Name Change, lol

[Clipper]

The new construction is a joke!
Driving southbound:
First 2 lanes out of OK Falls, then 3 lanes, then "improved" corners that don't even have enough shoulder for a cyclist, then the new 4 lanes that funnel into a narrow 2 lane bridge that also doesn't have room for cyclists or even pedestrian access on the north side.
The road bed was raised enough to warrant deep steep ditches and that a wire rope barrier was needed as well, not to mention the annual ditch cleaning performance.
Good luck changing a tire on the "improved" narrow shoulders!
It just might have been a better idea to address the traffic issues that will result from the penitentiary construction; 250 guys finishing shift waiting to get on or off the highway!

[dreamon]

I disagree.
Average speed from the border to Armstrong = 75.75 km/h
Average speed from Brewster, Washington (start of the Okanogan) to the border = 88.46 km/h
In other words, you can drive almost 20% faster in the USA on average.

Glacier, I have no doubt that your information is accurate, but I think the reasons are the ones that [b]twobits[b] gave, the fact the traffic volume is much lower on Hwy 97 in Nth WA than it is Penticton to Osoyoos, and the average age of the drivers south of the border is south of 182!!!

[twobits]

The new construction is a joke!
Driving southbound:
First 2 lanes out of OK Falls, then 3 lanes, then "improved" corners that don't even have enough shoulder for a cyclist, then the new 4 lanes that funnel into a narrow 2 lane bridge that also doesn't have room for cyclists or even pedestrian access on the north side.
The road bed was raised enough to warrant deep steep ditches and that a wire rope barrier was needed as well, not to mention the annual ditch cleaning performance.
Good luck changing a tire on the "improved" narrow shoulders!
It just might have been a better idea to address the traffic issues that will result from the penitentiary construction; 250 guys finishing shift waiting to get on or off the highway!

Completely agree with you. I drive that highway a few times a week and I could not believe the over the top construction. I am no road building engineer but this two km stretch of passing lanes cost 10 million dollars when the same results could have been obtained with 2 million. Raising the road bed two meters with fill that had to be hauled from 15 km away? And that tensioned steel cable fence? What is it for? What did it cost? And how much to fix it every time someone slides into it and takes out a section.

[Midnite]

I doubt this new stretch of highway exceeds the minimum specs required by the MOT as it is similar to the passing lanes north of Osoyoos Lake. The cables are installed there as well, I would assume this is what we can expect with any future passing lane construction. If one spends much time on U.S. roads you should notice the road beds are raised there as well. I too am not a road building engineer but I do trust their work.
Personally I feel this is a well planned project as the location involved no property acquisition , that I am aware of, only a single property access and required no blasting. These all dramatically increase costs.