Monday May 1, 2023 | LANGFORD, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
More improvements are coming to the Malahat stretch of Highway 1, particularly around Goldstream Provincial Park.
Some of the improvements were outlined by Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Rob Fleming to Island Social Trends last week.
It will be more than more meridians between northbound and southbound lanes on the steep-grade curvy section of highway. Approximately 60% of the Malahat corridor is now median divided.
“Our focus now has been on Malahat safety improvements,” said Fleming, referring to a shift in focus from improvements to a dangerous section of Highway 14 (between Sooke and Langford) that required much attention and funding on the other side of south Vancouver Island.
The Goldstream segment has limited detour options during road closures, with the narrow single lane Finlayson Arm Road which cannot accommodate large vehicles, ferry routes with limited capacities, or the lengthy Pacific Marine Circle Route through Port Renfrew.
The next phases of Malahat work will be announced soon, said Fleming.
”There will be pedestrian overpasses, and wider shoulders that protect the ecosystems in the park,” said Fleming.
“Also, right now there’s no way for a BC Transit vehicle to pull over,” he added in mentioning the importance of visitor access to Goldstream Park and keeping traffic from backing up when a bus stops.
A more detailed announcement will be made in summer, with the construction to follow later. The current Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure page about Malahat Safety Improvements outlines proposed active transportation improvements and environmental enhancements:
- Enhancing and protecting the existing park trail parallel to the highway overlooking the river
- Improved parking and trail network connections, including a pedestrian trail bridge over the Goldstream River to connect local trails
- Installing a safe pedestrian highway crossing structure linking park trails on both sides of the highway
- Environmental restoration and riparian replanting
- Installing enclosed storm drainage with oil/water spill collection and separation devices through the existing S-curves to the south of the Finlayson Arm Road intersection
===== RELATED:
LANGFORD TRAFFIC: Malahat protocols for winter weather (December 2, 2022)
Malahat Tunnel Hill repairs through to summer 2023 (May 26, 2022)
Traffic: Malahat overnight April 6 (April 6, 2022)
===== ABOUT ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Island Social Trends Editor Mary P Brooke has been writing about socioeconomic trends in the Langford area — including traffic news — since 2014.
Island Social Trends has been covering politics, business, education and communities through a socioeconomic lens since 2008 on south Vancouver Island (previously as print editions of West Shore Voice News, and before that both Sooke Voice News and MapleLine Magazine, before launching the fully online news portal Island Social Trends in mid-2020).