The Transportation Ministry is warning drivers that Highway 4 to Ucluelet and Tofino will have three overnight complete closings next week.
That means the Kennedy Hill section will not have the typical 2 a.m. release of queued traffic between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.
The overnight closings will occur on Nov. 17, 18 and 19.
Emergency vehicles will be allowed to pass.
The ministry said the closings will allow crews to place the final cantilever girders and deck panels for the Kennedy Hill project.
The cantilever sections consist of steel girders and concrete bridge decks that are bolted into the bedrock to widen the roadway along areas where steep cliffs plunge down to Kennedy Lake.
The cantilevers will eliminate sharp corners and reduce the amount of excavated rock on the cliff sides, the ministry said.
The province said in late August that work on the 1.5-kilometre Kennedy Hill section was 90% complete and expected it to be open again for two-way traffic this fall. Finishing touches outside of the roadway, including a rest area, will continue through the winter months.
The project has been a massive undertaking and fraught with issues that have caused delays, including restrictions around the COVID-19 pandemic and major repairs to the highway that were required after blasting caused damage to the site in January 2020.
The project budget was increased to $53.96 million from $38.1 million, which includes $13.5 million in federal funding.
The Kennedy Hill section is 14 kilometres from the Tofino-Ucluelet junction on Highway 4.
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