The Cassiar Connector is a highway traffic tunnel on the

Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway (French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the Atlantic Ocean on ...

. It is located in the north-east corner of

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, near the Vancouver-

Burnaby Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard I ...

border. Travelling northward, the tunnel begins under Adanac Street and passes under the interchange between East Hastings Street and the Highway 1 offramps. It ends underneath Triumph Street, with the highway continuing north to the McGill Street interchange (to the

Port of Vancouver The Port of Vancouver is the largest port in Canada and the fourth largest in North America by tonnes of cargo, facilitating trade between Canada and more than 170 world economies. The port is managed by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, whic ...

) and the

Ironworkers Memorial Second Narrows Crossing The Ironworkers Memorial Second Narrows Crossing, also called the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge and Second Narrows Bridge, is the second bridge constructed at the Second (east) Narrows of Burrard Inlet in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Origi ...

towards the District of North Vancouver. The tunnel is long. Dangerous goods are not permitted to be transported through the tunnel.

History

In August 1960, the Ironworkers Memorial Second Narrows Crossing (known at the time as the Second Narrows Bridge) was opened to traffic. This was followed in 1964 by the completion of the Trans Canada Highway. However, the portion of the highway passing through Vancouver was not built to highway standards. Instead, it used an existing portion of Cassiar Street, including the intersection of Cassiar and Hastings Street. This meant that traffic on the highway was controlled by traffic lights at Hastings and Cassiar also at Adanac Street and again at William Street for traffic control from the Rupert Park Diversion, all contributing to congestion especially during peak periods. The Cassiar Connector was completed in January 1992, when it was described as removing one of the last remaining traffic lights on the Trans Canada Highway and as the BC Ministry of Transportation's largest project to date. The project upgraded 2.3 km of highway south of the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge, and involved the construction of seven new overpasses, 20 retaining walls, a pedestrian bridge, two new interchanges and the Cassiar Tunnel itself which is 730m long. The total cost of construction was estimated to be C$115 million. On Saturday, January 11, 1992, pedestrians were allowed to roam through the dual tunnels. A ceremony was also held at 1 p.m. and was attended by Transportation Minister Art Charbonneau and Vancouver Mayor

Gordon Campbell Gordon Muir Campbell, (born January 12, 1948) is a retired Canadian diplomat and politician who was the 35th mayor of Vancouver from 1986 to 1993 and the 34th premier of British Columbia from 2001 to 2011. He was the leader of the British Co ...

. The next day, it was opened to vehicle traffic, and the Trans Canada highway was diverted to the new route.

Highway expansion

In 2005, the British Columbian government introduced an infrastructure plan known as the "

Gateway Program The Gateway Program is a C$3.0 billion regional transportation project for Metro Vancouver that is being managed by the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation. The ministry introduced the Gateway Program on January 31, 2006, as a means to ...

."BC Government "Gateway Program Definition Report" (see pg 32)
As part of that program, the Trans-Canada Highway through the Cassiar Connector was increased to three lanes in each direction. The lanes were intended to be used primarily for dedicated entry and exit lanes. Because the tunnel was originally designed to have three lanes in each direction, expansion was not necessary.

References

{{Bridges of Greater Vancouver Road tunnels in British Columbia Tunnels in Greater Vancouver Tunnels completed in 1992 Tunnels on the Trans-Canada Highway