Winter storm could cause bridge and highway closures, officials warn

Vancouver -

The winter storm heading for British Columbia could force the closure of major bridges in Metro Vancouver, potentially causing more chaos for commuters.

The Ministry of Transportation said it might have to shut down the Alex Fraser Bridge and the Port Mann Bridge for public safety, if conditions are too extreme to allow technicians to clear snow accumulation from the cables.

"Under normal conditions, the ministry uses a cable-collar system to remove snow that builds up on the cables," the province said in a news release Wednesday afternoon. "However, high winds can increase the shedding of snow and pose a risk to the rope technicians. This prevents them from deploying the system."

There is also a chance that highways could be shut down, but the government said maintenance contractors will be monitoring conditions closely and "proactively applying anti-icing brine."

Earlier in the day, Environment and Climate Change Canada urged B.C. residents to avoid non-essential travel due to the forecast.

Most of the province remained under winter storm warning on Wednesday evening, with heavy snow and potentially freezing rain expected through Thursday morning.

On Tuesday night, heavy snowfall left trucks and buses struggling to navigate hills in the Lower Mainland. Some TransLink routes were delayed by up to four hours as lines of buses were stuck in snow.

The HOV lane of the Port Mann Bridge was also closed while crews used snow collars to prevent ice bombs.

With files from CTV News Vancouver's Regan Hasegawa