A $44.3-million flyover project designed to eliminate a dangerous left-hand turn across the Patricia Bay Highway onto Keating Cross Road is likely to run past its original 2023 in-service date, though the province appears hesitant to say so.
With severe weather wreaking havoc on the mainland in recent months, requiring resources to repair highways and bridges, the overpass is likely to take longer than expected.
“I have a high degree of confidence it’s moving forward and will get underway and complete, but the perspective I hold is it’s been something like 46 years in the making so a few months here or there is pretty moot,” said Central Saanich Mayor Ryan Windsor.
Windsor said it would come as no surprise that the project would be delayed given the amount of work and extra crews required to quickly reopen the Coquihalla Highway and other routes on the mainland after they were devastated by heavy rains, flooding and landslides.
“(Keating) is on schedule as much as anything is on schedule these days,” he said with a laugh.
The project kicked off in 2019 when, in a flurry of pre-election statements, the federal government announced $16.7 million for the overpass. Central Saanich has kicked in $2.5 million and the province is picking up the rest of the tab.
The Ministry of Transportation would not say if 2023 is still the target for completion. In a statement, the ministry said preliminary work was completed in summer 2020 followed by geotechnical investigations in spring 2021 including environmental management and archaeological assessments.
“Now that the business case and design work are nearing completion, the ministry will be able to provide a final budget later this spring,” it said.
“Once a contractor is on board and a construction schedule in place, the ministry will advise on timelines.”
The Highway 17 and Keating Cross Road flyover project will replace the northbound left turn onto Keating Cross Road with a separated flyover overpass, designed to improve access for businesses and neighbourhoods, and make the highway safer.
The project will also realign the southbound on-ramp to Victoria, widen Keating Cross Road and add sidewalks.
That intersection was the site of 47 crashes between 2016 and the start of 2021, according to statistics from ICBC. There were six crashes there in 2020, the last year for which numbers are available.
