The United States is expanding the number of lanes at the Pacific Highway border crossing from Surrey, B.C., to Blaine, Wash.
The $33 million US ($46 million) contract will increase the number of entry lanes from six to 10.
One of the primary goals of the expansion is to decrease wait times, according to a statement from the U.S. General Services Administration. It adds that the border crossing was last expanded in 1999 and has since seen “notable increases” in wait times for personal vehicles and buses.
The contract was awarded last month to Tribal One, a construction company owned by the Oregon-based Coquille Indian Tribe.
Travellers heading to the U.S. via the Pacific Highway border crossing in Surrey, B.C., will soon have more lanes to cross the border. The U.S. government has announced expansion plans, and as Sohrab Sandhu reports, it aims to ease vehicle traffic on the Canadian side of the border.
The company’s senior vice-president Doug Wall said the hope is that more lanes will reduce the time vehicles sit and idle while waiting to get through the border, which will result in lower carbon emissions.
The expansion also includes six new large vehicle bays with overhead canopies for customs inspections. Once the project is complete, all inspection areas will be covered, newly paved and have new lighting.
The majority of the funding comes from U.S. President Joe Biden’s hard-fought $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, signed in 2021.
Wall said the contract also includes funding to build a breastfeeding area to support parents.
Washington state Rep. Rick Larsen said in a statement the project provides a needed update to what he said is the largest and busiest port of entry in the Pacific Northwest.
“A more modern port of entry will also reduce congestion and wait times for travelers, improve public safety, and further promote cross-border trade and tourism,” Larsen said.
In 2023, nearly three million passenger vehicles entered the U.S. at Blaine via either the Pacific Highway crossing or the Peace Arch crossing.
Construction is expected to start in July 2025 and be largely completed by November 2026.
The border crossing will remain open during the expansion, Wall said.
Other updates to the crossing announced earlier this year include electric vehicle charging stations and improved landscaping to minimize water usage.