Light rail transit construction might be nearing the finish line, but road closures and detours will still make their presence felt in Waterloo Region this summer.

The region is embarking on 19 major road construction projects – including several which were initially expected to have happened by now, but were pushed back to accommodate the LRT construction.

“We recognize that’s going to be an inconvenience to the public, but we do everything we can to minimize the duration,” says Gary MacDonald, the region’s head of transportation rehabilitation.

One of the major roads seeing work this year is Ottawa Street in Kitchener. Roundabouts will be installed at Ottawa’s intersections with Homer Watson Boulevard and Alpine Road.

MacDonald says Ottawa will remain open to traffic in both directions, although part of Homer Watson will be closed to all vehicles for a period of time.

Construction will also continue on Fountain Street, which has been closed between Blair Road and Linden Drive since December and will remain closed there until late 2018. The bridge over the Grand River is being demolished and replaced.

Just to the east of that, construction will affect the area around King and Fountain streets.

Other major road projects in Cambridge include a continuation of work on Franklin Boulevard, and preparation for the construction of a new road along the city’s southern border.

In the townships, King Street in St. Jacobs will undergo a second year of construction.

Trussler Road is slated to be closed between Cedar Creek and Drumbo roads from early April until late August for bridge reconstruction, while sewer work will see Sawmill Road closed in the Conestogo core for three months, starting in mid-April.

The region’s big roadwork project in Waterloo for the year is the reconstruction of King Street between University Avenue and the LRT tracks south of Erb Street.

MacDonald says construction crews could start their work in early April, weather-permitting.

With reporting by Tyler Calver