A low spot and a bump on the 200th Street highway interchange in Langley are set to be repaired, which may revive memories of “the dip” that plagued the structure more than a decade ago.
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure announced on Wednesday, Dec. 15 that work starts this month on a low spot on the westbound off ramp leading to 200th Street, as well as on a bump where the south end of the overpass itself meets the 200th Street roadway.
The off ramp was seeing water was pooling. The road base will be built up and drainage upgraded to improve driver safety, according to an announcement from the ministry. They noted that the issue existed before November’s severe rain and flooding.
At the same time, the bump at the south end will be smoothed out by digging out and replacing some fill and repaving the road.
The work is expected to proceed in phases between December and next summer. According to the ministry, all four lanes of 200th Street will be kept open during the construction, but drivers should expect delays at some times. Drivers are urged to obey construction zone speed limits and follow the directions of traffic control flaggers.
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The $6.2 million project will be completed by roadbuilders Eurovia British Columbia, a Surrey-based firm.
This is not the first time the 200th Street interchange has had to have dips and bumps fixed.
Over the winter of 2005 to 2006, the south end of the then-new interchange developed a distinct low spot as a stretch of roadway about 60 meters long began sinking.
It took months to work out why that section of roadway was sinking. Locals who had been critical of the use of compressed Styrofoam blocks as part of the incline construction suggested that was the problem, but engineering studies ruled that out.
The Ministry of Transportation launched a lawsuit against the interchange’s builders, who resolved the court case by agreeing to repair the problems.
The cause was eventually determined to be an issue of the weight of fill, which was causing the soil under the fill to settle, creating the lengthy slump.
It was not until the summer of 2008, more than two years after the problem appeared, that repairs successfully dealt with the dip.
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