Coquihalla Highway marks 40 years since opening for Expo 86

This spring marks 40 years since the first phase of British Columbia’s Coquihalla Highway opened, a major construction project completed in just 20 months to help connect the Interior and support travel for Expo 86 in Vancouver. The CBC report looks back at the highway’s opening day in 1986 through the memories of people in Hope, including former mayor Clarence (Bud) Gardner and current mayor Victor Smith. They recalled the work, the celebrations, and the role the route was expected to play in bringing more traffic and business through the community. The article also notes the highway’s longterm importance to the province’s economy. According to the B.C. Ministry of Transportation, the Coquihalla carries about 70 per cent of goods moving between the Lower Mainland and the Interior, worth roughly $183 million in trucked goods each day. It also remains a difficult route because of steep terrain and weatherrelated hazards such as snow, ice, floods, avalanches, and fires.