The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure says Highway 4 will be open from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday for passenger vehicles and light pickups.
For Saturday morning’s limited opening, vehicles will be screened at the Tofino/Ucluelet junction and at Sproat Lake and larger vehicles will wide be turned around. Heavy loads, commercial trucks and vehicles with campers or towing trailers will not be let through.
According to the ministry, once the smaller vehicles have gone through by noon, work will begin on placement of a pre-fabricated 20-metre single-lane bridge between the rock bluff and Kennedy Lake.
The ministry said the goal is to have Highway 4 reopened to single-lane alternating traffic to regular and commercial vehicles on Sunday afternoon, Jan. 26.
In the meantime, Tourism Tofino is asking visitors to rebook if they were planning to visit this weekend.
The hotels are providing refunds and are helping people to reschedule.
pacificrimnpr: For motorists impacted by the Highway 4 conditions, 2 Emergency Support Hubs are available in @PacificRimNPR Combers Beach parking lot for semi-trailer trucks; and Green Point Campground overflow for RVs and campers. #nanaimo #ucluelet #tofino #portalberni 1/3
— Tourism Tofino (@tourism_tofino) January 24, 2020
RT @PacificCoastal: Due to #BCHwy4 road issues, we have added a flight for #Tofino & #Ucluelet on Saturday, Jan. 25. Flights are available for booking online: https://t.co/J9kv4zpujH.
For more information, please read our media release: https://t.co/GnBNMLR1yM
— Tourism Tofino (@tourism_tofino) January 24, 2020
For drivers affected by the Highway 4 closure, two Emergency Support Hubs are available in Pacific Rim National Park. Combers Beach parking lot is available for semi-trailer trucks, and Green Point Campground overflow is available for RVs and campers.
On Friday, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure that Highway 4 will reopen to essential travel only between noon and 8 p.m. Only passenger vehicles and light pickups were allowed through.
The damage to the road was caused by a large volume of rock falling during a scheduled blast on Jan. 23. The blast was part of the Highway 4 – Kennedy Hill Safety Improvement Project. The project is expected to be finished later this year.
#BCHwy4 update: Kennedy Hill will reopen to essential travel only between noon and 8 pm today (passenger vehicles, light pickups only). More details here: https://t.co/Xsm9jt7Dpf Thank you, all, for your patience and understanding. #Tofino #Ucluelet #PortAlberni
— BC Transportation (@TranBC) January 24, 2020
Ucluelet’s mayor said the inconvenience highlights the need for cell service on the highway as news of the damage travelled slow.
“I continue to try to push the conversation of Wi-Fi. Perhaps if Wi-Fi communication was available, we could’ve relayed more information out to the rest of the travelling motorists trying to go there and just to spread the word,” Mayco Noël said.
Tofino’s mayor emphasized that the current difficulties should be worth it in the future.
“It creates an inconvenience as well so we’re trying to balance the short term pain for the long term gain and we know how great the project is going to be when it’s finally over,” said Josie Osbourne.
Osbourne also tweeted Friday that while fresh produce shelves, milk and egg aisles are a little bare, there are full shelves of other items for groceries.
While the fresh produce shelves are looking a little bare, as well as the milk & egg aisles, happy to report there are still full shelves in much of our local grocery store! I Think I just bought the last bag of Ruffles, though. Sorry, everyone…#beprepared #vegetablefreezone pic.twitter.com/JORwEGGkQh
— Josie Osborne (@Josie_Osborne) January 24, 2020
The damage to Highway 4 was caused by a large volume of rock falling on the road during a scheduled blast early on Thursday as part of the a safety improvement project. The highway has been closed since. This incident marks the fourth time that the highway has been closed as a result of blasting.
The Kennedy Hill Safety Improvement Project is expected to be finished later this year and the Ministry said it “will create a safer, more reliable connection between Port Alberni and the west coast of Vancouver Island.”
As far as the current situation, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure said it will update the estimated closure window for the bridge installation as soon as possible. For updates, you can check the DriveBC website.
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