Broadway reopens at Main Street after months

Good news for drivers in Vancouver: East Broadway between Main and Quebec streets has reopened after four months of construction.

According to the Broadway Subway project team, crews are opening one lane of traffic in each direction Wednesday morning and beginning to remove traffic controls and adjust signage along the detours.

Local business owners say the closure, which began on Jan. 26, has wreaked havoc on operations and is responsible for deteriorating sales.

Halfway through the process, Mount Pleasant Business Improvement Association (MPBIA) Executive Director Neil Wyles said some storefronts were barely hanging on, and some were forced to close.

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Some within the MPBIA had floated the idea of an interest-free loan from the provincial government to compensate for the delays facing the project.

Following a closed-door meeting with Transportation Minister Mike Farnworth, the province said no money would be doled out.

“Consistent with all ministry projects that improve British Columbia’s transportation infrastructure, the province does not provide compensation for disruptions arising from construction.”

Any relief from the reopening may be short-lived as construction on the Millennium Line SkyTrain extension is expected to close down Broadway between Alberta and Cambie streets for an estimated six months this summer.

The project has been delayed multiple times and has blown through its budget by at least $127 million. The subway is expected to open some time in 2027.

—With files from Ben Bouguerra and Sonia Aslam

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