Construction and Road Closures

We understand that some residents may have concerns with construction moving forward during the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 23, 2020 the Province included construction activities on a list of essential services.  On April 3, 2020 the Province reduced the list of essential businesses. It maintained that construction of roads, watermains, sewers and other municipal services is essential. These services must continue to work properly to continue to meet essential community needs.  In moving forward with construction projects, the Region of Waterloo is acting consistently with other local area municipalities and most other major municipalities in the Province.  We will continue to evaluate and re-assess the situation as required. 

Contractors working for the Region will employ policies and procedures to protect the health and wellness of workers and the community in general as part the contractor’s Health and Safety Plan. Contractors will adjust these policies and procedures as required for each project. This will ensure compliance with relevant Federal, Provincial and Regional guidelines related to the COVID-19 pandemic issued at any given time.  Region staff and consultants working for the Region will similarly be following all relevant COVID-19 guidelines during the course of construction.

We will be providing more specific information for each project to homes and businesses in each construction area by mail, email and on the Region’s website.

Operations and maintenance is critical to the ongoing daily needs of our community. Residents continue to have essential needs and the Region of Waterloo provides many of those needs.

While some of this work may not be seen as being essential at the moment, most activities are reliant on others to be completed, for example picking up debris prior to grass mowing operations. In addition, much of this work is also required for the safe operation of our roadways and to ensure the Region of Waterloo continues to meet Provincial standards and local bylaws.

We will continue to provide these services in a manner that is safe for our workers, and safe for the public.

Contractors working for the Region will employ policies and procedures to protect the health and wellness of workers and the community in general as part the contractor’s Health and Safety Plan. 

Contractors will adjust these policies and procedures as required for each project and in accordance with relevant Federal, Provincial and Regional guidelines related to the COVID-19 pandemic issued at any given time. 

At a minimum, there will be sanitation measures in place, physical separation will be maintained whenever possible and additional personal protective equipment (PPE) will be used, if required. 

Any workers that have symptoms or are otherwise not feeling well will be staying home and following current public health procedures.  Interactions between workers and the public will generally not be required in order for them to perform their activities. 

Where direct communications with the public are necessary, workers will follow policies and procedures that align with current guidelines in place at that time.

All workers are expected to maintain physical distance and use appropriate personal protective equipment if they need to be closer than two metres.

We remind everyone that staying as far away from work areas as possible is always a good idea. With our community’s children home from school during the day we would especially like to remind parents and caregivers that children must avoid playing around the work site. The contractors will be reminding anyone who gets too close to the work area to keep a safe distance away from work areas.

At this time, we do not anticipate that anyone will need to access your home or business in most cases. Should the need for access arise, we will provide as much prior notice as possible and make necessary arrangements to complete the work in a manner consistent with current Health and Safety policies and procedures.

Should you receive a request from a contractor to access your home or business and you have concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the Region’s Project Manager responsible for the specific project in your area. 

Contact information for the Region’s Project Manager is included on any notices that you receive and is available on the in the Current Construction Projects tab below or by calling the Region at 519-575-4400.

All utilities in the Region of Waterloo have essential staff available should any emergency situation arise that causes a disruption to service.

Some projects involving watermain construction may require a temporary above-ground watermain to be installed.  Temporary service will be provided through an exterior connection.  Short term interruptions to your water service will be required to complete connections to the temporary and new watermains. You will be notified in advance of any planned water disruption with information on the anticipated duration, procedures to be followed, and contact information in case you have any concerns.

A list of Waterloo Region road closure information. 

An up-to-date map including road closure information for the Region of Waterloo and the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo. 

The projects and schedules are based on the program approved by Regional Council. The type, location or timing of these works may change or may not occur at all. These changes may occur before the start of the works or as the works are being carried out.

Typical practice with reconstructing roads is to pave to base course asphalt, with surface course asphalt placed on the road the following year. 

Future construction projects

• Avoid rush hour travel - Travel before or after the rush to and from work if you can, or take alternate routes and save non-essential travel for the less busy times. This will help reduce traffic trying to squeeze through reduced lanes in construction zones.
• Carpool - Even if you need your car during the day, you can find a carpool buddy who does not. You will not only help reduce traffic, you can also save money on gas and parking costs too. Visit gotravelwise.ca and sign up to find a carpool buddy.
• Take transit - Go to grt.ca and check out schedules for Grand River Transit routes.

Pingstreet mobile app

Need help getting around the Region? Have questions about Region of Waterloo services? Download the Pingstreet app.

Tip: By selecting 'change' a municipality, you can access many municipalities, including the cities of Cambridge, Waterloo and Kitchener.