The southern end of 208 Street and the Willowbrook Connector are starting to look like finished roads, as final paving and line painting work has been taking place since the end of May.
Night work is currently underway between 64 Avenue and the 7100 block of 208 Street as a major part of Phase 1 of the road widening project is coming closer to completion.
The final layer of blacktop is in place for much of that section of the road, lane-dividing lines and lines for crosswalks are in place along much of the southern portion, and bike lane marking will start Thursday, June 12.
According to the Township's progress updates, bike curbs, sidewalks, traffic signal and crosswalk signal activation, tree planting, and landscaping were all part of the final phase, which is aimed at widening all of 208 Street in Willoughby to four lanes, up from two along much of its length.
There is also still work to do relocating utility poles, and the Township has to work with BC Hydro and other utility companies to get those to their final locations.
"It is great see 208 Street really starting to come together," said Township Mayor Eric Woodward. "We can now see what we should have had in place years ago. As of next year, we will finally have a fully finished north-south corridor through Willoughby, so long needed and overdue for our community."
Phase 2 runs from 72 Avenue to 76 Avenue and is currently under construction. The first two phases together are budgeted at $56.9 million, with the funding coming from a mixture of borrowing and development cost charges, which are fees developers pay to the municipality for new infrastructure.
The original construction schedule called for Phase 1 to be complete in the fall of 2024, and Phase 2 this summer.
Work was slowed when BC Hydro wanted to use the opportunity of the construction to upgrade electrical infrastructure along the route, to deal with the growing population and power needs in the Willoughby area.
That, along with a few other issues, like a cold snap this February, that halted all work briefly, has pushed back the dates for completion.
Phase 1 is now expected to be finished this fall, and Phase 2 in 2026.
Third and fourth phases are also expected, on the northern end of the road between 76 Avenue and 84 Avenue. Work there will be less extensive, because most of that area had already been developed, and developers widened the road as they built condos and townhouses.
The overall project will add bike lanes and multi-use paths along the length of the road, as well as completing a four-lane north-south corridor that will stretch into 黑马磁力 City and as far north as 88 Avenue in Walnut Grove.
