GOLDEN, B.C. – The province of British Columbia has issued an invitation for bidders to submit their qualifications to design and build the fourth and final phase of the Highway 1 Kicking Horse Canyon project.
The Request For Qualifications (RFQ) released on BC Bid includes realignment and widening of the final 4.8 kilometres through the canyon from West Portal to Yoho Bridge into four lanes and installing snow avalanche and rock fall hazard protection as well as median barriers.
The RFQ will establish a short list of qualified proponents with a request for proposals set for later in the fall and a contract awarded in 2020. Construction is expected to begin summer 2020.
“People need to feel safe on our highways, and we need to keep goods moving across the province and to the rest of Canada. Once this final section of Kicking Horse Canyon is wider and realigned, people will have a much safer experience travelling through this beautiful corridor,” B.C. minister of transportation and infrastructure Claire Trevena said.
“It’s great to see this important Highway 1 project continue moving ahead. These upgrades will not only improve safety and traffic flow, but also help businesses move their goods and support economic prosperity for the region as a whole,” federal minister of infrastructure and communities François-Philippe Champagne added.
The $601 million cost for the project will be shared by the government of Canada with a contribution of up to $215.2 million through the provincial-territorial infrastructure component of the New Building Canada Fund, and by B.C. which will contribute the remaining $385.8 million.
The project budget has risen $151 million from 2016 because of a re-allocation of $23 million of interest during construction from the general capital budget along with a $128 million increase in project costs.
A statement from the provincial government said, “the general capital budget increase is due to several factors, including additional engineering, design and geotechnical work, additional foundation supports for bridges and retaining walls, application of the Community Benefits Agreement (CBA), consultation with Indigenous communities and higher contingency based on the risk and complexity of the project.”
The Highway 1 Kicking Horse Canyon project will be built using the CBA, and the estimated cost of application of that framework is $35 million, representing 5.8 per cent of the total project budget.
The Kicking Horse Canyon project was originally launched in 2003, and three phases of work have been completed with more than 21 kilometres of roadway upgraded to a modern four-lane, 100 km/h
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