Work on four-laning a section Highway 1 in Salmon Arm that was anticipated to begin in 2023 may not get underway until 2026.
At the Oct. 15 city council meeting, during discussion on a motion to support construction of the second phase of the, city engineering and public works director Rob Niewenhuizen explained staff's recommendation to reallocate additional funding needed for the work from the 4th Avenue SW (Trans-Canada Highway to 10th Street SW) construction project. He explained the project had "been on the books for a number of years," and that it was to be done in conjunction with the four-laning of Highway 1 at the west end of town, between 10th Avenue and 10th Street.
"We鈥檝e now been informed by the ministry this project is still in negotiations and may happen in 2026," said Niewenhuizen.
When asked for further information, Niewenhuizen said the ministry had indicated "they鈥檙e proposing a different design."
"So they鈥檙e going to be working on a new design starting now, and hopefully have that completed next year, so I suspect that if they tendered it out they wouldn鈥檛 be constructing until fall 2025, or 2026, but I don鈥檛 think anything鈥檚 been written in stone."
This section of highway, which runs through Adams Lake Band land, was initially part of the Salmom Arm West project that included the replacement of the Salmon River Bridge. , the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure said it was working with the band on reserve land acquisition.
"This segment is a priority and work is expected to get underway in 2023," reads the release, adding the section includes 1.1 kilometres of highway widening and intersection and frontage road upgrades.
, city council pushed to get the two-lane stretch of highway repaved.
"I run that area and I told them there's 118 pot holes in that 700 metre stretch and it鈥檚 probably the worst section of Highway 1 in the country," Mayor Alan Harrison told the Observer. "We understand that there鈥檚 going to be upgrading, and there鈥檚 going to be four lanes, but they鈥檝e been saying this for two years now and we know consultation is still happening between Adams Lake and the province. But they need to resurface that鈥� they鈥檙e aware of that piece of highway and I鈥檓 optimistic that that will be done."
