Drivers planning on taking Highway 1 near Lytton Monday evening (July 7) will need to consider alternative routes.
Highway 1 at Tank Hill will be closed in both directions starting at midnight and will remain closed until Tuesday (July 8) at 9 a.m. The overnight closure is being done for the placement of "concrete on the new highway structure over the CPKC Railway at Tank Hill."
During this time, drivers can learn about alternative routes from checkpoints set up at Lytton and Spences Bridge.
For vehicles travelling from the Lower Mainland and Interior, Highway 3 and Highway 5 can be used as alternative routes. Message boards in Lillooet and Ashcroft and Cache Creek will provide traffic control guidance.
The intersections of Highway 1 and Highway 12, and Highway 1 and Highway 8, will also be closed until 9 a.m. Aside from emergency services, no vehicles will be able to get through these intersections.
Tank Hill was severely impacted in the November 2021 atmospheric river, with both the highway and the CPKC main line affected by washouts. The highway formerly passed under the train line at the site, but an at-grade crossing has been in place since January 2022.
In May, work at the site included installing steel beams used to support heavy loads; installing concrete deck panels; and installing the west retaining walls that will support the roadway as it approaches the new bridge.
When work is complete, the highway will pass above the main line and an existing creek. There will also be improved drainage from CPKC rail under the Trans-Canada. The project is on schedule to be completed in November 2025.
Local traffic will be able to use Gladwin Area and the Nicomen River Road. All other traffic will be detoured via Highway 12, Highway 5, and Highway 97D.
— with files from Barbara Roden
