Ministry of Transportation and Transit to undergo review into Alaska Highway through Fort St. John

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The Ministry of Transportation and Transit has confirmed it will be undergoing a review into the speed limit on the Alaska Highway through Fort St. John.

In a statement provided to Energeticcity.ca, the Ministry of Transportation and Transit confirmed that traffic operations staff will review speed limits and highway operations on the Fort St. John Alaska Highway Corridor. 

“With public safety in mind, the review will examine how the corridor is being used and consider other factors that might inform changes to speed limits,” the ministry said. 

“These may include traffic volumes and characteristics, collision history, roadway design and observed operating speeds,” the statement continued. 

The review into lowering the speed limit on the highway through town was brought forward by resident Jeremy Palo, following a multi-vehicle crash at the intersection of 100th Street and Highway 97 intersection which sent five people to the hospital. 

In an interview with Energeticcity.ca, Palo said he discussed the idea of reducing the speed limit on the highway corridor with Fort St. John city council and Peace River North MLA Jordan Kealy before the topic reached Hali Davenport, District Manager for Transportation in the Peace District. 

According to Palo, Davenport said the review will provide an opportunity to reexamine the factors that inform speed management and corridor operations. 

In a previous article, Fort St. John city councillor Trevor Bolin said if the speed limit on the Fort St. John corridor of the Alaska Highway is a concern for residents, council can discuss it with the Ministry of Transportation during its meetings. 

“We are seeing more accidents in the corridor inside the city limits, where it is 70 kilometres [per hour],” said Bolin. 

Palo said he appreciates the ministry’s agreement to conduct a review of the Fort St. John corridor of Highway 97 and clarified his intent behind the request.

“My goal has never been to slow traffic unnecessarily,” he said. “It’s to ensure the speed limit reflects how this section of the highway is used today, as Fort St. John continues to grow and traffic patterns change.” 

Palo explained, “even a reduction of just 10 kilometres an hour can make a meaningful difference,” giving more time for drivers to react and to “significantly lower the force of an impact, which can reduce the severity of a collision.”

The current speed limit on the Alaska Highway on either side of Fort St. John is 90 kilometres per hour, but drops to 70 kilometers per hour when entering city limits.

“If a relatively small change has the potential to improve safety while adding only a few seconds to most people’s commute, I think it’s worth carefully considering,” he said. 

According to Bolin, if one accident can be avoided by adjusting the speed limit when someone is crossing the corridor, “it’s probably worth it to slow it down.”

Bolin said the first step is to let the ministry conduct research to determine whether lowering the speed limit would benefit.

Palo added that he believes road safety needs to be proactive, rather than waiting for a serious collision to review opportunities for improvement. 

“I’m looking for a thorough, evidence-based review of current conditions,” he said. “The important thing is that the decision is based on how this section of Highway 97 functions today and how it will function going forward.” 

The ministry said the review should be completed by the new year. Once the review is completed, the ministry will discuss its findings with the City of Fort St. John and Palo.