Construction has reached a major milestone on the $15-million project to improve safety on the Malahat (Highway 1) between Shawnigan Lake Rd. and the Malahat summit.

For the remainder of September and through October, workers will be paving while continuing to blast and haul rock to widen the highway as part of the Malahat Safety Improvement Project.

The ministry is taking the following steps to ensure traffic continues to flow as smoothly as possible:

• southbound traffic will not be delayed between the peak hours of 6 a.m. and 9 a.m.;
• northbound traffic will not be delayed between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.;
• there may be periodic delays of up to 20 minutes outside of peak times above,  Mondays to Fridays;
• traffic will not be delayed on Saturdays or Sundays; and
• traffic will not be delayed the day before, during and the day after long weekends.

Motorists are reminded that there is a construction zone speed limit of 60 kilometres per hour for the duration of the project. Traffic may be stopped briefly at any time to allow construction equipment across the highway. Motorists are reminded to continue to obey flaggers and watch for workers and highway message board updates.

Motorists are also advised to check drivebc.ca and follow @tranbc on Twitter for more detailed information about work on the Malahat.

These safety improvements are on schedule to be completed by spring 2015. At that time, more than half of the Malahat will have median barrier.

Quotes:

Minister of Social Development and Social Innovation and Comox Valley MLA Don McRae −

“The start of paving is a key step towards providing motorists with a safer connection to and from the south Island, and I look forward to celebrating the completion of the Malahat Safety Improvement Project.”

Parksville-Qualicum MLA Michelle Stilwell −

“As someone who is using this stretch of highway regularly, it’s exciting to see all the progress being made on these safety improvements. I would also like to thank drivers for continuing to have patience and use caution in the construction zone.”

Learn More:

For photos showing work done on the Malahat Highway, check out our Flickr page at:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tranbc/sets/72157630658564682

Follow the work of the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure online at: www.tranbc.ca

Media Contacts:

Government and Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
250 356-8241