It was a small tweak with big traffic implications.
The B.C. government admits it tinkered with arguably the most critical traffic light on the Capital Region's busiest route.
This week, drivers on the Trans-Canada Highway started reporting their rush-hour commute was taking nearly twice the usual time.
Many pointed the finger of blame at the traffic lights at the McKenzie Avenue intersection, saying the light wasn't going green as long as it normally does.
The ministry confirmed it changed the signal configuration at the intersection on Sunday, but said the changes made only affected the sequencing of the lights, but not the duration.
Still, motorists in the Capital Region weren't happy.
"Definitely worse," wrote Suzanne Carvell on Twitter. "10 minutes later in the morning and I take a 6:30 bus."
"The traffic coming into town from the Westshore this week has been insane," said Bernard Von Schulman, responding to a CFAX 1070 tweet. "Worse congestion than when there is an accident."
But there's good news for drivers as the B.C. government says it will now tweak the southbound traffic lights to stay green longer.
"We have decided to add green time for southbound Highway 1 traffic tomorrow morning to help reduce congestion," a Ministry of Transportation spokesperson said in a statement.
The ministry thanked drivers for their patience as it implements the new signal operation.
The new McKenzie interchange, with its partial cloverleaf design, is expected to open to traffic in summer 2019. The project will be completed by the end of next year, the ministry said.
