Peachland awaits verdict on new highway bypass

Advocates of a Peachland bypass believe the government is purposely dragging out the completion of a study on whether to build a new highway or widen the existing one.

The study, announced in December 2015 by the former Liberal government, was to be complete within two years.

But the NDP now says a recommendation on which option is preferred won’t be ready until June 2020.

“It seems like things have kind of gone dead on this issue since there was a change of government,” said John Abernathy, a longtime member of the Peachland Highway 97 Task Force, which claims more than 500 members in the town of 5,200.

“I’ve got a feeling of dread that the outcome of all this study by the government is probably going to be the easiest and least expensive option of widening the existing highway with profound, negative longterm consequences for Peachland,” Abernathy said.

A less pessimistic interpretation for the study’s delay is offered by Gus Richardson, president of the task force.

“What I’m hearing from people connected to government is much more positive attitude toward the possibility of a bypass,” Richardson said. “For now, I’d say our group is content to quiet down a bit and wait for the report.”

Bypass advocates say a new alignment of Highway 97, on mostly Crown land to the west of the current route, would promote a more pedestrian-friendly future in Peachland. The previous town council supported a bypass.

Critics say a new highway would be enormously expensive, involve difficult construction challenges given the terrain and isn’t justified given Peachland’s relatively small population.

No public meetings on the study have been held in Peachland since November 2016. Current study work, the Ministry of Transportation says, involves identifying a preferred bypass route and a preferred option for using the existing highway corridor.

“The (next) phase, which will establish the ultimate long-term preferred option, will start in December and take 18 months to complete,” reads part of a statement emailed from the ministry.

“Public engagement will be ongoing during this phase, with the first open house likely taking place in spring 2019,” the statement reads.

Considerations in the study include not just the cost of a bypass versus a widened highway, but the economic and environmental impact of the two options, and the impact on driving times.

Given the successive delays associated with study, Abernathy, 87, said with a laugh: “I might not see the end of the study, let alone a decision by the government on whether or not to build a bypass.”

The Peachland section of Highway 97 is the only two-lane portion between Vernon and Penticton.