New link to Dartmouth, N.S., now months behind schedule

Months after it was scheduled to open, the only traffic on the Burnside connector in Nova Scotia is heavy equipment.

“Obviously there’s frustration. Anytime there’s construction going on and there is a deadline put in front of them and they were expecting a deadline to happen and when it doesn’t happen, it’s frustrating,” says Councillor Tony Mancini.

That deadline was supposed to be fall 2023. Magazine Hill is the main link between Sackville and Dartmouth. The Burnside connecter will be a nine-kilometre long, four-lane freeway that will also provide tractor trailers with an alternate route into Burnside.

“It’s the largest industrial park east of Montreal and the efficiency of getting products and machinery and equipment in and out of there is really critical,” Mancini says.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced $6 billion to support the housing accelerator fund and some of it is earmarked for infrastructure.

“We'll launch the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund with a billion dollars available to be allocated to municipalities to support needs that will directly create more housing,” Trudeau said.

Included are things like wastewater, stormwater and solid waste systems. Roads and highways do not qualify.

Sackville-Bedford-Burnside Connector Highway. (Source: Jonathan MacInnis/CTV News Atlantic)

The idea of the Burnside connecter becomes more appealing for commuters looking to avoid slow traffic.

“If there was an alternative like a faster or easier route than that would definitely be beneficial for people who are working in the city,” says Lower Sackville resident, Kim Munro.

Another option will be the $250 million Bedford ferry project, but that won’t help the traffic problem until 2028.

For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.