British Columbia's Highways

[roadman65]

https://goo.gl/maps/iorgrrE8mcrPcwR3A

https://goo.gl/maps/2fHA9whNqwdfwutH6

Was first time noticing how BC Ministry of Highways or Transportation shields the Trans Canada Highway.

Interesting.

[stevashe]

https://goo.gl/maps/iorgrrE8mcrPcwR3A

https://goo.gl/maps/2fHA9whNqwdfwutH6

Was first time noticing how BC Ministry of Highways or Transportation shields the Trans Canada Highway.

Interesting.

What's interesting about it? These shields are similar to what other western provinces use. Are you comparing to Ontario?

[bcroadguy]

New shields that have been popping up in the last 1-2 years. I do not like.

[TXtoNJ]

Random question (cross-posted to the Washington thread): Why are commercial vehicles (trucks/buses) banned from using the Peach Arch border crossing between BC and Washington? The only information I can find online is that it's been that way since 1970, but no explanation as to why that's the case. Any insight appreciated!

Because it's in the middle of a park.

Re the new shields on BGSs - less aesthetically pleasing, sure, but I can't help but notice they're better as far as visibility goes

[andrepoiy]

New shields that have been popping up in the last 1-2 years. I do not like.

It seems to have taken inspiration from Quebec (with the condensed shields)

[jakeroot]

New shields that have been popping up in the last 1-2 years. I do not like.

Just noticing that all of those new signs for the 91/17 connector have Highway Gothic cardinal directions. So weird to see new Highway Gothic on an overhead guide sign in BC.

[vdeane]

Now if only they could switch away from Clearview for all numbers.  I don't mind Clearview on destination legends too much as long as the font size is appropriate, but Clearview numerals are yuck.

[jakeroot]

Now if only they could switch away from Clearview for all numbers.  I don't mind Clearview on destination legends too much as long as the font size is appropriate, but Clearview numerals are yuck.

It's possible. They already specify three different fonts for various situations: Highway Gothic for the "1" on the TCH shield, Helvetica for the vast majority of other shields, and Clearview for sign legend.

[stevashe]

Now if only they could switch away from Clearview for all numbers.  I don't mind Clearview on destination legends too much as long as the font size is appropriate, but Clearview numerals are yuck.

It's possible. They already specify three different fonts for various situations: Highway Gothic for the "1" on the TCH shield, Helvetica for the vast majority of other shields, and Clearview for sign legend.

Speaking of which, the numerals for highway 17 on this sign are also in highway gothic! I'm beginning to wonder whether these font changes and the alternate shield design are a mistake or a new standard...

[jakeroot]

Now if only they could switch away from Clearview for all numbers.  I don't mind Clearview on destination legends too much as long as the font size is appropriate, but Clearview numerals are yuck.

It's possible. They already specify three different fonts for various situations: Highway Gothic for the "1" on the TCH shield, Helvetica for the vast majority of other shields, and Clearview for sign legend.

Speaking of which, the numerals for highway 17 on this sign are also in highway gothic! I'm beginning to wonder whether these font changes and the alternate shield design are a mistake or a new standard...

The new Highway Gothic shields do appear in the updated-for-2022 Guide Sign manual, but I don't see any specific mentions of Highway Gothic:

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/driving-and-transportation/transportation-infrastructure/engineering-standards-and-guidelines/traffic-engineering-and-safety/traffic-engineering/traffic-signs-and-pavement-markings/standard-traffic-signs/standard-traffic-signs/guide_signs.pdf

[TXtoNJ]

Publication on expansion of BC-1 from 264th to Chilliwack:

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/transportation-infrastructure-projects/highway-1-fraser-valley/hwy1-264-highway11/2023-discussion-guide-264-highway11.pdf

New DDI at BC-11! Most of the Abbotsford bottlenecks eliminated too.

[jakeroot]

Publication on expansion of BC-1 from 264th to Chilliwack:

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/transportation-infrastructure-projects/highway-1-fraser-valley/hwy1-264-highway11/2023-discussion-guide-264-highway11.pdf

New DDI at BC-11! Most of the Abbotsford bottlenecks eliminated too.

Very impressive plan, and very sorely needed. The backups west from Abbotsford into Vancouver are biblical.

I appreciate that this isn't a small-time plan; from 4, up to 8 lanes, plus 99-style bus-running in the shoulder. And massive interchange rebuilds too.

The DDI is pretty cool, I think that's a smart location for one as well. But I gotta say, that 264 St interchange is mighty impressive too. That whole interchange has needed rebuilding for a long time, the on-ramp merges are crazy dangerous (no merge area at all), plus the overpass is strangling Hwy 1.

As a side-note, I find having both an HOV and bus lane on the same carriageway to be highly unusual.

[dmuzika]

Canadian military wages annual war against avalanches in Rogers Pass
Teri Fikowski · CTV News Calgary · Published Feb. 16, 2024 7:12 a.m. MST · Updated Feb. 16, 2024 9:35 a.m. MST
https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/canadian-military-wages-annual-war-against-avalanches-in-rogers-pass-1.6771738

Rogers Pass is between Revelstoke and Golden, B.C., where the Trans-Canada Highway and the Canadian Pacific Railway snake through the Selkirk Mountains.

At roughly 1,300 metres above sea level, Rogers Pass receives on average 10 metres of snowfall each winter, with more than 130 active avalanche paths criss-crossing a 40-kilometre stretch of the busy highway.

Since 1961, the year before the Trans-Canada Highway fully opened, Parks Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces have worked together to run the world's largest mobile artillery avalanche control program and Canada's longest-running domestic military operation.

Interesting story about avalanche control in Glacier National Park between Revelstoke and Golden.

[splashflash]

Kicking Horse Pass 4-lane segment opens

"Highway is fully open with 4 lanes and 100 km/h speed limit
As of late July 31, 2024, the Trans-Canada Highway through the Kicking Horse Canyon is operating as a fully-function 4-lane highway, posted at 100 km/h.

Some traffic management will be required in late summer / early fall to accommodate post-construction touch-ups. This work will include some landscaping, with the planting of some trees and shrubs being postponed until cooler weather to help them survive and become better-established.

The project team appreciates the patience and support shown by those who have been affected by the traffic management required to safely carry out the Kicking Horse Canyon Phase 4 Project. That patience is now rewarded with a wider, safer and more reliable highway.

https://www.kickinghorsecanyon.ca/construction/traffic-management/
https://www.kickinghorsecanyon.ca/about/project-overview/
https://www.kickinghorsecanyon.ca/app/uploads/sites/632/2020/10/khcp-map-phase4.jpg

[jakeroot]

I thought maybe your post was a paraphrase, but they actually wrote "as a fully-function 4-lane highway". Certainly they meant "fully-functioning"... unless what they wrote is a Canadianism.

Besides that...one of the most insane engineering projects I've seen since I-70 through the Rockies. Absolutely staggering engineering. I can only hope to drive it someday.

[splashflash]

Fully-function is not a Canadianism. The phrase is poorly written and maybe just auto-generated as news media outlets here are shedding writers just as they are in the States.

I am glad so much work was done before inflation really kicked in.  Addition of another lane to the Trans-Canada in the Fraser Valley has ballooned in cost.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/highway-1-widening-abbotsford-fraser-valley-cost-bc-phase-3b

The Hive - Urbanized
"8-km-long Highway 1 widening in Abbotsford to cost $2.65 billion
Premier David Eby announced this afternoon that Phase 3B of the Highway 1 project will be located entirely within Abbotsford — an eight-km-long stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway from the Mount Lehman Road interchange to the Highway 11 (Sumas Way) interchange. Phase 3B is now expected to carry a cost of $2.65 billion.

"This is in addition to Fall 2023's previously announced and funded estimated construction cost of $2.34 billion for Phase 3A just to the west, which is a 13-km-long segment of the highway from the 264th Street interchange in Langley Township to Mount Lehman Road.

The cost per km for each of the Phase 3B and 3A projects is now about $240 million, representing a drastic exponential increase from the cost of Highway 1 corridor projects performed over the past 15 years further to the west elsewhere in Langley Township and in Surrey.

"For example, the Phase 2 widening Highway 1 from the 216th Street interchange to 264th Street interchange within Langley Township, the whole segment distance of roughly 10 km, carries a total cost of $345 million, as of 2022 when major construction work first began. The average per km cost is about $35 million for Phase 2 or about 15% of the average per km cost of Phase 3B/3A.

[Alps]

Fully-function is not a Canadianism. The phrase is poorly written and maybe just auto-generated as news media outlets here are shedding writers just as they are in the States.

I am glad so much work was done before inflation really kicked in.  Addition of another lane to the Trans-Canada in the Fraser Valley has ballooned in cost.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/highway-1-widening-abbotsford-fraser-valley-cost-bc-phase-3b

The Hive - Urbanized
"8-km-long Highway 1 widening in Abbotsford to cost $2.65 billion
Premier David Eby announced this afternoon that Phase 3B of the Highway 1 project will be located entirely within Abbotsford — an eight-km-long stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway from the Mount Lehman Road interchange to the Highway 11 (Sumas Way) interchange. Phase 3B is now expected to carry a cost of $2.65 billion.

"This is in addition to Fall 2023's previously announced and funded estimated construction cost of $2.34 billion for Phase 3A just to the west, which is a 13-km-long segment of the highway from the 264th Street interchange in Langley Township to Mount Lehman Road.

The cost per km for each of the Phase 3B and 3A projects is now about $240 million, representing a drastic exponential increase from the cost of Highway 1 corridor projects performed over the past 15 years further to the west elsewhere in Langley Township and in Surrey.

"For example, the Phase 2 widening Highway 1 from the 216th Street interchange to 264th Street interchange within Langley Township, the whole segment distance of roughly 10 km, carries a total cost of $345 million, as of 2022 when major construction work first began. The average per km cost is about $35 million for Phase 2 or about 15% of the average per km cost of Phase 3B/3A.

Something is very wrong here - those kinds of costs are far too high. If I were in the provincial agency, I would get my resources together to conduct an independent project estimate.

[Chris]

Highway 1 has a wide median, with sufficient space to expand to eight lanes without incurring a high cost. There are no bridges of any significance in Highway 1, only a few overpasses.

The only narrow section in this corridor is 2 kilometers in Abbotsford, near the Highway 11 interchange.

Why should phase 3A cost more than $ 15 million per kilometer?

[TXtoNJ]

I'd argue that the geometric and interchange improvements are far more substantial than the addition of the HOV and bus lanes. Bad sightlines, obsolete interchanges, and excessive hill grades over long distances are what cause the daily congestion on this segment, more than undercapacity.

The replacement of the Highway 11 interchange will be costly, since it lies in marshland and will require heavy preparation works. While the increase in cost per km is drastic, I think it's a bit misleading owing to the specific technical challenges in Phase 3

[TXtoNJ]

Highway 1 has a wide median, with sufficient space to expand to eight lanes without incurring a high cost. There are no bridges of any significance in Highway 1, only a few overpasses.

The only narrow section in this corridor is 2 kilometers in Abbotsford, near the Highway 11 interchange.

Why should phase 3A cost more than $ 15 million per kilometer?

See above. The geometry is horrible there, and remediating it means intensive soil preparation works, as this is a particularly rainy part of the world (Langley averages 1400 mm of rain per year). What seems like a flat highway from Google Maps will actually be a 30 km long embankment with bridge structures at crossings.