Those travelling north or south of Portage la Prairie may be facing some delays in the coming weeks. Manitoba Infrastructure and Transportation is working to seal Provincial Road 240, on both sides of the community. Director of Regional Operations Kelvin Shuvera says it's a multi-step process that can take about a week to complete. They started on the south side toward Southport on Sunday, and Shuvera says they have crews working at the site, and will also be helping guide traffic through the construction zone.

"We're putting oil down, then using the chip spreader and putting aggregate on the road, then we roll it and allow traffic throughout. We pilot the vehicles, usually reducing speeds down to 40 kilometres per hour when you're in traffic."

He notes once the aggregate is down, it's important to reduce your speed even if the pilot vehicle isn't present, to avoid throwing rocks at other vehicles. While a majority of the 240 South work was completed Sunday, Shuvera says it'll take a few more days to complete the work along that stretch. However, he notes the next stage of work should also start in the coming days.

"We have plans to do some other work around Portage in the next few days. North of the city, about 1.6 kilometres north on 240 to Delta Beach, that's going to occur in the near future. We're just watching the weather but that's our plan."

Shuvera admits the work can be inconvenient, but thanks motorists for their patience. He emphasizes traffic needs to slow down when passing workers, or when there aren't any pilot vehicles in place. He says the main goal of the work is to prolong the life of the road, by addressing some of the surface cracks that have started to form.