B.C.’s Transportation Minister is confirming that the work done to four lane Highway 1 through Chase will be less than originally anticipated.
Instead of the original 10 kilometre stretch of highway, work will now take place on just 4.9 kilometres of highway. The first phase is a 3.3 kilometre stretch from Chase Creek Road to Chase West, and a second phase will expand 1.6 kilometres from Chase West to Chase Creek Bridge.
Speaking on the NL Morning News, Claire Trevena was asked about the reduced scope.
“We’ve had lots of conversations with Chase. I’ve met with Chase may times, so we’ve made amendments because of community concerns,” she said. “We’ve also taken out a section that goes through the Neskonlith Reserve. We haven’t come to an agreement with Neskonlith, and obviously we’re not going to be working through their reserve without their agreement.”
The project is expected to still cost $260-million and work on the first phase is likely to get underway this year after a contract was awarded to Kamloops-based Dawson Civil Limited.
“There was a hot construction market, but we’ve come in with a good price on this one. Looking at what was initially announced was not based on a lot of detail,” Trevena added.
“We’ve done the detail. We are confident with this and we’re going to be moving forward at a time when I think people are looking for this sort of investment.”
However, the MLA for Kamloops-South Thompson says he is shocked to hear about the reduced scope of the project, with an increased price tag of $61-million.
“The segment that runs through the Neskonlith Indian Reserve has effectively been cancelled,” Stone said. “In addition to that, we are getting one less full access interchange. We are getting no underpass for emergency access at Coburn and no safety improvements at Mattey’s Road.”
“We are going to spend $61-million more for 5 km less four-laning east of Kamloops.”
Stone, a former BC Liberal Transportation Minister, blames mismanagement by the NDP which he says has led to taxpayers getting less highway for more money.
“This is directly attributable to a three year delay,” he noted, saying the first phase was ready to go to tender in the summer of 2017. He also accused the NDP’s community benefits agreement for the price increase.
“We had an election and there was a change in government and the new minister was sworn in – that’s Claire Trevena. She had a decision to make at that point to move ahead with the tender ready project. She chose to delay. When you delay highway construction projects by three years, there is absolutely going to be a cost escalation related to almost everything associated with the project.”
Trevena though disputed that claim noting the project didn’t have all the necessary work done back in 2017.
“I mean, I am working with Ministry engineers who say we need more work,” she said. “We also needed to have more conversation with the community of Chase, so it wasn’t ready to go. We now are ready to go with it, and we are very excited about it.”
Stone adds as it stands the project will see four lanes shrink to two at the Hoffman Bluff section, before widening at Chase and then shrinking back down to two lanes up Jade Mountain.
The government adds the existing highway will be converted to frontage road to consolidate access.
