Barriers are being put in place to keep motorists travelling Okanagan highways safer.
Median barriers are being installed on a 5.9-kilometre section of Highway 97A between Armstrong and Vernon.
Concrete dividers will also be installed on a section of Highway 97 north of Summerland this spring.
For the section of highway near Summerland, a $671,000 contract has been awarded to Kon Kast Products Ltd. of Kelowna to install concrete median barriers along a 4.2-kilometre stretch of Highway 97 between Bentley Road and Callan Road.
The barriers will ensure an added layer of protection for travellers by preventing head-on collisions and other crossover incidents, especially at night and during bad weather conditions. Work is expected to start this spring when weather permits and be completed by late May.
New barriers have already been installed along sections of the highway between Penticton and Summerland, on sections of eight kilometres of Highway 97 between West Bench Hill Road and Sun-Oka Beach Provincial Park.
Drivers can expect minor delays during this project, as the installation work will occur outside the peak traffic hours of 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Motorists are reminded to obey construction zone speed limits and the direction of traffic personnel. Updates on delays will be available online: DriveBC.ca.
Despite more than 12 km of new barriers, the province hasn’t announced anything about a deadly stretch of Highway 97 just south of Peachland that has claimed two lives in 2020 and prompted a petition that garnered thousands of signatures.
READ MORE: One dead after Highway 97A crash near Armstrong
READ MORE: Fire sparked at homeless camp in Vernon park
@VernonNewsnewsroom@vernonmorningstar.comLike us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
