A series of traffic pattern changes are coming as part of the Highway 91 /17 Upgrade Project.
Scheduled to begin at the same time in late November, the new River Road interchange will be in full operation, a permanent closure of a portion of 96 Street will be in effect and there will be a temporary traffic signal westbound on Highway 17 at the River Road interchange on-ramp.
The information was provided to Delta council this week from the engineering department, which noted the major highway project has passed 50 per cent completion and is scheduled to be done by spring 2023.
Current construction activities include, among other things, pile driving for guide sign installation, bridge construction, preload placement and removal as well as wall construction.
The department report notes once 96 Street is permanently closed off from Highway 17, the temporary traffic signal for westbound Highway 17 traffic is necessary to provide gaps for westbound traffic merging from the River Road interchange to safely access the left turn lanes at the intersection of Highway 91 Connector and Highway 17, for drivers heading toward Highway 91.
The temporary traffic signal will be in place for about 11 months until the interchange at the Highway 91 Connector and Highway 17 is fully constructed.
The Highway 91 /17 Upgrade Project is a $260 million undertaking, which includes a series of roadworks aimed at increasing highway efficiency and reducing conflicts between local traffic and commercial vehicles.
The upgrade will see improvements to Highway 91 at the Nordel interchange, upgrades to the Highway 91 connector at the Nordel Way intersection, a new interchange at Highway 17 and Highway 91 connector (Sunbury) and a new interchange at River Road connecting to Highway 17.
Funding partners include the Government of Canada through the National Infrastructure component of the New Building Canada Fund, the Province of British Columbia and the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.
