Kicking Horse Canyon closure comes into effect; will reopen briefly for Thanksgiving

Account for an extra 90 minutes of drive time if headed down the Trans-Canada Highway through the Rocky Mountains.

Starting Monday at noon, the portion of the Kicking Horse Canyon, located east of Golden, B.C., will be closed until  Dec. 1, with the exception of Thanksgiving weekend, when it will open from 12 p.m. Oct. 7 to 12 p.m. Oct. 11.

The Kicking Horse Canyon area has been undergoing massive construction for some time, with the winding, 4.8-kilometre section of two-lane highway being widened to four lanes.

As this section gets worked on, all through traffic on Highway 1 between Golden and Castle Junction will be routed via highways 93S and 95 with the detours adding up to 90 minutes of extra travel time.

Destinations between Castle Junction and the construction zone, such as Lake Louise and Field, will continue to be accessible from the east throughout the closure.

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“Drivers should expect congestion and some delays on the alternate route during busier periods, which include weekends and the Nov. 11 Remembrance Day holiday. Travelling during off-peak periods when possible is suggested,” the province wrote in an update

The province said in a press release last week that the closure will allow crews to proceed with work that cannot be carried out safely during shorter interruptions, such as construction on and adjacent to the existing highway, which includes the placement of heavy equipment on the roadway.

To date, the project has already seen the placement of girders and construction of bridge decks on new bridges and viaducts. Between the elevated structures, construction of the retaining walls to carry the wider highway continues. Following the fall closure, some of the newly constructed elements will be put into service to allow the remaining adjacent work to be carried out.

When completed in winter 2023-24, this 4.8-kilometre section of narrow, winding, two-lane road will be converted to a modern four-lane standard, making a safer, more reliable route for people travelling through the Kicking Horse Canyon.