The cost to four-lane the Trans-Canada Highway through Chase has gone up by 33 per cent.
The Ministry of Transportation today has put out a bid for contractors for the project, now with a price tag of $260 million – $61 million more than when the project was first announced in 2017. The government says that total project cost includes up to $12.1 million from the Federal Government.
Transportation Minister Claire Trevena says the NDP’s Community Benefits Agreement plays a part in the increased costs, but she says it’s only 3 per cent of the total.
“It’s not driving the cost up. What we have seen is, for a long while we saw a very hot construction market, hopefully we’ll see a lot of eager bidders now because of COVID,” she told NL News. “But we also saw this went out, when it was first announced, without much engineering work done on it, without work with First Nations.”
The first phase of the project will see work done on a 3.3 km stretch of highway from Chase Creek Road to Chase West, east of Kamloops. Work is expected to begin late this summer, once the contract is awarded through an open bidding process.
“We’re looking that we will start construction when we get the contractor organized. They’ll be starting work immediately. We want to get to work on this this season,” Trevena added.
“I know people are feeling that they want to see this work done, we want to see this work done. It’s really a safety issue.”
The government says construction sites have policies in place to follow all social distancing requirements to prevent the spread of COVID-19 – including a reduction of in-person meetings and gatherings, and where possible, holding meetings outdoors.
Along with widening 3.3 kilometres of Highway 1 to four lanes with a central median, the project will also include:
- at-grade protected T-intersection at both Chase Creek Road and Shuswap Avenue;
- a grade separated pedestrian crossing and multi-use pathway to link the Neskonlith Indian Band and the Vilage of Chase communities;
- a cattle underpass to comply with Agricultural Land Commission requirements; and
- conversion of the existing highway to frontage road to consolidate access.
The highway through Chase will be widened over three phases, and is expected to include the stretch from Hoffman’s Bluff in the west to Chase Creek Bridge in the east.
Work is expected to start next year to widen 1.6 kilometres between Chase West Road and the Chase Creek Bridge, while the third phase from Hoffman’s Bluff to Chase Creek Road, while a priority, is not currently included in the construction schedule, according to the government.