HIGHWAY 99 SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS: MATTHEWS INTERCHANGE

The Matthews Interchange retrofit and 80 Street Off Ramp project was a partnering of the Government of British Columbia and the Corporation of Delta to design and construct $7M worth of upgrades to roads along the Highway 99 corridor. The retrofit to Matthews Interchange provides an increase in traffic capacity while enhancing safety for motorists, and the new 80th Street off-Ramp also serves to alleviate traffic congestion at the interchange while providing direct access to the Boundary Bay Airport.

ISL geometric and structural designers worked together to improve safety by realigning a previously sub-standard on-ramp to be lengthened under the bridge. Space for the realigned on-ramp was made by removing the bridge apron and replacing it with a pinned-back vertical retaining wall. The on-ramp then merged with another re-aligned on-ramp in a curvilinear configuration designed to manage vehicle speeds, thereafter providing adequate acceleration length and a
single merge zone. Other design highlights accommodation for future bus lanes, a bus queue jumping lane at the Hornby Drive Intersection, and complex drainage design to account for drainage below sea-level that is managed by pump stations.