Crews hope to have Highway 1 fully re-opened in the Fraser Valley tonight

BRIDAL FALLS (NEWS 1130) – Traffic will continue moving slowly along Highway 1 between Hope and Chilliwack for at least a little while longer today.

Both westbound lanes have been re-opened to traffic, but one of the two eastbound lanes remains closed.

Maziar Kazemi with the Ministry of Transportation says crews are still working to clear debris following three mudslides last week.

“We’re looking at crews completing [it in] the day shift — while we still have daylight. So, we’re looking at later in the evening. We’re hoping to have that eastbound lane open before 8 p.m. tonight.”

Kazemi says single lane closures will be in place, as required, to complete any remaining repairs and to monitor water drainage in the area.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Hope is pleased with the way the mudslides have been dealt with. Wilfried Vicktor adds he’s surprised the job so far has been done as quickly as it has.

“I think they deployed as many people as they could to get the job done. And I think they had to have some engineers on-site too, to make sure that it was safe to work in certain areas because obviously, you don’t want human life put in danger. I know they handled that well.”

“I think a lot of these roads in BC have essentially been carved through the mountains and you’re bound to have the odd hiccup and this one was a good example of that, I think,” he adds.

Vicktor adds traffic and businesses appeared busier in his community when the highway was cut off. He says people seemed to handle the inconvenience well.

Kazemi told NEWS 1130 yesterday that the streamflows in the area are being monitored 24 hours a day.

“We’re actively monitoring the two creeks that run under our highway. At this point, they are flowing through our drainage features — through our culverts. That’s something we’re going to have to continue to monitor overnight so were are no blockages.”

He said they can’t rule out the possibility of the highway closing again this season due to similar conditions.

A 50km/h construction speed zone is in effect in the area.

Crews are hoping to get the final eastbound lane re-opened sometime today.

For up to the minute traffic updates, you can follow us on Twitter @NEWS1130Traffic or subscribe to breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox. You can also listen live to traffic reports every 10 minutes on the ones.