Second Downtown Entrance

(last updated November 12, 2021)

The District is planning for a future second vehicle crossing at the Mamquam Blind Channel. This work will be informed by the results of the ongoing Downtown Entrance Study, which is assessing current and future traffic volumes and patterns in the vicinity of the existing Cleveland Avenue entrance to Downtown Squamish. 

The new Pemberton Bridge, as identified in the District’s 2031 Multi-Modal Transportation Plan, will connect the new Laurelwood Road with Pemberton Avenue in Downtown Squamish. The bridge will supplement the infrastructure shown in the image above, which was provided by the Waterfront Landing (Sea and Sky) development, to create a new second connection to Downtown Squamish from Highway 99. This new connection will take pressure off the Cleveland Avenue/Highway 99 intersection which already frequently exceeds capacity—backs up northbound highway traffic—during peak times. 

This bridge connection was assessed as part of the 2017 Downtown Truck Route Study and was recommended for medium-to-longer term implementation, to align with the (at the time) future development of the Waterfront Landing site.   

The Truck Route Study process involved extensive public consultation and is available on the District’s website for review.  The document can be viewed on the Downtown Truck Route Study page.

If Pemberton Avenue and Laurelwood Avenue are designated as a truck route in the future, the vast majority of traffic using these streets will actually be personal vehicles. For reference, the truck route study observed that the percentage of truck traffic versus total vehicle traffic using the downtown streets was between 2% to 4% on Cleveland Avenue and 4% to 7% on Loggers Lane. In comparison, typical truck percentages observed in other communities are between 3% to 5% on major roads and between 7% to 10% on truck routes. 

Based on these numbers, the report observed that the number and percentage of trucks observed in downtown Squamish during typical conditions is relatively low. As such, exhaust emissions from truck traffic will therefore account for a small portion of overall vehicle emissions. 

Laurelwood Road was always anticipated to be a future truck route and, as such, was designed from the very beginning to accommodate both personal vehicles and large trucks to ensure safe usage by both vehicular traffic and active transportation users. The future bridge will be designed to accommodate safe active transportation facilities and integrate with existing and future pedestrian and bike routes. On the downtown side, upgrades to Pemberton Avenue and Loggers Lane are also planned to improve traffic flow and pedestrian and bicyclist safety. Safety and separation of users will be of primary importance in the planning and design of this important connection.  

The future Pemberton Bridge will connect the Valleycliffe, Hospital Hill and Crumpit Woods neighbourhoods as well as Squamish Hospital with a more direct active transportation and non-highway preferred access to and from downtown. The bridge provides an additional emergency access to and from downtown Squamish without an at-grade rail crossing.  

The Pemberton Bridge is included in the Development Cost Charges (DCC) Bylaw, which identifies growth-related projects that would qualify for DCC funds. Municipalities levy DCCs on all new development to pay for new or expanded infrastructure such as sewer, water, drainage, parks and roads necessary to adequately service the demands of that new development.   

Project timeline: 2025 – 2030 (estimated)