton officials hope will reduce how long motorists are forced to navigate around them.
On Tuesday, the urban planning committee rubber-stamped plans to update the on-street construction and maintenance program to reduce disruptions to traffic from construction. The permit fee is increasing to $32 per day from the previous $25 daily charge. Permits will be handled through a self-service application.
Residential building permits will be streamlined into a single $185 standard on-street construction and maintenance permit and fee for residential development which will apply to single-detached, semi-detached and row house projects, with officials following up to ensure projects are being completed on schedule. A $10 on-street construction and maintenance permit waste bin daily fee is also being introduced for waste bins using road space, though residential builders permitted through the aforementioned residential development fee structure are exempt from the extra charge. The new fee structure kicks in Jan. 1, 2027.
“This is a program that’s been a victim of its own success,” said Ward O-day’min Coun. and committee chairwoman Anne Stevenson. “We used to generate a lot more revenue off lane closures because they were closed for longer. While the revenue was nice, that meant more impact to road users. What we really want to see is people minimizing the amount of disruption they’re creating with lane closures.
“By increasing the fees, we significantly dropped the number of days that roads were closed, but that did mean a drop in budget, so this is helping to re-calibrate some of that. It’s not all the way there, but for me the revenue is less important than the impacts to people using our roads.”
These changes are expected to bring in $5.6 million per year by 2030, which will resolve a $4.5 million structural budget variance. Fees will now be tied to inflation. Fines under the city’s traffic bylaw are also being re-examined.
Contractors are required to get an on-street construction and maintenance permit before they can close a road. Depending on the level of impact to traffic, applications must be submitted either six or 10 business days in advance of the work. The report noted that since the fee structure was introduced in 2019, the average time taken for a road closure has dropped by 42 per cent.
Representatives of BILD Edmonton Metro, which champions the future of the region’s building and land development industry, expressed their support for the changes.
“I appreciate administration working through stuff with us,” said builder technical committee chairman Brian Watters. “The original plan was very administrative-heavy and a cost burden. The revised structure gets the intent of the program out there while also recognizing that we need more housing done faster. So I’m happy with the direction.
“If there’s a daily fee and you have a construction timeline, that’s going to help hold you to account to get things done quicker. You don’t want that daily fee compounding on your project. So it incentivizes you to stick to your budget and timeline.”
A review of the new changes will be returned to council following construction season next year.
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