British Columbia Highway 5
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| Highway 5 |
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| Southern Yellowhead Highway Coquihalla Highway |
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| Length: | 524 km (326 mi) | ||||||||
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| Formed: | 1941 | ||||||||
| South end: | Hwy 3 near Hope, BC | ||||||||
| Major junctions: |
Hwy 97C/Hwy 5A in Merritt Hwy 1/Hwy 97 in Kamloops |
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| North end: | Hwy 16 near Tête Jaune Cache, BC | ||||||||
| Major cities: | Hope Merritt Kamloops |
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Highway 5, also known as Coquihalla Highway, Route 5 and the Southern Yellowhead Highway, is a north-south route in southern British Columbia, Canada. It connects the southern Trans-Canada route, Highway 1, with the northern Yellowhead route (Highway 16), providing the shortest land connection between Vancouver and Edmonton. It is 524 km (326 mi) in total length.
The current Highway 5 is not the first highway in B.C. to have this designation. Between 1941 and 1953, the section of present-day Highway 97 and Highway 97A between Kaleden, just north of Osoyoos, and Salmon Arm was Highway 5. In 1953, the '5' designation was moved to the route designated today as Highway 5A to the south of Kamloops, and its current route north of Kamloops. In 1986, Highway 5 was re-routed to its present alignment between Hope and Merritt. The direct route between Merritt and Kamloops was completed some time later.
South of Merritt, Highway 5 is known as the Coquihalla Highway, and is a 186 km (116 mi)-long freeway, varying between four and six lanes and having a posted speed limit of 110 km/h (68 mph). The route that the Coquihalla follows through the Cascade Mountains is approximately the same route traced out by the former Kettle Valley Railway, which existed on this route between 1912 and 1958. It is so-named because it generally follows the Coquihalla River for about 60 km (37 mi) near Hope. The Coquihalla closes temporarily in the winter when there are heavy accumulations of snow on the route.[1]
In 2003, Premier Gordon Campbell announced that his Liberal government was going to turn over the operation and maintenance of the Coquihalla, as well as the toll revenue, to a private operator. The public and numerous businesses in the interior of British Columbia were strongly opposed to this plan, so the provincial government shelved it three months after its announcement.
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[edit] Route details
Highway 5 begins in the south at its junction with Highway 3 at an uninhabited location known as "Othello," 7 km (4 mi) east of Hope (named after a nearby siding on the Kettle Valley Railway, which used many Shakespearean names). The exit numbers on the Coquihalla are a continuation of those on Highway 1 west of Hope. 35 km (22 mi) north of Othello, after passing through five interchanges, Highway 5 reaches the Great Bear snow shed, which is one landmark on the route. 13 km (8 mi) north of the snow shed, after passing through another interchange and the 1244 m (4,147 ft) Coquihalla Pass, Highway 5 reaches the tollbooth.
It is the only highway in British Columbia to have tolls. The toll for a typical passenger vehicle on the highway is C$10. 61 km (38 mi) and five interchanges later, the Coquihalla enters the city of Merritt at its south junction with Highway 5A and Highway 97C.
Highway 5 then goes 4 km (2½ mi) through the eastern area of Merritt before reaching its northern junction with Highway 5A. The Coquihalla has three more interchanges and one mountain pass, the Clapperton Creek Summit, in its remaining 72 km (45 mi) between Merritt and its end at a junction with Highways 1 and 97 within the Afton area of Kamloops. Highway 5 continues east for 7 km (4 mi) concurrent with Highways 1 and 97 through Kamloops.
After separating from Highways 1 and 97, Highway 5 proceeds north for approximately 19 km (12 mi), temporarily leaving Kamloops city limits as a four-lane highway, before re-entering the city at the Raleigh community and continuing north. becoming a two-lane highway at Heffley Creek and the exit to Sun Peaks resorts, both of which indicate the final northern boundary of Kamloops.
Highway 5 follows the North Thompson river north from Heffley Creek for approximately 54 km (34 mi), along a parallel course with a branch of the Canadian National Railway,passing through Barrière, to a junction with Highway 24 at Little Fort. 30 km (19 mi) north of Little Fort, while continuing to follow the North Thompson and the CN Railway, Highway 5 reaches the community of Clearwater. It is another 107 km (67 mi) northeast, going through Vavenby en route, to the community of Blue River, and then 109 km (68 mi) further north through the Columbia Mountains, passing by the community of Valemount to its northern terminus at Tête Jaune Cache, where it meets Highway 16.
[edit] Exit list
| Location | # | Destinations | Notes |
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| Hwy 1 west (via Hwy 3 west) – Hope, Vancouver | Continuation beyond exit 177 | ||
| 177 | Hwy 3 east (Crowsnest Highway) – Princeton, Penticton, Osoyoos | ||
| 183 | Othello Road | ||
| 192 | Sowaqua Creek | ||
| 195 | Carolin Mines Road | ||
| 200 | Shylock Road | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | |
| 202 | Portia | No southbound exit | |
| 221 | Falls Lake | ||
| Toll plaza | |||
| 228 | Coquihalla Lakes Road | ||
| 231 | Mill Creek Road | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | |
| Juliet Creek | |||
| 250 | Larson Hill | ||
| 256 | Coldwater Road | ||
| 276 | Comstock Road | ||
| 286 | Hwy 97C / Hwy 5A to Hwy 8 – Princeton, Kelowna, Merritt | ||
| 290 | Hwy 5A north / Voght Street – Merritt City Centre | ||
| 315 | Helmer Road | ||
| 336 | Hwy 97D south / Lac le Jeune Road – Logan Lake | ||
| 355 | Inks Lake Road | ||
| 362 | Hwy 1 west / Hwy 97 north – Cache Creek, Lytton, Vancouver, Prince George | South end of Hwy 1/Hwy 97 overlap | |
| Kamloops | 366 | Copperhead Drive to Lac le Jeune Road | |
| 367 | Pacific Way | ||
| 368 | Hwy 5A south / Hillside Avenue – Merritt | ||
| 369 | Columbia Street – Kamloops City Centre | Northbound exit and southbound entrance | |
| 370 | Summit Drive – Kamloops City Centre | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | |
| Hwy 1 east / Hwy 97 south – Banff, Kamloops City Centre, Vernon, Jasper | North end of Hwy 1/Hwy 97 overlap | ||
| North end of freeway | |||
[edit] Trivia
Kw'ikw'iya:la (Coquihalla) in the Halq'emeylem language of the Stó:lō, is a place name meaning "stingy container". It refers specifically to a fishing rock near the mouth of what is now known as the Coquihalla River. This rock is a good platform for spearing salmon. According to Stó:lō oral history, the skw'exweq (water babies, underwater people) who inhabit a pool close by the rock, would swim out and pull the salmon off the spears, allowing only certain fisherman to catch the salmon.[2]
The route is also often referred to simply as "The Coke." A popular song by country singer Corb Lund, entitled "Hurtin' Albertan", makes reference to this, with the lyric "...there's good weather up on the Coke."
[edit] References
- ^ B.C. highway Road Reports - Coquihalla Hwy Road Report Information
- ^ B.C. Ministry of Transportation - Coquihalla Rates and Information
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