If re-elected Regina’s Mayor next month, Michael Fougere says he’ll make sure Ring Road has no more active railway crossings.

The two railway crossings on Ring Road near Winnipeg Street have sparked debates for years as to why they’re located where they are.

“The rail crossings on Ring Road have long been a frustration of Regina people and we need them removed. Regina people are fed up with the traffic backlogs on a road designed to reduce commute times, not increase them,” Fougere said in a news release.

At a media event Wednesday morning, Fougere said this project has been in the works since 2017, and it can’t come soon enough.

“We have 63,000 people a day who travel the Ring Road; that’s 63,000 people who are frustrated and sometimes angry for the delays and stopping them from where they need to go,” Fougere said. “It’s an issue where we need to make sure people can get to where they want to go. I’m committed to speeding this project up and getting it done.”

Fougere said the Ring Road trains are a safety concern.

“People are frustrated with waiting for this, and they go through the ditch and turn the other way, that’s a safety issue as well,” Fougere said. “You want to go to your doctor’s appointment, or work, or you’re taking your kids to their hockey lessons or whatever it might be, and they’re sitting there for 15-20 minutes waiting, and I know this has been a frustration for many years across this city.”

At @MayorFougere‘s campaign announcement this morning. He’s promising a resolve to the two train tracks crossing Ring Road. The cost of the project could be as much as $102 million, including $2m for design, with CN and CP possibly contributing.#yqr #yqrvotes #yqrcc pic.twitter.com/OWti9ixNUI

— Ryan McNally (@RyanE_McNally) October 14, 2020

Fougere also said city council is now on board with the plan, as are CP and CN rail.

{With files from Ryan McNally}