A HIGHWAYS report outlining proposals for the upgrading of the Squamish Highway and the construction of a new Indian Arm route to Squamish was recently made

available to the public.

Lelivered earlier this year to the Ministry of Transportation and Highways, the Sea To Sky High- way Project Report was prepared by a design team headed by Klohn Leonoff Ltd. in association with Buckland and Taylor Ltd. and Graeme and Murray Consultants Ltd.

The Feb. 91 report took a pre- liminary look at the development of a four-lane freeway along In- dian Arm to Squamish and the upgrading of the existing Highway 99 to a four-lane expressway.

The two projects are considered to incorporate thé:two most viable road alignments north to Squamish. Both pass through rugged terrain.

The design team looked at each toute’s attributes, risks and associated costs.

In an earlier News story a senior geotechnical engineer with the Ministry of Transportation and Highways.said that priority has been given to upgrading Highway 99. 4 new Indian Arm route would follow.

In examining the two routes, the Sea To Sky Highway Project Report notes th: following advan- tages to a witened, 90 km/h Highway 99: @a_ shorter 48.5 kilometres ;

@ a shorter con:truction schedule —~ 5% years

© moderate wint::” conditions

@ no snow avalanche hazards

@ several debris torrent creek hazards have already been made more safe °

@ flower capital and :aaintenance costs ($697 million, capizal cost versus $1.165 billion capital cost for an Indian Arm route; $400,000 annual ‘maintenance cost versus $1.9 million ma'ntenance cost for an Indian Arm route

e@ the route does not travel through watersheds. 4

Advanteges of an Indiar. Arm route: : “

@a faster travel speed of 110 km/h;

@ minimal traffic disruption dur- ing construction phase;

@ the opportunity to design “proper solutions’? for natural hazards; . .

@ the route offers toll potential;

@ lower visua! impact;

@ service to inaccessible areas.

Disadvantages of a widened Highway 99:

@ lower design standards than the higher-speed Indian Arm route;

@ traffic disruption during con- struction; & rockfall hazards;

@ several properties and future developments along the highway would have limited access;

@ rock cuts result in negative vi- sual impact.

Disadvantages of an_ Indian Arm route: | e@ the longer route would not result in benefits until completion; @ a longer, 74-year construction pericd;

’ @ steep grades for trucks; @ snow avalanche and debris tor- rent hazards; @ heavy, winter fog near summit; @ higher costs; @ disturbance to Squamish wa- tershed; . @ greater impact on fish and wildlife; - @ anticipated resistance from local interest groups regarding the sections of the route that pass through Coquitlam and Burnaby. The study notes that an im- proved highway route to

distance —

and debris torrent

By Michaei Becker News Reporter

Squamish would result in fewer accidents, time savings for car and freight traffic and the stimulation of economic development.

The Squamish upgrade

THE SEA-TO-SKY High- way project report envisions an upgraded Highway 99 as a four-lane 90 km/h ‘‘rural expressway.””

Highways officials see the upgrading as the best solution to improve the highway connection from Vancouver to Squamish.

Heavy rainfall is common along the Squamish Highway and often results in rock falls and debris torrents. Substantial damage and fatalities have resulted in the past from debris torrents occurring along sections of the highway.

The Squamish Highway con- tinues to present daunting geotechnical challenges: 26 creeks discharge into Howe Sound be- tween Horseshoe Bay and Britan- nia Beach alone. Twenty-four of them present some debris torrent tisk. A debris torrent is a mass movement of water-charged ma- terial flowing rapidly down a steep and confined channel.

Debris torrents may be con- trolled by catchment basins, channels to direct the flow past the highway, a high bridge or

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NEWS photo Cindy Goodmen

MINISTRY OF Transportation and Highways senior geotechnical engineer Bryan Kern (far right) and other highways officials were in West Vancouver earlier this year as part of a series of public tn- formation meetings held to show pians for a better route to Squamish and the Whistier-Pemberten

area.

Harvey,

Newman, Lone Tree, M-Creek,

Alberta, Magnesia, Loggers, unnamed #9.

Based on the February report, 13 creeks are considered to have debris torrent potential and re- quire attention: Disbrow (needs a channel); Unnamed #1 (basin); Sculfield (basin); Turpin (basin): Rundle (basin); Deeks (viaduct); Brunswick Pt. (tunnel); Bertram (basin); Kalahani (basin); Unnam- ed #7 (basin); Unnamed #8 (chan- nel); Daisy (bridge); Thistle (bridge).

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THE SEA to Sky Highway Project Report looks at the develop- ment of a four-lane freeway along Indian Arm to Squamish (right) and the upgrading of the existing Highway 99 (left) to a four-iane

expressway.

viaduct to avoid the torrent, or tunnelling.

Since 1906, debris torrents have hit at 13 of the 26 creeks between Horseshoe Bay and Britannia Beach.

Forty-nine people have lost their lives in from debris torrents and foods along the highway strip.

Eleven creeks have already been modified by the Ministry of Transportation and Highways — Montezambert, Strip, Charles,

The study divides the route into six sections. @ Section 1 spans from Nelson Creek to Sunset Beach. A 1.3 kilometre-iong tunnel is proposed at Nelson Creek. It would act to separate Horseshoe Bay ferry traffic and Highway 99 traffic. @ Section 2 runs from. Sunset Beach to Brunswick Station. This section would include a four-lane bridge and a viaduct. © Section 3 includes Brunswick Station to Furry Creek. This sec-

tion would require a 2.6 kilometre-long tunnel, a 300 metre-long viaduct, a short, 250 metre-long tunnel and a 410- metre-long tunnel. The section is characterized by poor-quaiity rock.

@ Section 4 runs from Furry Creek to Britannia Beach. The ex- isting road alignment 1s considered as ‘‘gencrally good."’

®@ Section 5 runs from Britannia Beach to Shannon Creek. It would need a 200 metre-long viaduct.

@ Section 6 runs from Shannon Creek to Mamquam River. A new two-lane bridge is called for at Mamquam River.

The report notes that in order to widen the right-of-way for the highway, some residential proper- ties would need to be expropriated at Eagle Harbour, Brunswick Beach, Glen Eden and Britannia Beach. Commercial properties at Britannia Beach and Shannon Falls may also need to be relocated.

As proposed by the highway design team, design engineering work would be carried out 1991- 92, Sections I and 4 could be built 1993-94; Sections 2 and 5, 1995- 96; Sections 3 and 6, 1996-98.

Highway engineers propose the use of a surface tunnel (a tem- porary one-lane tunnel consisting of re-usable steel supports) to keep traffic disruption during the excavation of major open cut sec- tions to a maximum of scven- minute closures.

The Indian Arm option

THE CONSTRUCTION of the Indian Arm highway route linking Vancouver to Squamish would follow the upgrade of the Squamish Highway.

As outlined in the Sea To.Sky Highway Project Report, the pro- posed 67.5-kilometre four-lane

indian Arm freeway would cost:

approximately $1 billion (1990 dollars) to build.

Once completed, the 110 km/h highway could handle 3,400 vehi- cles per hour.

The report points out that toll charges could be used to offset the high maintenance cost of a

freeway built at higher elevations.

The route passes through three specific areas: @ the first six kilometres pass

through Mainland; ® from the seven-kilometre point to the 30-kiiometre point, the freeway cuts along along the rug- ged eastern shore of indian Arm;

@ from the 30-kilometre point to its end just north of Squamish, the route travels through the in- land valleys of the Stawamus and Indian rivers.

The Indian Arm route passes through 35 debris torrent creeks and 29 avalanche tracts.

As with Highway 99, the high- way would be subject to heavy rainfall. At its summit elevation of approximately 750 feet, heavy snowfall over the winter months totals an estimated annual average of six metres.

Low cloud and fog, especially near the summit, wiil also present a traffic hazard.

The proposed highway corridor begins at Highway ! at the Star- mont interchange and crosses Burrard Inlet north of Simon Fraser University. The highway then follows north up the east side of Buntzen Lake and Indian Arm before climbing to the Indian River valley.

From the valley it follows the Stawamus River watershed and the Mamquam River. The route eventually joins Highway 99 just north of Squamish.

The study divides the route into eight sections:

@ Section 1 runs from Highway I to the Burrard inlet. From the Starmont Interchange it runs north along Gagiardi Way to Highway 7 and a new interchange.

North of Gagiardi Way, design- ers envision a tunnel passing beneath the east side of the Simon Fraser University lands. The highway, emerging on the north slope, connects with a major new bridge crossing the Burrard Inlet.

@ Section 2 is the Burrard Inlet crossing. A high, levet deck, long-span cable bridge is foreseen — similar to the Alex Fraser Bridge.

@ Section 3 travels from Burrard Inlet to north of Buntzen Lake. The route passes along the edge of the Belcarra Park and Buntzen Lake recreational areas.

@ Section 4 covers an area from Buntzen Lake to Indian River. This section accounts for the most severe topography of the route. Three tunnels are proposed to finish the section cn the Indian

See Route page 5

the urban Lower