Highway 1 Public & Active Transportation Improvements for Abbotsford
The Fraser Valley Highway 1 Corridor Improvement Program
The province is undertaking a multi-billion dollar transportation infrastructure project along the Highway 1 corridor through Abbotsford. While the project lists goals such as supporting mode shift and providing cleaner and more sustainable transportation choices, through Abbotsford, the current plan lacks critical features to achieve those goals. We’re calling on the province to continue it’s active transport corridor through Abbotsford, and develop an accessible multi-modal transit exchange at McCallum Rd. These two items would represent a small fraction of the overall project cost, but are crucial for meeting project goals and enabling sustainable and equitable transportation within Abbotsford and our region.
The Fraser Valley Highway 1 Corridor Improvement Program is a highway expansion project by the provincial Ministry of Transportation & Infrastructure to increase capacity, reliability, and safety on Highway 1 between Langley & Chilliwack. It is divided into multiple phases, beginning in Langley, and moving east toward Chilliwack. Phase 3a extends to Peardonville Rd in Abbotsford, starting at 264 Street, Langley. Phase 3b begins at Peardonville Rd, and extends to Sumas Way.
Within Phase 3a, the Ministry is planning what they have called a “mobility hub”. This new term isn’t well defined, even in project media, but essentially the Ministry is working to design hubs to serve as connection points for sustainable modes of transportation. This includes park & ride facilities to connect people arriving by car to public transit & car-pools, as well as connections to active transportation modes likes e-bikes & scooters. A key feature is the inclusion of a transit exchange or bus loop providing safe and efficient connection with public transit services.
Phase 3a supports project goals by incorporating public and active transportation components with a multi-use path connecting 264 Street to Mt Lehman Road, and the inclusion of a mobility hub at 264 Street. Unfortunately, Phase 3b is missing these key elements without plans for a mobility hub at McCallum Road, a key location for regional and local transportation, or a continuation of the active transportation corridor through Abbotsford.
The Highway 1 Corridor Improvement Program is vital to the long term development goals and liveability of our region. This program will shape our region for decades to come and it is vitally important that the Ministry fully embraces it’s mandate and objectives for a sustainable transportation future in our region.
Our Letter
We have written a letter calling on the Ministry to ensure that Phase 3b includes an active transportation corridor and mobility hub to support project goals and enable safe, sustainable, and equitable transportation choices. We are asking you to sign our petition calling on local and provincial politicians to ensure the Ministry incorporates these vital components into the project.
Read our letter
Sign our petition (COMING SOON)
The following groups have signed on as supporters of our letter:
Contacts
We encourage you to write your own letter or contact your representatives and tell them we need a sustainable transportation future
Minister of Transportation and Transit: Mike Farnworth TT.Minister@gov.bc.ca
Minister of Infrastructure: Bowinn Ma INF.Minister@gov.bc.ca
Mayor City of Abbotsford: Ross Siemens mayorsiemens@abbotsford.ca
Highway 1 Corridor Improvement Program team: hwy1fv@gov.bc.ca
Did you know?
While “British Columbia has the highest percentage of active transportation trips for commuting to work (at 10%*) of all Canadian provinces”, the City of Abbotsford is falling short, with 0% of trips being made by cycling, 4% by walking, and 3% by public transit**. Safe, connected, high quality infrastructure is vital to enabling people to make sustainable transportation choices.
The City of Abbotsford has adopted a Sustainable Mode Share target of 25%** in its Plan200k Transportation & Transit Plan. The plan is intended to address the cities transportation needs as it grows to a rapidly approaching population of 200k.
The Ministry of Transportation has established the target of doubling the percentage of trips taken by active modes by 2030 in the Move.Commute.Connect Active Transportation Strategy.*
sources:
*BC Road Safety Strategy 2025 (This number includes Public & Active Transportation)
**Transportation & Transit Master Plan COA