Nightly closures coming to Highway 4 near Tofino, Ucluelet as project cost balloons to $54M
Nightly closures of the only highway in and out of Vancouver Island’s Pacific Rim communities are set to resume next month.
British Columbia’s transportation ministry announced Thursday that nighttime closures would return to Highway 4 at Kennedy Lake starting July 6.
The closures will occur between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. every night of the week except Saturday, temporarily blocking all travel between Port Alberni and the communities of Tofino and Ucluelet.
Daytime construction will continue at the site, with single-lane alternating traffic allowed through intermittently. The ministry says drivers should expect delays of about 30 minutes between 2 a.m. and 8 p.m.
COST GROWS TO $54 MILLION
The ministry announced Thursday that the cost of the highway improvement project has grown to $53.96 million.
The original project budget was $38.1 million and work was expected to be complete by summer 2020. Now the province says the completion date is likely to be summer 2022.
Early last year, blasting at the Kennedy Hill site triggered a rockslide that cut off access to Tofino and Ucluelet for a weekend.
“A variety of factors, including the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for smaller blasts due to the nature of the fractured bedrock, increased environmental protections and the repairs to Highway 4 resulting from blasting damage at the project site in January 2020, have contributed to a new projected completion date,” the ministry said in a statement Thursday.
The project budget includes $13.5 million in federal funding under the New Building Canada Fund, with the remainder paid for by the province.
The full schedule of highway closures for the area is available here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Minister 'outraged' after AFN national chief's headdress taken from Air Canada cabin
The federal minister of Crown-Indigenous relations is calling on Air Canada to 'make things right' with the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, who said her headdress was removed from an airplane cabin during a flight this week.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
BREAKING Stranded orca calf swims out of B.C. lagoon where she was trapped for weeks
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
'Violation': CSIS had officer investigated after she reported a superior raped her
A CSIS officer's allegations that she was raped repeatedly by a superior in agency vehicles set off a harassment inquiry, but also triggered an investigation into her that concluded the alleged attacks were a “misuse” of agency vehicles by the woman.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Canada recognizes housing as a human right. Few provinces have followed suit
As more Canadians find themselves struggling to afford or find housing, the country's smallest province is the only one that can point to legislation recognizing housing as a human right.
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
Taylor Swift dons Montreal designer's dress in 'Fortnight' video
A pair of Montreal designers' work has now been viewed over 41 million times. Taylor Swift dons a Victorian throwback black gown in her latest music video, 'Fortnight', designed by UNTTLD due Simon Belanger and Jose Manuel Saint-Jacques.