Extended daytime closures are scheduled beginning Monday, July 17 to allow work crews to conduct rock scaling work along Hwy. 4. (BC Transportation)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

more work needed

Weekday daytime closures scheduled for Hwy. 4 at Cameron Lake

Jul 12, 2023 | 9:05 AM

NANAIMO — More work is needed above Hwy. 4 before the road can fully re-open, work which will force the regular severing of traffic.

The provincial ministry of transportation announced Tuesday, July 11 a geotechnical assessment determined rock scaling was needed on the Cameron Lake Bluffs, immediately adjacent to the highway, before engineers could sign off on the highway fully re-opening.

To create extended pockets for crews to work beginning Monday, July 17, Hwy. 4 will be closed Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with an hour-long westbound release of traffic at 11:30 a.m. followed by an eastbound clearing between 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m.

No closures are scheduled for overnights, weekends or holidays. The closures are projected to last until mid-August, according to the ministry.

Hwy. 4 remains single-lane alternating traffic with one lane of the roadway being blocked off and devoted to work crews, including two large cranes which have been holding a metal curtain up to prevent further debris from hitting the road.

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“We know this has been a challenging time for businesses and the tourism sector on the west coast of Vancouver Island, and we thank people for their patience as we work as quickly as possible to get this main corridor safely operating at full capacity again,” Rob Fleming, minister of transportation, said in a statement.

A wildfire in early June on the bluff sent rocks and other debris onto the road, prompting the closure which stretched for around three weeks.

The nearly two-kilometre stretch of highway by the bluff affected by fire opened to single-lane alternating traffic in late June.

Provincial workers initially earmarked mid-July as a potential timeline for fully re-opening the highway.

“This has been a difficult season for all of our communities, and the faster we can get Highway 4 fully reopened, the faster we can count on the travel we rely on to support people and businesses in this region,” Josie Osborne, MLA for Mid Island-Pacific Rim, added.

A detour along forest service roads which connects Lake Cowichan with Port Alberni remains in place, however, wildfire risks are preventing grading of the roadway.

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