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NEWS GAZETTE
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Wednesday, March 16, 2016
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Widening in the works for Trans Canada Highway Officials laud safety and congestion improvements Rick Stiebel News Gazette staff
Arnold Lim / News staff
Going for it Charlane Moore, 11, of Lakewood elementary school leaps for the ball against a flurry of Willway elementary student defenders. Belmont secondary school’s new gym saw nearly 600 Sooke School District students wrapping up their season with a three-day tournament-style jamboree last week. The tournament raised more than $1,000 for Sport Assist Langford.
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The Ministry of Transportation announced it will install medians and widen the Trans-Canada Highway to four lanes between Leigh Road and Goldstream Provincial Park. About 100 people cheered as the news was announced by Todd Stone, B.C. minister of transportation and infrastructure, at an event last week. Stone said the project, to be funded in partnership with the City of Langford, would significantly improve safety and help relieve congestion. The widening will also complete four lanes on the highway from Victoria to Goldstream Provincial Park. Design work for the two-kilometre section is expected to be completed next year. Stone said the work will involve a lot of rock clearing and grading. He gave a preliminary rough estimate of the cost of the work to be in the $15 million range. He also acknowledged the recent completion of the south-bound off-ramp at the Leigh Road interchange as another example of the co-operation between Langford and the B.C. government. Langford and the province shared the $5 million cost for that project.
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The completion of the work at Leigh Road will also reduce congestion along Millstream Road, Stone added. “These projects are improving safety for everyone who travels along this corridor,” he said. The work is part of more than $100 million the provincial government has invested in Vancouver Island transportation in the past two years. Langford Mayor Stew Young praised the provincial government for the improvements and said they are great examples of the spirit of co-operation between the two levels of government. “We now have a road to Bear Mountain and another option to get around our community,” Young said. “This is an important part of infrastructure improvements that will improve safety and traffic and will help create economic activity and more jobs for our residents,” he said. “The government should be applauded for recognizing the benefits these projects will create,” he continued. “You guys have delivered. We hope to see you back here soon.” Langford Fire Rescue Chief Bob Beckett said the completion of the south-bound off ramp at Leigh Road will help reduce the response time for first responders. He added that the medians and widening of the highway will play a significant role in reducing the risk of head-on collisions first responders will have to deal with in the future. reporter@goldstreamgazette.com
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