Work has temporarily stalled on the Highway 99 section of the Mamquam Road sewer upgrade project due to unsuccessful drilling attempts under Highway 99.
District says an unfortunate situation has arisen in this complex part of the project, and now requires open-trench excavation across the highway in order to install the new sewer pipe.
This will result in a delayed finish to the project, the extent of which will be better understood once district confirms plans with the Ministry. Impacts will also be experienced on Highway 99 as well as the eastern aspect of the intersection leading from Garibaldi Highlands.
The project team is working hard to pivot quickly and keep delays to a minimum.
“Despite best efforts in planning and execution, we have encountered a blockage while drilling under Highway 99 that requires us to move to a contingency plan,” explains Capital Projects Manager Jesse Morwood.
“We are working with Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure to seek their input and support on next steps for the work around Highway 99, based on the traffic and project management plans we are putting forward to them.”
The District says it recognizes the public impact this project is having on residents – especially those whose residences front the project.
“We empathize with residents who have been impacted by the traffic closures and noise, and we apologize for the extended disruption,” says District of Squamish Chief Administrative Officer Linda Glenday.
“This is a highly technical project that has presented many challenges due to the complexity of activities and the depth of the sewer pipe, and this is certainly not the scenario we had hoped for. There are always risks associated with projects such as this, and unfortunately some of those risks have been realized. We appreciate the continued patience of the neighbourhood residents most impacted by this project, and staff and contractors are working diligently to finish the project as quickly as possible.”
The Mamquam Road project is budgeted at $2.3M and is part of a $43.4M capital plan being actioned in 2021. The financial impact of this current issue will be fully understood as plans are confirmed.
Donald Patrick says
My guess is that no one asked the folks that were working on that section when Hwy 99 was put thru that area, it was excavated and taken down and some sort of infill was laid out for the road base….surely there are records of what was under the intersection …. I do know that area was all flood plain and petrified trees and boulders were all part of the makeup.I have a $2000 horizontal computer auger living under my driveway that came up against something it could not move or drill thru …. tilt.