The Coquihalla in 20 Months

In 1984, construction of the first phase of the Coquihalla Highway began. The highway would eventually provide drivers with a quicker route into the interior from Hope.
The first phase, which was completed two weeks after the opening of Expo 86, was done in just 20 months. A project of this scale had never been done before in such a short time in North America.
This section of the highway was the longest stretch at 120 kilometres long. To finish on time, over 10,000 people were needed to fill all of the jobs. It was a team effort between the ministry, highway construction companies and engineering firms from around the province that brought everything together for the challenge.
Along with the second and third phases, which linked Merritt to Kamloops and to Peachland respectively, overall travel time was reduced, opening up the coastal communities to the interior of B.C.
Learn more about the construction of the Coquihalla and see historical images here: tranbc.ca/coqui...
Quick Facts from the Construction of the Coquihalla Highway:
More than 1,000 pieces of heavy equipment worked non-stop in the summer of 1985
In total, 18 highway interchanges, 38 bridge and overpass structures, 19 vehicle underpasses and 50 pipeline crossings were built along the route.
Millions of tonnes of combined gravel, concrete, asphalt and steel were used to build the road.
From top to bottom, crews experienced every single type of weather condition known to man. With a summit reaching 1,244 metres tall it wasn’t uncommon for it to be snowing at the summit and be sunny at the base.
At 300 metres long, crews built one of B.C.’s largest snow sheds to protect the highway from some of the province’s most active avalanche passes.

[@bigamigo4863]

Takes them 2 years to build an overpass in Kelowna now days for perspective lol.

[@spencermatthews5942]

It's taken 20 years to build 20 kms of the Kicking Horse pass project, and they're still five years away from completion! Really pathetic!

[@Constantin198413]

God damn this is impressive .. WCB would lose their mind if this was today .

[@etonchambers4872]

haha aint that the truth

[@omegaseamaster1550]

I ws thinking the same thing. No hi viz vest (limited use) not to mention guys riding beams from a crane or heaven forbid smoking while operating a crane.

[@loubc2515]

I live on the coquahala It boggles the mind!!!

[@Wildstar40]

Why does it boggle the mind ?

[@misterfunnybones]

@@Wildstar40 When Coquihalla becomes coquahala, the mind is boggled, but the why question remains...

[@MustyBastard]

should be the cokeahaulya for all the coke thats ran by the hells angels on this road

[@mahbubmo]

You live there and can't spell.

[@MustyBastard]

@@mahbubmo Its a joke about drug trafficking you dim wit . I know how to spell coquihalla

[@ryanmcgechaen2103]

Watching this type of film makes me feel like I should be back in High School while my teacher throws a tape in to go outside and smoke a joint.

[@dalesharpy9197]

Interesting because I am a Land Surveyor. We come in first with topography mapping ... and finish last with "as builts" of the finished infrastructure such as power and storm water structures. 20 months it took and blown away by the floods of November 2021 in days .

[@SchenectadySlim]

That’s a sexy new river. According to the music.

[@aaronstantonisto7175]

And as a frequent traveller I must say they did a damn good job.

[@MrGranovski]

I heard that the then premier's buddies bought a lot of land there just before the project got underway, and then sold the land to the province for a hefty profit.

[@roydencooke]

Amazing project, 20 months for that Highway I used to travel 1-2 times a month for over 2 years, nuts. I feel sad for the other routes that this highway rerouted, but you got to think of the environmental benefits & economic savings that more direct routes between two places has. Ive only driven highway 1 once by myself, maybe 2-4 times over the last 15 years, and in the winter its still not super safe (better than the Coq though...). Gives me flashbacks to Route 66 in the movie Cars. Cache Creek and Keremeos isnt incredibly quiet these days. Lets just hope that Highway 3 can handle Highway 1 and 5 being offline for several months... in the winter...

[@AnthonyMaw]

I still prefer to drive the original Trans Canada highway 1 through the Fraser Canyon - I'd rather gas up in Cache Creek than Merritt any day! Fraser Canyon route is way more scenic and more driving fun especially if driving stick shift and no big mother-of-all hill climbs....But yeah if all you want to do is get from Vancouver to Kamloops ASAP the Coquihalla is it.

[@Phourtwenny]

The Fraser Canyon is beautiful but alot of single lane makes being behind motor homes a pain.

[@dunkydog1676]

Me to

[@neilo.hislop950]

I'd much rather haul up and down the Canyon in spite of the Flat landers and The Brown Brotherhood.

[@dustinwatkins7843]

@@kris-ms1974 GOOD animal abuse should not exist

[@CB-zt6qs]

To be honest, I love both. Specifically if you know where the right turn offs are to have a picnic, secret hikes that nobody knows about and have time on your hands.

[@clayfan408]

20 months. That's impressive Can you send some of those people here to finish the 400 from Barrie to Sudbury and the Son in Ontario. 20 years and we still aren't finished LOL

[@edwardschwenk3100]

You can take all our environmentalists, & tree huggers, and put them to work. All they do here mostly is stand around, and protest everything from pipelines to railroads. Do you need people qualified to hold signs?

[@kvrdeol]

Its. Amazing piece of work .. need to maintain in winter bit better . And further more need all four lanes to Alberta border in faster dedicated time. Infrastructure lags in BC big way as the population grows at fast pace . Awesome job .

[@23ofSeptember]

Just like the Interstate Highways in the US, the Coquihalla caused a lot of economic hardship for small towns and businesses along the old Hope-Princeton route. Keremeos especially was hard hit as all those tourists that used to stop and buy produce at the fruit stands now went a different route. Something that is rarely mentioned. Even today, Keremeos has never fully recovered from that hit and it got even worse once the Okanagan Connector was finalized in 1990.

[@690_5]

I've hated Keremeos since I was a kid because my parents would stop at the fruit stands. I was also very scared of it, too. Not the most inviting place but it does have Green Mountain Road, doesn't it!

[@tr1ppyh1ppy]

sweet film, great history too i doubt anymore highways will really be put in place anymore and if they are theyre most likely gonna be private and have toles and not be this great mass of asphalt taking you along coasts or through valleys and mountains and bs like that, it would have been so amazing to work on i bet, it really is a shame i was born in the 00s all i ever hear is talk about the old world before its self destruction of illusive people and mishaps, technology as well its just so very unfortunate.

[@rpalmer274]

What a great accomplishment

[@gypsyrose429]

This is Nov. 17 2021 after it's collapse. How much will it take to fix it today? And to make necessary improvements? Millions!

[@kappat4139]

knowing our politicians, billions.

[@terencechevalier5756]

Lol billions and years and years with all new environmental rules lol

[@tonyoostendarp7611]

A great achievement

[@dunkydog1676]

Now takes 20 years to build 1

[@andrewsbigadeventures7918]

awesome video

[@pierre-richard6779]

what a view coming down from the east ...

[@anma3292]

The 10$ toll fee should not be eliminated. That will keep this route well maintain and the alternate routes prosper. That fee should not be terminated at all.

[@greathodgy22]

We could send you your own individual bill !

[@neilo.hislop950]

There was a reason why the Railway abandoned the route. It falls several feet every Winter. The Maintainance crews still get caught with their pants down everytime it Snows.

[@EdmontonRails]

That and the gradients, it doesn't take much snow/ice to turn the highway into a disaster zone. It's also worth noting how much fuel is burned racing up steep hills at 140KM/H.

[@UrbanRail]

And yet in just a matter of days in November 2021, it was taken out by extreme weather

[@ianjackson3346]

A lot of boys from Alberta, Saskatchewan, etc. Worked in its construction

[@jonurton7826]

That’s where most of the work force comes from haha

[@spencermatthews5942]

The music is so bad it's good!

[@wdwerker]

Came because of the recent flooding damage at the old railway tunnels which is a park & tourist attraction.

[@glennwall552]

Wonder why they didn't tunnel? Less snow wine rain ?

[@MAC_6.7]

Would never get this done in a million years these days with all the activism and red tape

[@slender_04f14]

Now this project, the pinnacle of human labour and the best we can do when it comes to building highways, has been wiped out effortlessly by Mother Nature.

[@terencechevalier5756]

Itll be fixed, it wasnt wiped out. Parts were damaged. Everyone acting like its wiped off the map smh

[@CB-zt6qs]

There's a few bridges down but it's not gone, similar to the Canyon route. It's inevitable that this was going to happen, not like we can just put in a new bridge every 3 years. As well, if you look at the bridges structures they did a damn good job at forecasting what strength truly is. From sub zero temperatures, to extreme heat, to mountains and mountains of snow every year, at being built in 1941.

[@terencechevalier5756]

@@CB-zt6qs lol i just had video recommend to me this morning about a study that was done a year ago on what would happen if the big flood hit the fraser valley, and boom it happened.

[@CB-zt6qs]

@@terencechevalier5756 That happens with everything you watch on KZbin but it is interesting.

[@slg792]

@@terencechevalier5756 highway 8 is pretty much, the coke isn’t too bad

[@LipSinkPro]

And in one day it got ruined. Great work TranBC!

[@4xhoser]

Crazy that all this wasn't enough to survive this years flooding 🇨🇦

[@areaone3813]

Porn music aside this is pretty amazing. I never knew.

[@800rmkpro]

Today is would take 7 years longer, cost 4 times as much and have over runs of triple the 4 times over real cost. Thanks to over engineering (firms like SNC) and to the unions screwing over there own people. Everyone trying to fill pockets on the back of the middle class person. Either way, a cool project.

[@jasond7229]

Nice doc, sounds like soft core porn music though.. 😂 lol

[@jonurton7826]

Back when people were go getters . Would take 10 years now …

[@skadill]

Yes, just for the environmental reports to be studied

[@maximumpower102]

We can’t work this well anymore

[@asmith9091]

Hey lets make a Highway. The plan? 20 months.

[@keatonsparksvideoproductions]

I prefer driving the canyon to this highway

[@user-KrackerJack]

Amazing they did that in just 20 months . That would never happen in America too red tape and many people with their hand out to make money off it one way or another

[@skinorth22]

20 months...too quick? Seems like we may be paying for it now...

[@MrSpaceace1999]

Now it will take them 2 years to fix one kilometre

[@spik330]

Coquihalla trashed in 20 hours -2021

[@KWally]

Took a day or two for nature to wipe a good chunk of it out

[@MrSpaceace1999]

What a great time in the world then , lots of work , lots of everything …

[@mr.hedgehog420]

there's still lots of work... you are just looking back with rose tinted glasses my friend :)

[@trickolas78]

@@mr.hedgehog420he was probably drunk 90% of the time

[@North49trucker]

now if only they could keep up on winter snow clearing lol

[@amanbirdi8106]

thtz great..... but I think its the only Project that Canada did so Fast..... NOT NOW A DAYS...... Golden B.C. thats 5 KMs gonna take 3 years.... extension is granted..... its not so impressive!!!!

[@Gromitdog1]

Yet again mother nature asserts her dominance over this unforgiving mountainous region. Time to abandon this section and focus on upgrading the crowsnest and hwy 1.

[@greathodgy22]

That remark shows a lot of insight . . . . . .

[@quadbc4059]

20 months in a rush to build it and now 20 months to fix it after the November floods destroyed it.

[@Toronto6ix]

When men were actually real men...todays sad

[@frasertones8519]

"It will cut a full hour from the journey".... yes ...."and save millions in fuel costs." Ah yeah... no.

[@Vancovermycity]

Garbage roads and infrastructure

[@SenemOz]

desruction of nature for a highway..now we are paying the price..