Tourist operators, businesses concerned N.B. road repair closure time extended

Like many communities in the Maritimes, Dorchester, N.B., is preparing for the upcoming tourism season, but business owners are concerned about the closure of a road that connects the community to nearby Sackville.

On Tuesday, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure [DTI] extended the anticipated end time for repair work on Route 106 on NB 511, the website that provides traffic information and construction activities.

It was initially anticipated work would be done by May 31, but has been pushed back to Sept. 3.

A culvert on a section of the roadway was damaged by heavy rains at the end of March and the closure has been in place since April 1.

Some residents are confused, frustrated and worried about the upcoming tourism season.

Dorchester Jail B&B co-owner Natasha Marsh said the closure is having a terrible impact on business.

“We’ve seen our tours decline by at least 40-to-50 per cent and with this closed through the summer we expect it to kill our business by at least 80 per cent,” said Marsh. “A lot of people don’t really know that we’re here. They just kind of happen to stumble across us on a beautiful drive and I don’t think a lot of people are going to be out driving about to take that road.”

Peep and Keep Ecotique owners Debbie Wiggins-Colwell and Kara Becker are also very concerned about summer traffic.

“Oh, this is just going to be horrendous. It’s really going to impact us. We can’t go through the tourist season and not have the main [Route] 106 open. Period,” said Wiggins-Colwell.

Becker said they’re already seeing a slowdown in business.

“It’s really hurting us,” said Becker. “It’s our second season open and we’re wondering if we can keep it going.”

Keillor House Museum manager and curator Keegan Hiltz said it comes down to the issue of people finding their way to the museum.

“We do have a lot of visitors that are coming from out of province, the states and other countries so if you’re not familiar with the alternate routes, that can be confusing,” said Hiltz. “It is a bit of a concern that maybe people just decide to bypass us or they might run into some confusion on their way here.”

Keillor House Museum manager and curator Keegan Hiltz. (Derek Haggett/CTV Atlantic)Dorchester isn’t completely cut off; it can be accessed via Memramcook or through a signed detour along Woodlawn and King roads.

Dorchester residents say that’s less than ideal.

“That’s not a solution, that’s not a solution to go through there,” said Wiggins-Colwell. “It bypasses a lot.”

Her business partner doesn’t think it’s safe.

“The shoulder’s not good,” said Becker. “It’s really meant for a cow path. It’s not a true detour route.”

Village Square Take-Out owner Debbie Shea said business has been a bit down for her too since the closure, especially on weekends.

She said the detour is full of potholes.

“It’s just awful. It’s a terrible road. There really needs work to be done on it,” said Shea. “If we’re going to keep using that then it needs to be fixed.”

A welcome sign in Dorchester, N.B. (Derek Haggett/CTV Atlantic)Tantramar Mayor Andrew Black has written a letter to Richard Ames, the minister of DTI, stating the municipality is deeply concerned the completion date has been pushed back to September.

“This closure has significant impact to not only residents of Tantramar but also has impacted protective services, student transportation safety, tourism, businesses, a federal institution, as well as Fort Folly First Nations,” said Black in the letter. “The increase of traffic flow along the detour route has and will continue to deteriorate our infrastructure.”

Black said the municipality is urging the province to speed up the measures needed to re-open the section of highway on Route 106 and they are requesting active and transparent communication with DTI.

CTV News asked DTI about the delay in completion schedule, but did not hear back by deadline.

Earlier this week a spokesperson for DTI said plans were still being discussed for a culvert replacement, but currently there is not a timeline for work to commence.

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