DIEPPE, N.B. – Loads continue to move between Moncton and Fredericton, even as a section of the Trans-Canada highway is closed because of extensive flooding in New Brunswick.

“It’s about an hour more, so two hours each way,” says Jean-Marc Picard, executive director of the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association, referring to the alternate route through Saint John. “Right now, we’re lucky to have an alternate route.”

Route 2 was closed to all traffic at 7 p.m. on Thursday, while barricades and signs steered vehicles to Route 1 through River Glade and Route 7 at Oromocto. Notices are also being displayed at the borders with Quebec, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Maine.

It’s unknown how long the closure will be in place. Flood waters continue to rise.

“Communities in southern regions of New Brunswick should expect water levels to continue to rise during the coming days,” the province’s Emergency Measures Organization reports. “The province is already seeing unprecedented water levels in a number of areas. In some areas along the St. John River watershed, it is anticipated that water levels will exceed record levels set in 1973.

A list of the latest road closures is available online.

Some carriers in the region haul about 40-50 loads between Moncton and Fredericton per day, Picard says.

The association is making an effort to communicate with other motorists, asking them to be patient as truck traffic increases on the alternate routes.

Meanwhile, Picard is a member of a provincial critical infrastructure team that is connecting through a daily conference call, and will reach out if there is a call for industry support.

“It’s day by day, even hour by hour,” he says of the planning efforts. “We’re there if they need us.”

• This article has been revised to reflect the route affected by the closure.