Stretch of Highway 97A headed eastbound toward Sicamous/via Google Street View

Tenders have been issued by the BC government for a major project along Highway 1 in the Shuswap, which is going to disrupt traffic through the region for over 3 years.

Work to replace the Bruhn Bridge along the TransCanada through Sicamous is expected to get underway in September, and last until the end of 2027.

This will mean intermittent shutdowns of Highway 1, forcing motorists to take Highway 97 around the construction.

Sicamous Mayor Colleen Anderson says they want the province to use this opportunity to create upgrades along both 97A and 97B.

“One of the bigger concerns was reducing the speed on 97,” said Anderson.  “It will be busier, so reducing the speed, perhaps some turning lanes that will keep the traffic moving a little bit better.”

Anderson says the larger concern is for commercial vehicles, particularly running along the two-lane stretch of Highway 97A.

“It is a narrower highway. They will be resurfacing and filling in some gaps. But it would be great to have some pull-out spaces, as well as some turning lanes in there,” noted Anderson.  “Mara Lake… we do pull drinking water out of there. So making sure that dangerous goods are taken care of and noted.”

The province, in a presentation to the District of Sicamous, has said improvements to the alternate route will take place, including resurfacing of Highway’s 97A and 97B, as well as a longer turn signal to get from 97B to 97A.

The construction is expected to add anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes to people’s travel times when the TransCanada is shut down, depending on the time of year.