Usually when people think of a road out of Powell River, they envision a route over the Coastal Mountains.
But Rob Tremblay, the owner of TMS, a moving company based in Powell River, has devised a route along the coast, using bridges and some new sections of the existing highway.
Tremblay explained his alternative route at a meeting last week, which presented information about a route to Squamish through Powell River's backcountry.
Tremblay told The Peak he decided to compile a report on an alternative route to show whether it was feasible or not.
"I just wanted to see if there was a more economic route and a more feasible route other than going up where there is nothing," he said. "It ended up going down through the Sechelt way."
Tremblay said he had been aware of discussions about a route over the Coastal Mountains.
"When I looked at that area, I thought there must be a better way to do it," he said. "When I started looking into a better way, I discovered that you would need bridges.
Tremblay's proposed route calls for a new highway section from Squamish to Port Mellon and from Earls Cove to a point closest to Nelson Island, where a new bridge would cross over. A highway would be needed on Nelson Island and a new bridge would be built from Nelson Island over to the mainland, as well as a highway section from the bridge to Saltery Bay.
Tremblay said his route would bring economic benefits to the Powell River area.
His report also included a detailed analysis of how the ferries are run, he said.
"I had to figure out how long it actually takes to load ferries, as well as the timing and the distance. There's a lot of little things that can be taken out of that report and used in different ways, rather than just the road."
Tremblay has distributed his report to regional districts, municipalities, Tla'Amin (Sliammon) First Nation, BC Ferries, government agencies and other interest groups.
Interested readers who would like to receive a copy of the report can email Tremblay at [email protected].
