Highway Maintenance contract renewal process now underway

Northwest drivers can expect some improved highway conditions for the winter of 2019 and beyond as the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure puts to tender 26 of its 28 maintenance contracts in British Columbia..

The province expects to award the contracts to the successful applicants by then end of this year, with the open-bidding process taking place in a staggered fashion.

As the contractors prepare their bids, they will have taken note of a number of changes to the existing contract that will be in place, part of an evolving improvement process when it comes to maintenance on the highways.

Among the key changes of note:

Increased communication with the public about rapidly changing road conditions during severe weather events and other incidents affecting travel on B.C. roads 

Returning Class A highways to bare pavement within 24 hours of a winter weather event (the previous standard was 48 hours at temperatures of -9 C or warmer)

Increasing patrol frequency to 90 minutes on a Class A highway during a winter storm (the previous standard was four hours)

Increasing the patrol frequency to four hours when a weather event is forecasted (the previous standard was 24 hours).

In the Northwest the contract areas are divided up across the region East/West along the Highway 16 corridor and North/South on the Highway 37 corridor in the Northwest and other highways the further east you travel.

One of the first of the contract awards along the Highway 37 corridor was announced yesterday, with Lakes District Maintenance awarded the contract for Service Area 28, which includes Atlin, Cassiar Dease Lake and both highway routes 2 and 37.

The contract comes into effect today and is for a ten year duration, with an option for a five year extension.

The full list of contract holders can be explored here; in the Northwest the list is as follows:

Prince Rupert/Haida Gwaii and the North Coast is currently served by O'Brien Road and Bridge
Skeena District (Terrace/Kitimat) is served by Nechako Northcoast Construction
Smithers and Bulkley Valley is also served by Nechako Northcoast Construction

As they become open for competition, the Bid opportunities are posted to the BC Bid site.

You can learn more about how the province assesses the contract bids here.

For more items of interest on the Highway 16 corridor and other ground transportation notes see our archive page here.