This week marks the official start of the Ridley Island Road, Rail Utility Corridor project in Prince Rupert, and with it comes some significant changes to the industrial site that is currently home to Prince Rupert Grain and Ridley Terminals Inc.
The Road, Rail and Utility Corridor (RRUC) is a $90 million project that will create shared infrastructure for future terminal developments on Ridley Island, 17 kilometres from downtown Prince Rupert. The industrial site is administered by the Prince Rupert Port Authority.
The face of Ridley Island began to change over one year ago when Ridley Terminals Inc. began its Capacity Realization Project. 44 acres of new lands were cleared for expansion. A third stacker/reclaimer machine arrived late in 2012.
Now the pace of change has picked up. Surveyors for the RRUC arrived onsite this week, and construction crews are scheduled to break ground February 1st. They will begin work that could involve up to 90 workers by the end of March.
Given the scope of these projects, the entirety of Ridley Island is now classified as an active construction zone. Even stricter safety protocols for workers and visitors are expected to take effect before the end of January.
Of course, the flow of goods through Prince Rupert Grain and RTI needs to continue unimpeded. Ridley Island users will be meeting regularly to discuss how regular operations can be streamlined in the midst of the major project. They will consider improved safety measures such as a reduction in the speed limit for the Ridley Island road from 50 km/hr to 30 km/hr.
“The safety of everyone on Ridley Island is a priority for us and the terminal operators,” says Kerry Northcott, Health and Safety Officer for the RRUC project. “With that in mind, we’ll be discussing ways to maintain the high safety standards that already exist and discuss the potential of new policies that will have the least amount of impact to operations.”
The initial work on the RRUC will take place on the eastern side of Ridley Island along Porpoise Harbour. Construction crews will be working during daylight hours, taking into consideration the residents of Port Edward that may be affected by noise from the work sites across the harbour.
The RRUC Site Office was established on the island late in 2012. The project team is now stationed there for the duration of work.
The RRUC project team includes Project Accountant Joanne Donohoe, Field Superintendent Carlito Guzman, Health and Safety Officer Kerry Northcott, and Project Manager Roger Morin, with an Administrative Assistant to join later this month.
“We’re a small team, but we’re very energetic,” says Morin. “We’ve already been working together for several months to bring the project to this point, so it’s exciting for us to now have construction about to proceed.”
The Prince Rupert Port Authority will be launching a public webcam through its website that will give Prince Rupert residents—and the rest of the world—a birds-eye-view of the Ridley Island Road, Rail and Utility Corridor project in action.
The new feature will be available online at www.rupertport.com following the groundbreaking in February.
Re:port is a collaborative promotional venture by the Prince Rupert Port Authority and The Northern View.