In the wake of last week’s grass fire at Strathcona Park which brought back memories of Canada Day in 2021, the City of Kamloops is assuring Juniper Ridge residents they will have three more routes to safety this summer, with a second permanent route about two years away.

The City says emergency access routes through Juniper East and Galore Drive are already operational, though gated off.

Engineering Director, Marvin Kwiatkowski, says a third emergency route along Coldwater Drive should be paved and useable by early summer.

“That one is pretty much ready to go,” he said on the NL Noon Report. “There is some subdivision development work happening so its bit intermittent, but that 400 metres at the east end will be paved by early summer.”

All of the emergency egress routes will remain gated, with the City saying emergency responders will determine the safest route for residents in the event of an emergency. They will also provide appropriate direction and traffic control to evacuate residents safely.

“The City and emergency responders would ensure the egress route is in safe condition at the time of the event (i.e. no trees across the road; route is not at risk of compromise from the current situation) before unlocking the gates and escorting public traffic along the route,” the City said.

As for the fourth new – and second permanent – route out of Juniper connecting Qu’Appelle Boulevard and Rose Hill Road, Kwiatkowski says it some ways off as its still in the planning phase.

“This year we’re looking at completing the archaeology as well as geotechnical work and environmental work, so just getting those final approvals from the province,” Kwaitkowski said. “Just looking at kind of the schedule and the amount of work to do and then working with the developer as well, it’s probably looking like it would be completed in 2025.”

Locals in Juniper Ridge have been demanding better routes out of the area after a wildfire on Canada Day in 2021 prompted an evacuation order, which became almost impossible to carry out due to a traffic jams on Highland Road brought on by a lack of escape routes.

You’ll find more details about the four proposed exits to Juniper Ridge here.