New overpass announced for notorious intersection on Patricia Bay Highway

Funding has been allocatedfor a new flyover overpass in Central Saanichon Vancouver Islandin an area known for crashes and dangerous near-misses.

The overpass will go from Patricia Bay Highway (Highway 17) northbound to Keating Cross Road westbound. This will eliminate theleft turn across highway traffic onto Keating Cross Road. The project will also include a southbound on-ramp.

The highway connects Victoria to the busy BC Ferriesterminal at Swartz Bay.

Colin Plant, a Saanich councillor and the Capital Regional District board chair, says the announcement is great news for the region not least because he was involved in a crash at the intersection that he says nearly cost him his life.

About three years ago, Plant and a few of his colleagues were heading to the airport as a van was doing a U-turn at the intersection. The van was clipped by a semi-trailerwhich caused it to cross the median and hit Plant's vehicle.

"I certainly was lucky the injuries I sustained were not long-term and were not life-altering," Plant said.

"People have died there. I'm lucky nothing happened there that changed my life forever although I am sympathetic to the need for changes there perhaps a little bit more than the average person."

15 crashes in 2017: ICBC

According to ICBC, there were 15 crashes at theintersection in 2017, the last year for which statistics are available.

"It's very unconventional to take a left turn on essentially what is a semi-freeway. It's an 80 kilometre [an hour] highway and turning left across that? It's just not safe," said Plant.

The federal government is contributing $16 million to the project and the District of Saanichis contributing $2.5 million. The provincial government's contribution still has to be approved by the Treasury Board.