Transportation ministry announces Illecillewaet four-laning project tender after delays

Mountaineer staff: The provincial government has announced they are putting the Illecillewaet four-laning project out to tender. The project, which was originally scheduled to be under construction by now, was delayed due to the provincial government’s announcement of their Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) framework in early 2018. The provincial government says the CBA will steer benefits of construction projects to local communities and will guarantee employment opportunities for Indigenous people, apprentices, and local residents. Critics, notably the private non-union construction industry, have called the new CBA framework a handout to union supporters of the NDP government. The Illecillewaet project will be the first project to be delivered under the CBA, and is scheduled for tender in the winter of 2019. Here is the B.C. government media release on the project tender:

Illecillewaet four-laning project goes to tender

REVELSTOKE – A tender has been issued to improve safety and capacity on the Trans-Canada Highway, by widening it to four lanes and upgrading the existing brake check.

The Illecillewaet four-laning project will widen two kilometres of Highway 1, approximately 42 kilometres east of Revelstoke. The brake-check area will be expanded to accommodate up to 15 trucks at once from the current five-truck capacity. Acceleration and deceleration lanes will be added to improve safety for trucks entering or leaving the brake check.

The contract for Illecillewaet will be awarded through an open bidding process in March 2019, with the start of construction expected this spring.

The total estimated project of $62.9 million is cost shared, with the Government of Canada contributing up to $15.5 million through the Provincial-Territorial Infrastructure Component of the New Building Canada Fund and the Province providing the remaining $47.4 million.

This is the first of several upgrade projects on the Trans-Canada Highway between Kamloops and Alberta to be built using a Community Benefits Agreement. Community benefits will include job and training opportunities for people in the local area and will increase the participation of apprentices and workers traditionally under-represented in the construction trades, such as Indigenous peoples, women and people with disabilities.