Province to spend $60M fixing 10 Mile Slide near Lillooet

Dec 7, 2016 | 11:00 AM

LILLOOET, B.C. — The provincial government says this is the long term solution residents of the Lillooet area have been waiting for.

Transportation Minister Todd Stone and MLA Jackie Tegart announced a $60 million project today to stabilize the area along Highway 99 known as 10 Mile Slide.

Stone says the fix has been more than three years in the making, and has involved consulting local residents, as well as some of the world’s foremost geotechnical experts.

“It’s a very complex, technically challenging project that will involve about 400 soil anchors that will be installed above the highway, along with about 130 tie back piles. Essentially we are going to be nailing the side of the hill to itself with really, really big piles and anchors.”

This section has been closed periodically for years, including a lengthy closure beginning in late September of this year.

Stone says the project should start in 2017 and take about a year to complete.

He notes, if successful, it could provide stability to the historically active area for up to 40 or 50 years.