Police are carting off several protesters as workers with chainsaws start cutting down trees as part of a contentious road expansion in Halifax.
At least three people were handcuffed and led away from Chebucto Road around noon Friday.
About 50 people have gathered in the street, which is scheduled to be widened to ease traffic congestion.
Earlier, some climbed trees to prevent crews from starting their work.
As the work got underway, police officers pushed back the crowd to keep everyone away from falling trees.
Some people were crying as a grinder chopped up tree limbs.
The plan calls for a third lane to allow for an extra 300 cars every hour, a means of easing traffic coming off the nearby Armdale roundabout.
The expansion has been fiercely opposed by some local residents and their supporters.
The project was approved in mid-June by the Halifax regional council. On Wednesday, opponents of the Chebucto Road plan called for a seven-day moratorium on construction but the municipality said work would go ahead as planned.
