This year marks the centennial of the beginning of the construction of the Cariboo Highway.
It was in 1924 that the provincial government, led by then-Premier John Oliver, decided to reopen what was known as the old Cariboo Waggon Road. The trail was closed after railway construction led to the demolition of the road between Yale and Spences Bridge in the late 1880s – isolating communities, like 100 Mile House, from the Lower Mainland and beyond.
As one of B.C.’s first highways, the province reconstructed it to fit the needs of vehicles along the dirt roads.
The need for tourism also led to the reconstruction’s necessity - with a desire to make the highway into one of North America’s great tourist highways.
If one wanted to get to the Lower Mainland at that time by road, one had to go to the United States and enter the region further east. The highway between Hope and Princeton would not be built until 1949, and the Coquihalla would not be built until the late 1980s.
The then-Cariboo highway, now a part of the Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 97, passes through the centre of 100 Mile House.
The highway would go on to be completed by 1927. Nowadays, the portion of the highway between Cache Creek and Hope is part of the Trans-Canada Highway, while the portion between Cache Creek and Prince George, which 100 Mile lies between, is part of Highway 97.
A few facts about the old Cariboo Highway:
• The highway was initially tolled. There was a toll booth in Spuzzum, which was then relocated to Yale. The toll would later become an annoyance to residents, and it was eventually taken down in 1947. This toll was meant to pay for the Alexandria Bridge near Spuzzum.
• In 1962, the portion of the Cariboo Highway between Cache Creek and Hope became a part of the Trans-Canada Highway.
• The road was initially quite treacherous to drive, especially throughout the winter. This was due to the fact it was gravel and narrow - and there were many washouts or snow, which led to its frequent closure.
• Parts of the old highway are now a part of a restoration project known as the Cariboo Waggon Road Restoration Project - which aims to restore accessible sections of the road.
