Amy Road (Sooke Lake Road Connector)

The Opportunity

In response to the Ministry of Transportation’s and the neighbourhood’s concern of the increasing potential of traffic accidents at the intersection of Sooke Lake Road and the Trans Canada Highway, the City of Langford embarked on the design and construction of the Sooke Lake Road Connector, also known as Amy Road. Amy Road was designed to provide a safe route for the Mt Wells neighbourhood to the West Shore Parkway and the Trans-Canada Highway.

The Approach

Westbrook Consulting was responsible for detailed design, drafting, contract document preparation, tendering, contract administration, construction inspection and construction layout for approximately 800 m of municipal collector road, complete with street lighting, a drainage system, and sewer system. Westbrook was also the coordinating professional for the project, acting as a point of contact between the client and other consultants.

The project offered the unique challenge of working with the municipality in the purchase of properties from existing residents, working with a neighbouring developer, and the design  of a roadway within the BC Transmission Corporation’s (BCTC) and Capital Regional District’s (CRD) utility Rights of Way. Multiple levels of government were involved and the proposed road corridor crossed a Right-of-Way for the main hydro feed to the West Shore, adding more complexity to the project coordination.

The Sooke Lake Road connector was designed with the possibility of a future widening in mind. Roadside curbs on the side to be widened were designed to be temporary; and allowance was made to provide median islands for the placement of future BCTC transmission towers. Through strategic construction coordination, access to the adjacent mobile home park and the subdivision beyond the road was maintained.

The drainage system was designed to connect to Amy Pond, which is part of the park created by the Goldstream Meadows Industrial Park. The pond allowed for detention and partial treatment of the storm water runoff from the roadway.

The Result

The project was completed in 2008.