Yoho Bridge Replacement and Approaches

This $24 million project, completed for the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation, included replacing the existing Yoho Bridge and rebuilding 1.5 kilometers of roadway approaches along the Trans-Canada Highway through the deep and narrow Kicking Horse Canyon. The highway is a major thoroughfare, carrying more than 14,000 daily vehicles in the peak summer months.

Kiewit widened the existing two-lane roadway to four lanes to reduce curves and minimize grades, and replaced the single bridge with two, two-lane bridges over the Kicking Horse River. Work also involved three mechanically stabilized earth walls, a 500-meter-long rock catchment wall with more than 300 double corrosion protection soil anchors, 25,000 cubic meters of rock excavation and 80,000 cubic meters of common excavation.

Construction of the project was phased to allow for two lanes to be open to traffic at all times. An innovative detour scheme eliminated a planned total closure of the Trans-Canada Highway that was anticipated during demolition of the existing structure.