NANAIMO — A stretch of the Malahat highway, where cars race to the summit, will soon be divided by medians, Premier Christy Clark announced Wednesday.
The government will spend $15 million next year widening and improving “NASCAR Corner” on the Malahat with centre-line dividers, Clark told a business conference in Nanaimo.
“I didn’t want to wait to invest this $15 million because it’s not safe enough,” Clark said.
“Driving on any road poses dangers but there’s an acceptable level of risk I think, and to me this is in an unacceptable level of risk and that’s why we have to fix it and that’s why we have to get on with it now.”
That 2.3-kilometre stretch of the Malahat runs north from the Shawnigan Lake intersection to the Malahat summit sign and scenic pullout area.
Locals call it NASCAR Corner because some northbound drivers race to pass slower vehicles before the two lanes merge at the top of the mountain.
Emergency responders urged the province to fix the stretch after three people died in a crash there in October 2012.
Work will go to tender in the spring and is expected to be complete by spring 2015, the Transportation Ministry said.
The government finished $8 million in Malahat safety work during the summer, which included new medians and intersection upgrades.
With the new work, 50 per cent of the Malahat will be divided, said Clark.
“It isn’t finished,” she said. “We’re going to keep going. We’re going to make that investment so that we can save lives. Because this Island deserves a better transportation network than the Malahat currently provides. And we’re going to make those investments because you earned them.”
The work will also include a one-kilometre extension to the southbound passing lane in that area, as well as intersection improvements at Whittaker Road and Holker Place.
Clark stopped short of saying the Malahat will one day be divided for its entire length, saying she’ll wait to see what experts decide as part of a Vancouver Island transportation study next year.
Upgrading the rest of the Malahat will be extremely expensive, the Ministry of Transportation has said. Much of the narrow twisting road would require rock blasting or building over cliffsides.
NASCAR Corner will need “extensive rock blasting” as well as retaining walls on the steep shoulders and environmental management of nearby Spectacle Creek, the ministry said.
“This is an expensive piece of the highway to fix, there’s no question about it,” said the premier. “Sometimes you need to make a big investment in a smaller piece of road for a big payoff, which is saving lives.”
Opposition NDP transport critic Claire Trevena said while the upgrades are welcome, Clark should be developing a long-term vision for the Malahat.
“It’s a dangerous piece of highway, people drive it very fast,” said Trevena. “But we need to look at it as a whole. We can’t just carry on doing piecemeal things.”
Compared to a $3 billion George Massey bridge in Metro Vancouver, the Island isn’t getting a fair share of funding, said Victoria-Swan Lake NDP MLA Rob Fleming. “We’re a region of 750,000 that punches way above our economic weight but are treated like a forgotten stepchild.”
rshaw@timescolonist.com
