The Chief of the Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc First Nation says the plan to limit access to locals only will continue indefinitely at a common detour through the reserve.

Rosanne Casimir says traffic has picked up on Salish Road off the Halston Connector which has forced the band to respond.

“Since the construction on Victoria Street, there definitely has been an increase of traffic coming through Salish Road. The biggest concerns, one there is no shoulders. Two, we do have residents who reside there. And three, we also have children and youth and others who are going to school. We have elderly who are going for their walks,” Casimir says.

The $13.5-million-dollar infrastructure project on Victoria Street west in downtown Kamloops began on April 15, and is expected to take years to fully complete.

“We have been faced with this particular issue for some time. Prior to the construction, we did put up some signage through the reserve, and duly noting on Salish Road as well, ‘drive like your children live here.’ We’ve had so many people speeding through that area,” Casimir adds.

Access is limited to Salish Road to deter people trying to use it as a detour to avoid the road work.

Residents are being allowed through.