British Columbia Highway 97C

Highway 97C shield

Highway 97C
Okanagan Connector
Coquihalla Connector
Route information
Length: 224 km (139 mi)
Existed: 1990 – present
Major junctions
East end: BC 97 north of Peachland
  BC 5A near Aspen Grove
BC 5 / BC 8 in Merritt
BC 97D near Logan Lake
BC 1 near Ashcroft
North end: BC 1 / BC 97 in Cache Creek
Location
Major cities: Peachland
Merritt
Cache Creek
Highway system

British Columbia provincial highways

BC 97BBC 97D

Highway 97C is an east-west highway, forming part of an important link between the Lower Mainland and the Okanagan Valley south of Kelowna, which is the third largest metropolitan area in the province. It bisects the Coquihalla Highway at Merritt. The expressway and freeway sections of the highway is known as Okanagan Connector or Coquihalla Connector. The section of Highway 97C is a core route of the National Highway System between Highway 5 and Highway 97.

Route description

Highway 97C is a relatively new route, commissioned on October 1, 1990, which is 224 km (139 mi) in total length, and was constructed as the third phase of the Coquihalla Highway Project. Construction was completed in 1990, with the cost totalling to $225 million in 1987 dollars ($373 million inflation adjusted 2009 dollars).[1]

The route begins near Peachland, at a location on Highway 97 known as Drought Hill. The section of Highway 97C east of Merritt is 4 to 6 lanes expressway with a speed limit of 110 km/h (70 mph) and the section east of Aspen Grove is freeway with a speed limit of 120 km/h (75 mph). Expressway and freeway sections have very few exits along its route. Its highest altitude is the Pennask Summit, 1,728 m (5,669 ft) above sea level. Highway 97C travels on this freeway 82 km (51 mi) northwest to Aspen Grove, where it converges with Highway 5A. This stretch is a four-lane rural arterial highway. Highways 97C and 5A share the 24 km (15 mi) long route between Aspen Grove and the Coquihalla Highway at Meritt, where Highway 5A continues northeast and Highway 8 begins.

Highway 97C was originally intended to have a freeway connection with the Coquihalla Highway approximately 30 km (19 mi) south of Merritt, near Exit 256;[2] however due to protest by local residents in Merritt on the grounds that it would take tourists away from the area, the project was postponed and the freeway remains incomplete to this day. In July 2007, the shared roadway of Highway 5A and 97C was upgraded to a 2-lane road in each direction, the last segment required to enable 2 lanes in each direction when traveling between Vancouver and Kelowna.

Highways 97C and 8 travel along Nicola Avenue through Merritt and share a 9 km (5.6 mi) concurrency to Lower Nicola, where Highway 8 continues west to Spences Bridge and Highway 97C diverges north. Highway 97C goes north for 42 km (26 mi) to Logan Lake, then northwest for 57 km (35 mi) to Ashcroft on the Canadian National Railway. Highway 97C then travels 6 km (4 mi) west from Ashcroft to where it converges with Highway 1, which takes Highway 97C north for its final 5 km (3 mi) to its end at Highway 97 in Cache Creek.

Major intersections

This table lists the exits on Route 97C from east to west.[3]

Regional districtLocationkm[4]miDestinationsNotes
Central OkanaganPeachland0.000.00 BC 97 (Okanagan Highway) Vernon, Kelowna, Penticton, OsoyoosDrought Hill interchange
Eastern terminus
6.143.82Trepanier RoadPartial access (westbound exit, eastbound entrance)
22.6814.09Brenda Mine Road
↑ / ↓33.0220.52Pennask Summit – el. 1,728 m (5,669 ft)
Thompson-Nicola42.9226.67Sunset Main Road
Okanagan-Similkameen54.7634.03Elkhart Road
Thompson-Nicola67.4041.88Loon Lake Road
Aspen Grove82.3351.16Freeway ends
BC 5A south PrincetonAt-grade
East end of BC 5A concurrency.
Merritt105.8765.78 BC 5 (Coquihalla Highway) Kamloops, Hope, VancouverColdwater interchange (BC 5 Exit 286)
West end of BC 5A concurrency.
East end of BC 8 concurrency.
Four lane highway ends
110.0268.36 To BC 5A north / Voght StreetFormer west end of BC 5A concurrency.
Lower Nicola114.8871.38 BC 8 west (Nicola Highway) Spences BridgeBC 97C branches north.
West end of BC 8 concurrency.
Logan Lake156.8897.48 BC 97D east / Tunkwa Lake Road Logan Lake, KamloopsBC 97C branches west.
Ashcroft214.14133.06Ashcroft Bridge across Thompson River
214.31133.17Cornwall Road
220.30136.89 BC 1 south (Trans-Canada Highway) Lytton, Hope, VancouverBC 97C branches north
South end of BC 1 concurrency.
Cache Creek224.48139.49 BC 1 east / BC 97 south Kamloops, Salmon Arm, Vernon, CalgaryNorthern terminus
Continues as BC 97 north (Cariboo Highway) to BC 99 south Lillooet, 100 Mile House, Williams Lake, Prince George
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. "Frontier to Freeway - A Short Illustrated History of Roads in British Columbia" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  2. McNeil, Holly (October 1990). "Coquihalla Commemorative Magazine" (PDF). Okanagan Life.
  3. British Columbia Road Atlas (2007 ed.). Oshawa, ON: MapArt Publishing Corp. pp. 57, 58, 69, 70.
  4. Nicol, Matthew; Horel, Steve (July 2015). "Landmark Kilometre Inventory" (PDF). British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. Cypher Consulting. pp. 41–42, 168, 198–199.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/22/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.