Information of interest to commuters, tourists and recreational drivers in rural and urban BC.
“There was nowhere to go but everywhere, so just keep on rolling under the stars.” – Jack Kerouac, On the Road Whenever summer hits, and we here at TranBC are tethered to our office computers, we find it uplifting to think about all the journeys people are enjoying, all the epic explorations taking place via the time-honoured BC road trip. We thought it would be inspiring for our readers and social media community if we collected and shared some of...
We’re not the only ones who know British Columbia is a scenic place to work and play. Every year, filmmakers, actors and athletes from around the world use provincial roads and highways as backdrops for the big screen and terrain for local sporting events. With the amount of filming that is done in BC, it’s no surprise we’re known as “Hollywood North.” In 2017, the film industry generated $3.6 billion for local economies, according to Creative BC statistics. Before...
BC wildfires are burning on a massive scale this summer, as a gloomy cloak of smoke is draped across the landscape from inland to coast. The sun has taken on a blood-orange tinge; the air is pungent and thick – so much so that morning can seem like night in communities closest to the worst of the nearly 600 fires blazing in BC. Wildfires are coming precariously close to side roads and highways; some are closed or with limited...
Summer travellers, who first visit the DriveBC website before they head out, find valuable information including routes, weather, border crossings and interesting stops. Check these features and links on DriveBC, to prepare your launch to a great holiday having fun with family and friends, camping, fishing, hiking or doing what makes summer superb for you! Summer Driving Tips – Look over these pointers to prepare you and your vehicle for a safe journey on BC highways. Tips include advice on planning...
History and infrastructure nerds rejoice! We’ve collected a stunning group of photographs documenting the construction of the Fraser Canyon Highway beginning in the 1920s, and moving into the 30s, 40s and 50s. We’re excited to share them with you here, along with a bit of Fraser Canyon route history to boot. Why all the Fuss about the Fraser Canyon? The Fraser Canyon was home to the first gold rush traffic in BC, which began in 1857 when gold was...
Customer service is a major part of what we do at the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. From maintaining highways to handling development approvals, our goal is to provide the best service we can. Of course, there’s always room for improvement. That’s why we’re asking you to help make us better by taking our 17th annual Customer Satisfaction Survey, open from July 16 to Sept. 14, 2018. Last year, we received more than 3,000 responses from folks across the province,...
What’s the flattest route to drive across BC, if you’re taking a road trip, and bringing your accommodation with you? We in BC tend to take our mountainous terrain for granted and those glorious summits somehow become a backdrop to our everyday life. But for less familiar travellers of our province, those snow-capped peaks can be a little intimidating, especially if you drive an RV or fifth wheel, or your vehicle struggles going uphill. That’s why it shouldn’t be...
Scan around Canada’s highway system and you’ll find that BC is the only province to have an A, B, C and D version of a highway. In this province, those letters are tagged onto Highway 97 – as in Highways 97A, 97B, 97C and 97D. But why is that? It turns out that in the Okanagan, locals view Highway 97 as intrinsic to the region’s identity. (After all, another name for Highway 97 which stretches from the BC/US border...
Are you ready? It’s time to hop on board our BC Road Trip Time Machine and travel back to 1966. This time we are driving Highway 8 from Merritt to Spences Bridge and Highway 12 from Lytton to Lillooet. As many of you already know, we’ve been digitizing 16mm photolog footage from 1966 to give you our BC Road Trip Time Machine video series. WATCH Merritt to Spences Bridge: WATCH Lytton to Lillooet: This is an area of the...
When it comes to getting an accurate lay of the land, survey drones are indeed the “droids” we’re looking for. Also known as UAVs (or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), drones are remote controlled flying devices equipped with cameras and various data collection capabilities. There are quad-copter drones (which move like helicopters) and fixed wing drones (which move like airplanes). Both of these make our work safer and more efficient, so it’s no surprise our engineering and field services departments are...
