Safety improvements are on the way for Highway 1 through a crash-prone area of the Shuswap.

The province will be upgrading the intersection at Balmoral Road near Sorrento starting next month, to bring in a sheltered left-turn lane to merge into, and right-turn pullouts on and off of the highway heading westbound.

Area director Paul Demenok says the upgrade plan isn’t perfect but is a good improvement.

“What appears to happen is that people get impatient, and pull out before looking both ways, taking a second look to make sure that you’ve got a safe distance. That’s where the majority of accidents have occurred, is people pulling out, turning left onto Highway 1 from Balmoral Road and not waiting or not seeing or not recognizing that traffic is approaching quickly.”

Demenok points out the most ideal improvement would be an overpass at that intersection, but he points out it would take years and cost millions of dollars.

“It’s not perfect, but I think it’s a good improvement, and it could be done quickly and inexpensively. About 70 per cent of the accidents at that intersection will likely be prevented with these steps, and that’s certainly a big safety improvement that should benefit the residents of this area.”

The highway upgrades will start next month and will be done by November.

As for the cost, the Ministry of Transportation says that won’t be known until after the contract for the work has been awarded.