Dry Creek bridge open on Highway 29

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The Dry Creek bridge recently opened on the newly realigned Highway 29 and is being called a major Site C milestone by BC Hydro.

The 158-metre-long bridge and 1.5-kilometre highway realignment were completed, and some of the first vehicles to cross the bridge were recorded by BC Hydro.

Have a look at some of the first vehicles to cross the 158-metre Dry Creek bridge that recently opened. Finishing the bridge is a major #SiteC milestone for the Highway 29 realignment project. Learn more: https://t.co/QHJil5THDN pic.twitter.com/uF7LGPbhD1

— sitecproject (@sitecproject) September 20, 2022

The bridge and diversion were constructed due to a portion of Highway 29 that the new reservoir will cover.

Bob Gammer, community relations manager with BC Hydro, says construction for the Highway 29 realignment is more than 85 per cent complete.

“At this time, we expect Farrell Creek and Cache Creek to open later this fall,” he said.

“We also anticipate that Lynx Creek Bridge will be completed by the end of this year, and Halfway River is expected to be open to traffic in early 2023.”

BC Hydro says Site C will be a dam and generation station that will provide 1,100 megawatts of capacity and approximately 5,100-gigawatt hours of energy annually to the province’s electricity system.

Construction began in the summer of 2015. BC Hydro expects the first generators to be online in 2024 and the project to be completed in 2025.