Work on Trans-Canada widening north of Salmon Arm begins this fall

A section of the Trans-Canada Highway in the Shuswap will be be widened beginning this fall as the province continues with its plan to widen the route to four-lanes from Kamloops to Alberta.

The Ministry of Transportation has awarded the contract to Emil Anderson Construction Inc. and construction is expected to begin this fall and be finished by 2026, according to a Ministry of Transportation media release issued today, July 24.

Highway 1 will be widened to four lanes in the Tappen area between Ford Road and Tappen Valley Road, and construction is scheduled to begin in the fall and will take three construction seasons to complete.

"This portion of work includes a stretch of highway running through Skwlax te Secwepemcu´l?ecw, formerly Little Shuswap Lake Band Indian Reserve #5," the release reads. "This will enhance connections within the Skwlax te Secwepemcu´l?ecw community and improve safe access on and off the Trans-Canada Highway."

In addition to widening the highway, upgrades will also see the Tappen overpass replaced, new frontage roads and a a commercial and passenger vehicle pullout.

A total of $243 million was approved for the project, which was announced in July 2021. The province is covering $161 million and the federal government chipped in $82 million.

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