After days of backed-up vehicles crawling through a single lane of alternating traffic, the Malahat reopened to two-way travel on Friday night.
The province announced two-way traffic had resumed on the highway just after 8 p.m. on Nov. 19. The reopening comes after record-breaking rainfall damaged the roadway on Nov. 15.
The province noted additional repairs will continue for the coming months in order to fully restore the damaged Tunnel Hill site. Drivers can expect active construction equipment with some single-lane alternating traffic and intermittent closures as construction warrants, the Friday night update said.
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The ongoing work means drivers should also be prepared for road stretches with no median barrier, narrow lanes, limited shoulder widths and reduced speed zones.
The province asks that people follow construction zone speed limits and the direction of traffic control personnel.
Friday’s return to two-way traffic was days earlier than the scheduled reopening previously set out by the province. On Thursday, the Malahat reopened to 24-hour travel, but at that time, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure still expected it would take until the end of Monday before two-way traffic could resume.
📢!ATTENTION!📢 #BCHwy1 #Malahat is open to 2-lane, 2-way traffic! Please use caution in the🦺 #ConeZone 🦺and give the amazing construction team a big wave if you see them. @TranBC @DriveBC_VI @DriveBC pic.twitter.com/eHbIBRdIZX
— Emcon Services Inc., South Island Division (@EmconSouthVI) November 20, 2021
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