Coquihalla to open by late January, if weather cooperates

• 20 different sites on Coquihalla damaged
• Five bridges either completely collapsed or heavily damaged.
• Repairs underway and temporary bridges being built
• In-river work to reduce erosion and channel water

The Coquihalla Highway will be ready to take commercial vehicle traffic by late January, provided the winter weather cooperates. Parts of it will be narrowed with reduced speed limits.

The highway sustained massive damage from the landslides caused by record-breaking rains less than two weeks ago.

Transport Minister Rob Fleming gave the hopeful prognosis for the temporary repairs at a media conference Thursday.

Fleming said about 20 different sites were damaged or washed away in the deluge, effecting about 130 kilometres of corridor. The huge damage includes five bridges where spans either completely collapsed or were otherwise heavily damaged.

He stressed it would be a daunting task to get the vital connection between the Interior and Lower Mainland back to being fully operational. However, work on the fixes has started.

“We have over a hundred pieces of equipment working around the clock to restore temporary access as quickly as possible,” Fleming said. “We are currently blasting rock at three sites and mobilizing equipment to another two sites.”

Fleming added clean-up has been completed at two major debris flow fields as well.

In terms or some of the specific fixes along the Coquihalla - moving north from Hope to Merritt - he explained a temporary bridge is being installed at the Jessica bridge as they demolish a span that collapsed in the deluge. Also, at the Bottle Top bridge, a temporary access bridge is being installed to get crews across as they demolish another collapsed span.

Lanes are being rebuilt at four different sites and there is in-river work underway at many locations to protect them from further erosion and to properly channel water under the main spans.

Timelines for limited reopening

“In terms of timelines, we’re reasonably optimistic that enough temporary repairs can be completed to allow commercial traffic on the corridor in about two months’ time, by late January,” Fleming said. “But with that, I do have to caution the weather will be a factor and a key consideration in determining if we can reach that target.”

When the highway does open, Fleming said it would 'not be business as usual.'

“There will be two segments of 20-30 kilometres each where the highway will have to have reduced speeds and only one lane in each direction will be possible,” he said.

One positive note among all the gloom following the natural disasters is that the section of the Coquihalla that experiences the most severe winter weather – those at the higher elevations – were not as badly impacted as other sections and will have the same road standards as before the storms, Fleming explained.

Hwy 1

Meanwhile, Highway 1 reopened through the Fraser Valley between Chilliwack and Abbotsford at 2 p.m. today following cleanup, repairs and geotechnical assessments of the highway and its structures.

This reopening helps connect the Lower Mainland through to Highway 3 and the Interior. While this will help to reduce congestion on Highway 7, travel restrictions will remain in place on Highway 7 to ensure the safe movement of essential goods and services.