B.C. adds $2.65B for Fraser Valley Highway 1 improvement initiative

The British Columbia government is providing another $2.65 billion for upgrades to Highway 1 through the Fraser Valley in an effort to relieve traffic congestion and ease daily commutes between the communities of Langley and Abbotsford.

The funding will go toward upgrades between Mount Lehman Road west of downtown Abbotsford to Highway 11 on the opposite side of the city.

The money builds on $2.34 billion in funding approved last fall for upgrades between Mount Lehman Road and 264th Street in the Township of Langley.

A statement from the Ministry of Transportation says that work will begin this year and include four new interchanges, as well as the rebuilding of several highway overpasses to increase the clearance height for commercial vehicles.

It says procurement for work for the latest funding will begin next year, with major construction starting in 2026 and wrapping up in 2031.

Premier David Eby says the widespread flooding that hit the Sumas Prairie in fall 2021 is one of the factors that has delayed the highway improvement.

"On the upside, it creates the potential for the road work that we're going to do on the other side of Highway 11 to be not just a road, but also to be infrastructure to protect the community from future floods," Eby told a news conference.

"That's why I was so devastated and frankly a little bit pissed off that the federal government gave us $0 on the funding that was going to go to flood mitigation" in that area, the premier said.

Eby said he hopes his aggravation is "time-limited" and funding will come to support the national trade and agricultural corridor.

The Fraser Valley Highway 1 improvement program will eventually see the route expanded through the Sumas Prairie in Abbotsford toward Chilliwack.\

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 14, 2024.