TH E B TISH COLU.1.'I'..L.L,j,.LL ISSN 0382·2141

P UBLISH D BY TH E MIN STRY OF HIGHWAYS AND PUBLIC WORKS

SPRING 1978

VOLUME 15, N MBER 1

TERRAIN EVALUATIONThe Terrain Evaluation Section of the Geotechnical and Mate­

rials Branch in Victoria is a group of four earth science specialistsusing a combination of air photograph interpretation, field investi­gation, evaluation, geological mapping, geotechnical assessment,and research for natural hazards to subdivisions and developmentareas, high-route analysis and design , and aggregate resources.At present the four people employed in the section are Don Lister,engineer in charge; Dave Haughton, geological engineer; JohnHorcoff, geologist, and Rob Buchanan, physical geographer. Dur­ing the summer the section is assisted by auxiliaries and students.

Don came to the Highways in 1972 from Nicaragua where hehad been a mining geologist. While with Highways he has workedin Burnaby as an aggregate prospector and later as geophysicalservices engineer. Don has been involved with rock slope design,geological hazard evaluation, route corridor analysis, and townsitelocation.

John has been with the branch for over 22 years. He is ageologist and was one of the founding members of the terrainevaluation group. He has worked on projects throughout theProvince involving highway rock cuts, bridge location design,highway route design, geotechnical hazard evaluation, foundationdesign, and route corridor analysis for the proposed Coquihalla(Hope-Merritt) highway.

Dave is the newest member of the group and has come to thebranch via the Saskatchewan Research Council and an easternexploration company. Dave has been with the group for almosta year and has been involved with geological hazard evaluation inthe Hope Slide area and the Columbia Lake-Windermere Lakearea.

Rob is the youngest member of the group, coming to thebranch directly from university and spent one year with theregional office in Kamloops before coming to Victoria. Rob hasspent much of his time with the group working on geologicalhazard evaluation in areas of glacial lake deposits, examples beingPenticton-West Bench and the South Thompson River valley.

With geography students on Coq uihalla project mapping studyill Coquihalla Canyon. Collapsed Kettle Valley railway grade illbackground. Left to right, Lane Woodburn, I ennijer Field, TomEagan, John Horcofj, Bill Hallam, Don Lister.

2

Rob investigating lacustrine silt deposits in theSouth Thompson Valley.

Rob Buchanan and Don Lister preparing to fly into remo te site.

~_ __ _ , THE ROAD RUNNER

COVER PHOTOS

One hundred year evolution of a river crossin g is shown inthese pictures of three A lexandra Bridges in the Fraser Canyon ,20 km north of Yale. The first, a suspension bridge on woodentowers, top, was built in 1863 and lasted until 1912. The second,also a suspension bridge, centre, was built in 1927 on the samesite after a IS-year period with 110 bridge. The third, a 1,550­foot hinged steel arch was built in 1962, a short distance down­stream from the first two. The 1927 bridge still stands as ahistoric site.

No. ISpring 1978

* *

* *

Published Quarterly by the

British Columbia Ministry of Highwaysand Public Works

Victoria, British Columbia

Ray Baines, Executive EditorArthur J. Schindel, Editor

Volume 15

Associate Field EditorsW. S. Boughey VictoriaHerb Gutteridge Regional Electrical CrewEric Eastick Centreline Marking, CloverdaleDoug Jones BurnabyS. B. Bergen .ChilliwackGeorge Harper BurnsideJerry Linni ng Po rt AIberniHector McLeod .NanaimoD. L. 0 liver CourtenayPaul Connor North VancouverDavid T . Kao Dock DistrictGlyn Briscoe New WestminsterS. R. Young McBrideD ave Schleppe KamloopsKen E. Smith Williams LakeH. L. Popoff 100 Mile HouseFred L. Stuart Salmon ArmM. J. Newlands Revel stokeLes Johnson Vern onG. C. Turner .KelownaJ. W. Zaporozan Penti ctonBrian N iehaus .Merri ttD ave Roberts LillooetR. Haworth G rand ForksJoy Mailey . .RosslandS. J. Dixey . .NelsonBernie Cleary New DenverFred Ryckman . CrestonN. K. Molander CranbrookSam Caravetta . .F ern ieMike Maglio GoldenW. R. Rowe SmithersStan Gladysz Pouce CoupeLorraine Kriese Fort St. JohnHarman Delyea . TerraceShirley Hrechka Prince GeorgeClyde Smaaslet .Prince GeorgeAl Hepp QuesnelNatalIe Reinke VanderhoofDave Foster .Burns LakeW. R. Ball Prince RupertWhayne Chappell Terrace

MINISTER'S MESSAGE

ALEX. V. FRASERMinister

It could be said that accident frequen cy statistics arejust numbers when they indi cate worsening safety recordslik e those experienced in 1977 by thre e of the Ministry'sseven administrative sections. Though some groups im­proved, the figures avera ged out to an increase in time­loss accidents, or a decr ease in accident-free days. Butwhichever way you say it , the results of accident preven­tion programs cannot be read just on a calculator. Th eymust be seen in real human terms. Each tim e an em­ployee avoids an accid ent by observing good saf etypractice he prevents human suffering, disability, or evendeath-his own or som eone else's . This is the real reasonthe Ministry wants to see an improvement in those num­bers in 1978.

Sharp curve at Vasseux Lake soon to be eliminated.Section of road is responsibility of Penticton Highway District .

II

1.

3

10-7 CLUB

GORDON PUTTOCK, Machine Oper­ator, Creston District , retired last Sep­

tember after I6 1hyears of service, all atCreston. Gordon be­gan work for theHighways as a La­bourer in May 1961 .Later he was a sum­mer works Foreman

and Foreman 2 on the Salmo-Crestonsection of Highway 3. R. A. Jackman,District Highways Manager, made a pres­entation to Gordon on behalf of hisfellow-workers at a gathering at the High­ways Creston Yard. Gordon and hiswife plan to remain on their farm inCanyon. His hobbies are motorcyclingand wine-making.

BILL BOURDON, Labourer, CrestonDistrict , retired in May 1977 after 19years of continuousservice, most at Cres­ton. He began workfor Highways in Au­gust 1956 with theregional sign truck.He transferred to theCreston District in1958, working as a Labourer, Ferryman,and Survey helper. Bill was presentedwith a farewell gift from his fellow­workers, Bill and his wife plan to re­main in Creston, with hunting and fishingas his main hobbies in retirement.

EARL D. HEYD, Machine Operator2 with the New Westminster District Sign

crew, retired February22 after 22 years' ser­vice. Earl began inLangford and workedon maintenance, in thesign shop, and withthe bridge crew beforetransferring to the cen­

treline crew in 1959. He then transferredto the Cloverdale District yard and tothe New Westminster sign crew in 1976.He is married with five children. He andhis wife will continue to live in Surreyand devote their spare time to travellingand gardening.

fr fr fr

CONRAD (CONNIE) MEUNIER,Grader Operator in the Rolla area of theDawson Creek High­way District, was hon­oured at a retirementdinner and presentedwith a farewell giftand a replica of hisgrader. During Con­nie's 10 years of ser­vice he was always a reliable helpfulemployee, appreciated and liked by allthose that worked with him. Connie isnow enjoying his retirement with a littlefishing and repairing snowmobiles.

"!'.{ ;"{ -;"7

DA VE EDWAR DS, Mechanic 4,Assistant Shop Foreman. Vernon District,retired January 13,1978, after 32 years ofservice with Highways.Dave put in all his ser­vice at the VernonHighways garage.Dave and his wife willcontinue to live inVernon where Dave has many friends.He has participated for many years inhelping with minor sports in Vernon andthis will continue to occupy his time inhis retirement years.

BILL PHAIR, Mechanic 3 in the Cran­brook Highways District, retired October31,1977, after 17years' service. Bill washonoured at a retire­ment dinner where apresentation was made.He will continue hishobbies of photogra­phy, fishing, and hunt­ing. Bill and his wife plan to travel. TheCranbrook Highways employees wish Billthe best for his retirement.

A. C. (SCOTTY) NEILL, McBrideDistrict Mechanic Foreman, retired in

October 1977. Al­though Scotty con­tinues to be active inthe community ofVale mount, his dedi­cation to the job willbe sorely missed bythe Ministry. All the

employees of the McBride District wishhim continued success in the future.

L. G . LARRY MURRAY, Road Fore­man 3, Penticton District, recently re­

tired. He started withthe Department ofPublic Works in Van­derhoof in 1937 on atemporary basis, andworked intermittentlyuntil he joined theArmed Forces in Au­

gust 1940. Upon his return he recom­menced employment with the Departmentin January 1946, and in the followingyears worked in a variety of positionssuch as Truck Driver, Assistant Mechanic,Grader and Tractor Operator. In May1951 he was promoted to the position ofRoad Foreman 3. In April 1959, Larrytransferred to Vernon and this was fol­lowed by lateral transfers to Burnside in1965, and Allison Pass where he remainedfor six years. In 1974 he moved to Pen­tieton where he has served as a RoadForeman until his retirement.

J . A. (JIM) DENNISON, AssistantDeputy Minister and Chief Engineer ofthe Ministry of Highways and PublicWorks, was honoured at a dinner atHolyrood House, Victoria, on January 13on the occasion of his retirement fromthe Publ ic Service after 33 years.

Over 200 Ministry employees, togetherwith other guests from all parts of theProvince, attended the function with hus­bands or wives to honour the popular andwell-known engineer.

Mr. Dennison began his Public Servicecareer on April 1,1946, as a Transit Man ,Level 2. He is a graduate in engineeringfrom The University of British Colum­bia (1945).

He began his full-time Public Servicecareer as resident engineer on the Hope­Princeton Highway and went on to vari­ous positions, including District Engineerat New Denver, District and DivisionalEngineer at Cranbrook, Divisional Engi­neer at Nelson, Regional Highway Engi­neer at Nelson, Construction Engineerand Maintenance Engineer at Victoria.

In 1969, Mr. Dennison was appointedChief Highway Engineer, then in Sep­tember 1976, Assistant Deputy Ministerand Chief Engineer.

Among the guests at the dinner werethe Honourable Alex . V. Fraser, Ministerof Highways and Public Works, and Wes­ley Black, former Minister of Highwaysand Provincial Secretary, as well asrepresentatives from several ministries.

Mr. Fraser, in presenting Mr. Denni­son with a meritorious scroll and twohistorical books on British Columbia, re­ferred to him as the type of man "whoenabled this Province to overcome thechallenge of high way cons t ruct ionthrough our mountains and our valleys."

R. G. Harvey, Deputy Minister, andAllan Rhodes, Assistant Deputy Minis­ter, both made presentations on behalf ofMinistry staff and read messages fromvarious parts of British Columbia. Rep­resentatives from the regions and B.C.Road Builders' Association also madepresentations. Mr. Dennison's wife Ruthwas given a bouquet and corsage by Mrs.Helen Campbell, Mr. Dennison's secre­tary.

4

MERITORIOUSSERVICE AWARDS PROMOTIONS

u

u

u

u

u

u

ROD FRU, P.Eng., recently wonthrough competition the Regional Con­

struction Engineerposition in Region 1.Rod began with High­ways as an Engineer­in-training in 1970.He spent 14 monthstravelling around theProvince working in

the various branches. In 1971 he startedwith the Construction Branch and workedon projects in West Vancouver, Half­moon Bay, Burnaby, and Saanich as aProject Engineer. Rod is married andhis hobbies are golf, boating, salmon­fishing, and badminton.

Other recent promotions include D. C.MARIN, Engineering Aide 3 to Engi ­neering Assistant, Design and Surveys;R. J . READING, Engineering Aide 2 toEngineering Aide 3, Design and Surveys;BYRON BASKETT, Bridge Labourer,Osoyoos, to Bridgeman 2, Vernon; D. A.NORSTROM, Machine Operator 3, Bur­naby, to Machine Operator 5, Geotech­nical and Materials; T. G. ELLIS, Ma­chine Operator 3, North Delta, toMachine Operator 5, Geotechnical andMaterials ; L. 1. SIMARD, Labourer,Vancouver, to Machine Operator 5. Geo­technical and Materials ; J. D. MUR­DOCK, Labourer, Merritt, to MachineOperator 3, Geotechnical and Materials;A. M. KENNEDY, Labourer, Pitt Mea­dows, to Machine Operator 3, Geotech­nical and Materials ; P. O. MAYNE,Labourer, North Vancouver, to MachineOperator 3, Geotechnical and Materials.

BOB CORDER won promotion throughcompetition to Clerk 4, District OfficeManager Trainee, inMerritt. He startedin Victoria in Febru­ary 1974, transferredto North Vancouver inNovember 1974, andwas then promotedthrough competitionto Clerk 3 in the New Westminster Dis­trict Office. Bob is newly married andenjoys snow ski-ing, water ski-ing, andtennis as a participant.

CORRECTION:

In the winter issue (Vol. 14, No.4) on page 4 we ran retirement itemsabout EDWARD J. ALLERCOTT,Machine Operator 3, Penticton Dis­trict. and JOHN VINCENT PRA­TICO, Labourer and Rakerman, inRevelstoke District. Unfortunatelythe photos of these two gentlemenwere switched and we apologize forthis printer's error.

u

u

u

u

u

u

Charlie Blank, Machine Operator 3 atCoalmont, Merritt Highways District,holding his 25-year award, after beingcongratulated by F. Aguillon, A. Me­Diarmid, Dave Daponte, and Ed Cos­man, Road Foreman 2.

ROSS BENNETT, Machine Operator3, Cranbrook, and AL HUOLT, RoadForeman 2, Cranbrook, were given their25-year service awards.

OBITUARIESJOHN FEHR, 55,

employed as a ConsoleOperator at First Nar­rows Bridge, diedsuddenly at LangleyHospital, November 8,

_ 1977.

U u uJOHN HOWARD

ROSCOE, HighwaysPatrol officer, died inan accident on theLions Gate Bridge,December 30, 1977,in the performance ofhis duties.

L. O. A. (AL) KINSEY, Road Fore­man 2 at Invermere, Golden Highway

District, recently re­ceived his 25-year cer­tificate award. AIserved in Golden as aMachine Operator andForeman prior to histransfer to Invermerein 1971.

u uROBERT SIME, Bridgeman 2, Golden

Highway District, recently received his25-year certificateaward. Bob has servedin the Golden High­way District since hiscontinuous service en­try date of May 1,1952.

u

u

u

u

u

u

u

u

u

The Burns Lake District recently losttwo of its popularemployees through re­tirement, the JUBIN­VILLES. NORAHwas the office managerand PAUL was anoiler on the FrancoisLake ferry. Over 50

people turned up at aparty given in theirhonour. The twoformer employeeshave gone to winter inArizona and we lookforward to seeing themback in the summer.

LYLE WHITE, Machine Operator 3at Rock Creek in the Grand Forks Dis­

trict, retired October1977 after 22 years'service. He began asa Labourer in 1956.The entire Rock Creekcrew and wives held aretirement party inBridesville and at that

time presented Lyle with a scroll saw.To express his thanks for the retirementbanquet, Lyle presented a coffee-makerto the Rock Creek crew. His hobbiesinclude hunting, photography, and wood ­working in his home workshop.

EDMOND (ED) BONIN, AssistantMechanical Foreman, Kamloops District,retired after 23 yearsof service. Ed com ­menced employmentin 1954 as a Mechanic2 in Kamloops andretired as Mechanic 5.Ed plans to remain inKamloops after retire­ment and enjoy the leisure life.

LLOYD BURGESS, EngineeringAssistant, New Westminster Highways

District, retired Janu­ary 27, 1978. Lloydbegan with Highwaysin 1956 in New West­minster as a Draughts­man, became an En­gineering Aide in 1959and Engineering Assis­

tant in 1966. His fellow employees madepresentations to him, including a digitalwrist watch. Lloyd and his wife Mar­garet will continue to live in Vancouverand spend more time in their traveltrailer. He also hopes to do some oilpainting and graphic art again .

5

PROMOTIONS

ROBERT G. STRAIN, District Co-or­dinator in the Golden District, was pro­moted to TechnicianI, District Co-ordina­tor, Fort St. John Dis­trict. Fellow-workersgathered for a socialevening to wish Bob.his wife Sandy, andfamily best wishes.

MICHAEL C. BISHOP recently wonthrough competition the position of Tech­

nician 1. Project Su­pervisor for the PavingBranch, at WilliamsLake. Mike came tothe Dawson CreekDistrict from the Pav­ing Branch and is nowreturning to it, com­

mencing his duties April 1, 1978. Mikeis married with one daughter. He enjoysreading and is a good golfer.

New District Highways Manager atVanderhoof is A. W. HORSNELL.Warren started withHighways in Penticton Iin 1956 as an Engi­neering Aide 1 withthe Location Branch.He worked in manyareas of the Provinceuntil 1965 when hewas transferred to Prince George . In1968 he was promoted to Technician I atPrince Rupert, where he remained until1972 when he transferred to Vanderhoofas Technician 2. Warren was acting Dis­trict Official in Vanderhoof for ninemonths prior to his selection last Septem­ber. Keen on curling, fishing, and camp­ing, Warren, his wife. and family keepbusy with these activities and work ontheir cabin at Fraser Lake in their sparetime.

R. W. VEITCH, District HighwayManager in North Vancouver, has been

appointed RegionalM ai n tenance Opera­tions Manager in Re­gion 1. Bob beganwith Highways in 1951on the Fruitvale-SalmoHighway and subse­quently was Resident

Engineer on various construction projects,including Rogers Pass and the Salmo­Creston cut-off. He became DistrictOfficial in 1964 and has worked inGolden, Merritt, Burns Lake, PrinceGeorge, and North Vancouver in thatcapacity. He is married with three chil­dren. His hobbies are fishing, ski-ing,and water sports.

DON REXIN won through competi­tion the position of Bridge Labourer forthe Grand Forks Dis­trict Bridge crew.Don's hobbies includepanning for gold inthe local streams, fish­ing, and hiking.

CINDY SMITH was recently promotedfrom Public Works to Highways as a

Clerk-Typist 2 in theDirector of PersonnelPrograms office. Cin­dy had been with Pub­lic Works since July1976. She was re­cently married and herhobbies are skating,

soft-ball, bowling, and ceramics.

JONATHAN L S. BUCKLE wonthrough competition the position of

Maintenance SystemsEngineer, Headquar­ters (formerly Main­tenance ManagementEngineer), January 1,1978. Jon worked forfive summers for theDesign and Surveys

Branch (1967-71) and started full-timeemployment in 1972 on the E.I.T. Pro­gram. In 1973 he became the RegionalMaintenance Methods Engineer in Nel­son. Jon moved to Victoria in 1974 toassist in the development of the presentMaintenance Management System andbecame the Maintenance Standards Engi­neer the following year. Jon's interestsare related mainly to the sea, where heand his wife live aboard their sailboat.He enjoys sailing, fishing, exploring thecoast, carpentry, and wood carving.

G. C. RAABIS recently won the com­petition for Mechanic 4 at Tete Jaune,McBride District. Hebegan with Highwaysin February 1970 .George ran his owngarage before comingto Highways. Hestarted with the High­ways in Rossland as aMechanic 2, then went to Fort St. Johnas Mechanic 3. He enjoys outdoor lifeand is married with three children.

THOMAS R. JOHNSON, P.Eng., untilrecently Executive Director, Operations,was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister(Operations), effective March 1, 1978.Mr. Johnson, a native of Cranbrook, age40, has been with the Ministry 15 years.He graduated from The University ofBritish Columbia in 1961, and workedwith Highways as a student for severalsummers, joining as a regular employeein July 1963 after two years as a highschool teacher, first with the PavingBranch and then Traffic. In 1973 he wasappointed to Services Engineer and inFebruary 1977 he was made ExecutiveDirector of Operations. Mr. Johnson,who is married with one daughter, re­places 1. A. Dennison, P.Eng., who retiredfrom Government service in January.

CORPORAL HARRY CUNNING­HAM recently won a promotion to the

position of Sergeantof the British Colum­bia Highways Patrol.During the SecondWorld War, Harrywas in the RCAF andafterwards was em­ployed by Shell Oil of

Canada. He entered Government servicein 1960 and has served 18 years withHighways Patrol. He lives in NorthVancouver with his wife Molly. Harry'shobbies include photography, jogging,and enjoying the company of his grand­daughters.

CREE HIM won through competitionthe position of Clerk 3 in the GrandForks Highway Dis­trict. Cree began inApril 1974 as a ClerkI with the Departmentof Human Resourcesin Victoria. She alsoworked two yearsthere with the MedicalServices Plan and one year with Forestry.In her spare time Cree is enrolled in theSt. Johns Ambulance first aid course andenjoys badminton, baking, and makingpatchwork quilts.

6

ABOUT PEOPLE

J. '. /

ROY BYHRE, Machine Operator 4at Beaverdell in the Grand Forks District,

began with Highwaysas a Labourer in 1974.At various times Royhas acted as reliefforeman. When notworking around hishome and hobby farmhe enjoys fishing ,

camping, hunting, and other outdooractivities.

-tr-tr-tr

JOHN KENNEDY, Yardman in Castle­gar, has served the Rossland District for

14 years in variouscapacities such as aMachine Operator, aForeman in charge ofmaintenance, construc­tion and fabrication,of no-post guardrail.John has gained the

respect of his fellow-workers and super­visors alike.

DON FRENCH, P.Eng., was recentlyappointed Regional Bridge Engineer,

Region 1. He wasformerly with A.I.M.Steel Limited, Van­couver. He spent 23years in the structuralsteel fabrication anderection business as adesigner, plan engi­

neer, and operations manager in Quebec,Alberta, and more recently in British Co­lumbia. He is married with three chil­dren. Don's hobbies are golf and ski-ing.

-.--~-

;~

Warren Horsnell, District HighwaysManager, Vanderhoof, spent part of hisvacation last summer constructing thisrustic, hip-roof cabin at Fraser Lake.Built 0/1 a knoll, the structure looks outon the lake about 12 metres below. Itis built of logs squared on three sides.

EXTRACURRICULARACTIVITIES

...

Rick MeGowan, Engineering Assistant,Merritt District, in front of the log househe and his wife built. The house wasstarted in May 1977 and contains 1,750square feet of floor space. Rick is anantique collector and inside the house aremany old items he has collected. Thehouse is located on a mountain side southof Merrill overlooking the entire NicolaValley.

-tr

-tr

't:I

't:I

't:I

't:I

't:I

't:I

-tr

Handling the timekeeping changes overthe past years, Mrs . JOSIE HAMILTON,

Clerk 3, Rossland Dis­trict, still manages asmile and gives a help­ful hand to all whilestill keeping her ownwork right up to stan­dard .

DEBBIE SMITH started as an Auxil­iary Clerk in January 1977 in the Ross­land District and wasrecently appointed asClerk 2. Debbie andher husband live inRossland. Her hobbiesare woodworking andski-ing.

JOE CZECH, a Machine Operator 4at Beaverdell in theGrand Forks District,began with Highwaysin 1974 as a Labourer.Joe enjoys snowmobil­ling and fishing as wellas camping.

BRUCE CASEMORE, Road Foreman2 at Fruitvale, Rossland District, is wellknown throughout theKootenays, havingworked in most of thedistricts in Region 3on a construction crewbefore becoming a ~ .:;j/ ~Road Foreman atEdgewater. Bruce wastransferred to Fruitvale in November1968.

-tr

-tr

-tr

-tr

-tr

-tr

-tr

-tr

-tr

RICK HAWORTH, Maintenance Man­agement Co-ordinator for the Grand

Forks District, beganin Nanaimo in 1974on the District Surveycrew. In 1976, Rickwon through competi­tion the position ofCo-ordinator in GrandForks. His hobbies in­

clude sailing, fishing, hunting, camping,travelling, swimming, bike-riding, andplaying the guitar. Rick is also RR fieldeditor for Grand Forks.

L. (BUD) MACK, Mechanic 2, headsthe Rossland District Safety and HealthCommittee. He comeswell qualified for theposition, holding aClass A Industri alFirst Aid Certificateand a keen interest insafety. Chairing themeetings also comeseasily to Bud since he served a term asPersident of the Rossland Kinsmen Club.In his off-hours Bud volunteers his timeas an ambulance driver as a service tohis community.

MRS . JOY MAILEY has been a valuedmember of the Rossland District staff asa Clerk-Stenographer 2since June 1975. Joyalso serves as the Sec­ret ary of the RosslandSafety and HealthCommittee, and is RRfield editor for Ross­land District. Joy'shobbies include ski-ing and swimming.She and her hu sband are planning tobuild a new house during 1978.

7

PEEK INTO THE PAST

This would have been part of the view had an ambitious 1911 road project from Argenta to Wilmer on Windermere Lake gone ahead.One of many photos accompanying a detailed report dated August 24, 1911, from a J. P. Forde, Assistant Engineer, to Public WorksDepartment headquarters, the picture is captioned "Glaciers at head of Hamill Creek, from summit of Wells Pass." A reconnaissance sur­vey of the proposed route by way of Toby Creek over the Wells Pass and Hamill Creek was apparently requested by the Minister of PublicWorks. Mr. Forde walked the 70 miles and he estimated the cost of a good "motor road" at $156,900 or about $2,300 a mile. (Roughestimate for the proposed 70-mile Coquihalla Highway is $250 millionl) Looking at more than just the engineering, Mr. Forde becamealmost lyrical in his official report: "Immediately on reaching the summit of the Pass an enormous amphitheatre . . . comes into view.and a view of mountains, glaciers, and water falls, such as I have never seen elsewhere, and which are indescribable in their grandeur, isobtained."

8

TRAINING AND SAFETY

~

The Lytton Maintenance Crew, Merritt Highways District,were presented with an award of distinction for having workedfrom February 1, 1962 , through to June 30, 1977, an amazingtotal of 330,355 0 man-hours without a disablin g accident. Thepresentation of the award of distinction was made by Roy Gittins,Regional Highwa ys Engineer. Left to right, back row, DaveGrant, Regional Saf ety Officer ; Del Jackson, Norm Hoffman,Lee Nicolson, Jim McKay, and Red Arnold. Front row, EugeneMarshall, Gordon Sewart, Eli Makeiv, and Roy Gittins, RegionalHighways Engineer. Missing, J. Adams, F. Coutlee, J. Durant,L. Haugen, S. L. Walkem, and W. R. Williams.

Kamloops District Truck Roadeo was held last September.During the day , 125 competitors were put through the course ineither the 4-ton or crewcab category. First in the 4-lOn categorywas Jerry Beddington, Barriere maintenance crew; second, NormMctl ivern, Kamloops maintenance crew; and third, Jim Powell,Barriere maintenance crew. Regional Engineer Roy Gittins pre­sented awards. First ill crewcab was Dick Yamaoka, Design andSurvey Branch; second was Ken McMillan, Kamloops Districtsurvey crew; third was Dave Schleppe, Kamloops Districtdraughtsman.

The McBride District Safety Trophys were awarded to theMcBride Office. Back row, S. R . Young, District Highways Man­ager; Doug Grant, R egional Safety Officer; P. S. Murphy, DistrictCo-ordinator. Front row, A. Buckel, District Technician; B. Hart­man, Clerk-Typist.

The Ministry's 1977 safety awards were announced recentlyand Region 3 won the Minister's Trophy with the lowestaccident-frequency rate of 38.2.

Districts winning awards were Chilliwack (17 .3), SalmonArm (43 .7), Creston (15.0) , Dawson Creek (48.9), PrinceRupert (34.0), and Saanich (22 .2), which received safetyawards in their respective regions.

Safety achievement awards for the best percentage im­provement during 1977 were won by Gibsons, 100 Mile House,Cranbrook, Dawson Creek, Prince Rupert, and Saanich.

In his message to all senior officials, Assistant Deputy Min­ister A. E. Rhodes pointed out that the Ministry's over-allrecord had deteriorated in the past three years. In 1977,Regions I, 3, 5, and 6 had all achieved accident-frequencyimprovements, but Regions 2 and 4 and Headquarters hadcaused a net Ministry loss with their poorer showings.

Jim Hayes, Machine Operator 7, who is at present on theextended sick-leave plan, discussing old times with Roy Gittins,Regional Highways Engineer, at a recent safety rally held inMerritt . Sitting directly below Mr . Gittins is Joe Wurmlinger,who recently won the position of Machine Operator 7.

9

ABOUT PEOPLEJEAN C. HAUBRICK, Timekeeper

Clerk 3 in the Smithers District office,began with Highwaysin 1976. She is mar­ried and enjoys curl­ing, bicycling, playingbridge, and reading,when time permits.

NADINE HEATHERINGTON is anative of Victoria. She joined the Saanich

District office in May1977 where she worksas a Clerk-Steno, Na­dine spends much ofher spare time in herfavourite sport, curl­ing.

JOANNA DRYDEN, Clerk-Typist 2in Port Alberni Dis­trict office, has beenwith Highways sinceMarch 1975. Joey issingle and enjoys bowl­ing and is planning tocoach a minor girlssoftball team this sum­mer.

COLLEEN HALLER, Clerk in theGolden District office since September1977. Colleen is keptbusy by the DistrictCo-ordinator and Dis­trict Office Managerdealing with daily ac­tivity cards. Born inVernon and raised inGolden, Colleen likesski-ing, skating, bowling, and churchwork involvement.

ROSS DEVEAU is an EngineeringAide in the Saanich District. His dutiesinclude the inspectionof subdivision and per­mit applications in theSooke area as well asthe outer Gulf Islands,Pender, Galiano, Sa­turna, and Mayne. Heenjoys raising houseplants and is also an avid par-ticularly science fiction.

PAT O'BRIEN, Stockman, Fernie Dis­trict, began with Highways in 1974 as aLabourer. He was laterpromoted to MachineOperator 3 and hismost recent move wasto the stock room. Inhis spare time he takespart in cross-countryski-ing and enjoys fish­ing and camping.

.~'\. '. 'i:1; • fl · ·~. ~ / . '

RALPH DUPAS, Senior Road Fore­man at Smithers, began with Highways

in 1957 as a MachineOperator at Hazelton.He became a RoadForeman in 1966 andmoved to Smithers in1977. Ralph is mar­ried with four chil­dren. He enjoys car­

pentry, camping, and hobby farming .

FRED HUGHES, Engineering Aide,joined the Saanich District survey crew

in 1976. Previously heworked for the PavingBranch for five years.Fred is married andhas built his ownhouse. He is also in­volved in sports activi­ties, badminton, andhockey.

DA VID BIRD, Clerk 1, MaintenanceManagement, Dock District, New West­

minster. David joinedHighways as a summerstudent in May 1977and stayed on whilefinishing university atnight. He enjoys swim­ming, water and snowski-ing.

DOUG BAlN, Senior Road Foreman4, Grand Forks Dis­trict, began with theHighways in 1954 asa Road Foreman atBirch Island . Doug'shobbies are gardeningand travelling.

NICK VANDERMOLEN, new Engi­neering Aide 3 in Port Alberni Districtoffice. His duties willbe handling subdivi­sions. Nick's hobbiesare scuba diving, ski­ing, and skating. Nickis single and currentlyconstructing a housein Coombs.

OLE SCHIEFELBEIN, Machine Op­erator 3, McBride District, began with

Highways in Novem­ber 1976. Ole was alogging - truck driverpreviously. He enjoyssnowmobiling, fishing,hunting, and outdoorlife. Ole is marriedwith one child.

ED GOKIERT, Machine Operator 4,joined Highways inMarch 1956 in hishome town, Sidney,B.C. Ed has operatedmany types of equip­ment for the SaanichDistrict over the past22 years.

HOLLEY V. LINDEN, Clerk-Typistin the Smithers District office since 1977,

was previously em­ployed by Fish andWildlife in Smithers.She is married withthree children. Herhobbies are curling,fishing, but most spare

',. time is spent on theirfarm looking after 200 cows.

10

JOANNE MOULTON, Clerk-Typist inthe Smithers District office, began govern­ment service in 1975in the Fish and Wild­life Branch and trans­ferred to Highways in1976, being promotedto Clerk-Stene in 1977.Her hobbies are cro­cheting and cycling.

ti

ti

ti

ti

ti

oC'

ti

ti

ti

ALLAN RHODES, Temporary RoadForeman I, Salmon Arm District, hasbeen with the High­ways since September1963. AI started asa Labourer in theFalkland area andcame to Salmon Armin 1971 and has beenemployed as a Ma­chine Operator 7, Temporary Foreman,and Acting Foreman. AI spends his sparetime at woodcarving, curling, and boating.

ROBERT J. TAUFFENBACH, Stock­man , Dawson Creek Highway District,tr ansfers to Langfordto take up duties asSenior Stockman atthe Government ware­house for all minis­tries. Employeesgathered at a dinnerto wish Bob farewelland presented him with an autographedhard hat and a pen set. Bob and hiswife Leona are old-timers of the PeaceRiver District, originating from the earlysettlers and farmers in the area.

JOHN GERHARDT, Road Foreman4, came to the Salmon Arm District from

Blue River in Decem­ber 1975. John is theSenior Road Foremanin the District and agreat gardener. Beau­tifying the SalmonArm Yard was hislatest undertaking .

John has been with Highways for 22years .

MARY JANE LEZETC, Clerk 2,started with Maintenance Management as

an auxiliary in De­cember 1976 and herposition became per­manent in November1977. Mary's dutiesas an Input /OutputControl Clerk involvecomputer processing

for both maintenance and equipmentmanagement system s. Mary is marriedand has a degree in home economics.Her interests includ e needlework, skating,and camping.

ti

ti

ti

ti

£:

-er

ti

ti

ti

-er

ti

t:l

t:l

V, T AYLOR, Clerk-Stenog­2, Dawson Creek Highway Dis­

trict, returns to herold desk after attend­ing to her family fora few months. Loisenjoy s her work asDistrict Steno and hasno trouble keepingbusy.

LOISrapher

MRS . LINDA SHAW, Clerk I , Mer­ritt Highways District, who is relievingMrs . Arlene Johnston,Clerk-Typist 2, who inturn is relieving Mrs .Pat Gontar, Clerk 3,timekeeper, who hadher first child in De­cember.

O. M. NORDSTOKKE, "Oddie" tohis co-workers, looks a bit glum ponder­ing metrification of theRoad Register. Oddiehas been employedwith Highways atVanderhoof since1975. A native ofNorway, Oddie is aproficient cross­country skier, which he enjoys with hiswife and seven children on thei r farm atEngen.

GLEN McEACHERN, Road Foreman2, came to the Salmon Arm District from

McLeese Lake in July• 1977. Glen has been

with Highways from1965 and likes tospend his spare timeski-dooing.

SHELLEY ALLAN has been withHeadquarters Personnel since August

1977, starting as anAuxiliary and thenchanging to a regularClerk-Typist I positionin December. Herfavourite pastime isplaying softball.

ti

oCr

ti

ti

ti

ti

ti

ti

ti

MURRAY RAMSAY, Technician 2,Salmon Arm office, has been with High­ways for 26 years andhandles s u bd i v isio napplications. DuringWorld War II, Murrayentertained his buddieswith his skits and musi­cal arrangements, andeven composes his ownsongs. He recently played the mandolinat a farewell party. Murray and his wifeGinger spend the summer on the golfcourse.

N. R. ALDERSON, Road Foreman 3in New Hazelton, Smithers District, beganwith Highways in1964 as Labourer inMcBride. He becamea Machine Operatorand transferred to Q21crusher and then toTete Jaune as a Ma­chine Operator andrelief Foreman. He was then promotedto Road Foreman 2 in Atlin, then trans­ferred to Fort St. James in the samecapacity . He was promoted to Foreman3 in Kaslo before his transfer to NewHazelton. He is married with two chil­dren and enjoys music and sports.

KEN PENNER, Engineering Assistantin the Smithers Highw ay District, began

with Highways in 1971with the Con structionBranch in Nelson . Heworked in GrandForks, Cre ston, Slo­can , and Nakusp andthen left Highways fora short time in 1973.

Began with Highways again in ManningPark , then to Princeton and Pentictonwhere he applied for the EngineeringAssistant position in Smithers and wassuccessful. He is married and enjoy scanoeing, snowshoeing, and makingfurniture .

LLOYD GALL, District Stockman inSalmon Arm, has been with Highways

since May 1966. Hehas a busy time tryingto keep ahead of spareparts and materials fora Mechanical Fore­man, six Road Fore­men, and a BridgeForeman. He started

out at Oak Street Garage, went to Clover­dale, and then to Salmon Arm in May1970. He purchased a house boat lastyear and spends the summer fishing.

11

ON THE JOB •

Fred Earl, Mac hine Operator 2 (ferryman), Eugene Mar shall ,R oad Foreman 3 , Lytt on , and Lester Charlie, Ma chin e Operator 1(deckhand) of M erritt Highways District , takin g a "pho to" breakfor the RR . Th is Lytton terry was just recently rebuilt with aBailey bridge deck sys tem. Th e "Captain's cabin" is equipped withpropan e heat and has a lightin g plant so that the t erry can operateduring the evening hours.

Installat ion of steel stringers on Green M ountain Road, Pentic­ton District. Lett to right, G. Rozander, F. Vaillancourt , B. Sains­bury , and L. Batie, Bridge Foreman.

Cattle underpass extension on Roadhouse Hill, Penticton District.Lett to right, Gerry Rozander, Guy Ink ster , and R. Wiltse.

12

John Bergen, Road Forema n at South bank, and John Clark,District Te chnician , Burns Lake, investigating vandalism to signs atSouthbank . Th e new floatin g dock and terry term inal for theFrancois Lake fe rry are in middle distan ce.

Repairing dama ge to Whip saw Bridge , Princeton District area.Left to right , F. Vaillan court , R. Wiltse, and Alex Gordon , RoadForeman .

Temporary detour is required while the Vernon District Bridgecrew installs an 80-foot cattle underpass on 97A north of Vernon.

Mechanics are called on to do all kindsof jobs and Bill Hogan , Mechanic atHope, takes one on here-s-welding th ecable guides on the North Bend Ferr y,Merritt Highways District .

Some members of the Boston BarMaintenance crew practising locating a"beeper" which was buried under thesnow. This is a practice that all mem­bers of the Highways located in theHope, Boston Bar, and Lytton areas areschooled in. A beeper is hidden in thesnow, to represent a workman or vehicleburied in an avalanche, and the men tryto locate it through the receiving portionof the beeper. Once the men are familiarwith the process the beeper can be foundvery quickly. It almost looks as if TomPerfetti, on top of snow bank, has thebeeper's position and is ready to pounceon it.

Part of the Vernon District Sign crewat work maintaining district road signs.John MacNiven and Brenda Kelly areshown here replacing fingerboards .

Jack Pyle , Bridge Foreman 2, Vander­hoof District, stands at the centre of thenew Necoslie Bridge at Fort St. Jameswhich was opened to traffic last year.Roy Dyer, Foreman 2 at Fort St. James,drove the first vehicle across. Bridgeconstruction was carried out by ManningConstruction under the over-all super­vision of Ted Peters, Bridge Branch . TheVanderhoof bridge crew constructed theapproaches. The old N ecoslie Bridgewas destroyed by fire two years ago.

Important job for Bill Toews, Pentic­ton Highways District, is keeping hazardmarkers and signs clean .

Janet R. Gall, Machine Operator 3,Golden Highway District, is the first fe­male in Region 3 to acquire her Class 3driver's licence and recently has success­fully completed an air-brake course. Sheoperates 4-ton vehicles on winter shiftswhich involves snow-ploughing; sanding,and salting, etc. Born in Lethbridge,Janet is married and enjoys cooking,cross-country ski-ing, and cycling.

Vernon Flag persons trying to tell RRphotographer something. They are, left,Sherry Mohoruk and Karen Jonsson insummer last year.-

George Wishart, Machine Operator 4 ,Saanich District, assists in the stockpilingof new no-post guardrail sections. Thesewill later be shipped out to the variousareas throughout Regions I and 6. TheDistrict has recently completed construc­tion of a no-post guardrail fabricationshed at Langford. This building isequipped with an overhead hoist usedfor lifting and removing completed sec­tions from the moulds. Crew membersare Doug Metka , Labourer; Grant Milli­kan, Labourer; Brett Lowther, Labourer;and Jim Woodend, Labourer.

This close encounter of the geared kindwas observed outside the District Officein Bums Lake. Driver of the Highwaysvehicle, Bob Saul, Regional DriverTrainer, states that driver of the othervehicle, Bob Hutton, District HighwaysManager, reversed up the snowy 12 percent grade hill and hit him. Only dam­age was to someone's pride-either the"encounteror" or the "encounteree:"

13

ON THE JOB

Bridge Foreman Sam Reid, left, Merritt Highways District,doing some last-minute calculations before his crew starts jackingup Drynoch Overhead Bridge. The bridge is lifted every coupleof years or whenever there is some settlement. Eight 20-ton jacks

The Rossland District recently benched a high through-rockcut on Highway 3, right picture, to eliminate rock fall and providea storage area for SIlOW when the blower is in operation. Previ­ously, SIlOW had to be trucked away. Interesting was the use ofwater for scaling purposes. Water was supplied by a high-pressurepump mounted all the District's water-tank truck, outfitted by theRossland shop under the direction of Russ Broughton, Mechanic

At the controls of the floating dock at south side of FrancoisLake is Jim Robson, Bridge Foreman, Burns Lake, left picture. Thedock is raised and lowered all all evell keel by adjusting the amountof air entering or leaving the buoyancy tanks. It is used to raise

14

in place, right, during the raising of the bridge. Work was under­taken by the Merritt District Bridge crew. The bridge had to beraised 22 .5 em on the west side and 15 em all the east side of thewest abutment.

Foreman. It can be filled [rom a stream or a fire hydrant ami isequipped with a flusher bar all the [rant, With the truck ill Opera­tor DOll Roberts, right, who maintains it ill spotless condition.Some of the other jobs performed by DOll are flushing sand ofJ theroads in spring, following shoulder-grading operations, rather thanusing a broom and cleaning culverts.

.. I ~...

the Omineca Pr incess out of the water for annual refit and emer­gencies. The view is looking south all the way to Ootsa Lake, 30miles away. Right, from the to p of the floating dock, the Omi necaPrincess leaves Soutlibank all its way across Francois Lake.

._-~· .9IM

. k ,;

Dennis Menhinick of the Houston crew, Burns Lake District,guides another piece of culvert into position, watched by RayMakowichuk and George Barton.

The culvert replacement along Barrett Station Road was doneby the Houston crew, Bums Lake District. After completion theculvert was placed in position in Stock Creek. Hopefully, anotherwashout problem eliminated.

tk·

Terrace Highway District at work widening sections of Terrace­Kitimat Highway. Derek VondeVelde is inspecting air hose atleft as Tom McBride operates the drill.

I

Rogers Pass Avalanche Course doing a snow profile. Left toright, Dale Holmes, Creston District Avalanche Technician; JimE. Steven, District Highway Manager, Williams Lake; VinceAdamski, Road Foreman, Boston Bar; Pat O'Toole, District High­ways Manager, Lillooet; and John Zaporozan, District Technician,Penticton. Geoff Freer, Senior A valanche Co-ordinator, took thepicture.

Al Park, Machine Operator 3, and Tom Armitage, Signman,Merritt Highways District, seen here painting arrows on a three­lane section of the Trans-Canada Highway. The templates shownin the picture was manufactured by C. Wylle, Bridgeman, and folddown to a maximum length of 2 feet.r -

Salmon Arm Highways District has the responsibility of main­taining the Trans-Canada Highway through Salmon Arm. Sectionshave to be replaced at times to provide a better road base andimprove conditions. Here Ray Pakka, Temporary Road ForemanI, carries the shovel, while George Wilson operates the Gradall.

15

ON THE JOB •

Damage to a section of Port Alice Road ill the Port Hardyarea cause d by heavy rains ill O ctob er 1977 , which result ed illwash out of Waukwaas Bridge 2, left, a log crib alld stringer bridge

011 the morning of N o vem ber 24, 197 7, a fire started ill oneof th e sho p buildings in Kamloops District Yard . D estr oyed ill th efire were th e steam bay, tool storage room , and a tw o-bay bodysho p with (/ war ehouse in the attic . The paint shop and tire shop,also housed ill th e building, received sm oke damage. Th e fire took

Th e Barnfield boardwalk is one of the structures maintainedby the Port Alberni Hi ghways Distri ct under the guidance ofSonny Logan. The boardwalk is lo cat ed 011 the west side of Bam­field Inl et, which has 110 roads or vehicles. As trail constructionis di fficult on th e stee p slo pes of th e inlet, the boardwalk was builtto provide access for residents.

.....!

4/

with a 44 -foot span. Courtena y District bridge crew assembledand installed (/ Bailey bridge, right, to replace it.

fou r hours to ex ting uish. Temperature at the time was well belowfree zing , creating a problem with th e water. Left picture , th e backof the building shortly after the height of the fire and, right pic­tur e, th e front of th e building after fire wa s out.

Tom Perfetti and T erry Dirk, of Merritt Highways District atBoston Ba r, removing 1S-inch no-post guardrail from Jackass Hillon the Trans-Canada Hi ghway prior to the repaving of the high­lI'ay .

16 LITHOGRAPHED IN CANA DA. BY K. M. MKDO~ "' LO. QUEEN'S PR INT ER , VICTO RIA , BR ITIS H CO LU MBIA