🚧 WBN News: Coquihalla Sinkhole Closure and Its Ripple Effects on Local Businesses
Sinkhole closure on Coquihalla Highway disrupts Lower Mainland and Interior travel, with businesses bracing for impact—some seeing unexpected boosts!
Coquihalla Closure
HOPE, BC – June 7, 2025
By Troy Tyrell | Tsquared Personal Training | June 7, 2025
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The Coquihalla Highway has faced an abrupt and urgent closure this week after a sinkhole developed in the northbound slow lane near the Great Bear Snowshed, disrupting the critical link between Vancouver’s Lower Mainland and the Interior’s commerce hubs.
Ministry of Transportation officials have attributed the sinkhole to Trans Mountain pipeline boring work, which weakened the underlying soil. While repair crews have been working tirelessly, sometimes literally down in the hole, the resulting multi-day closure has shaken local businesses like a TRX band in a Tsquared class.
🚚 Detour Drama: Big Impact on Transport, Tourism, and Travellers
The Coquihalla isn’t just a highway, it’s the gateway for Lower Mainland residents heading to Interior BC for weekend getaways and the main artery for commercial haulers moving everything from produce to project materials.
- Travellers from the Lower Mainland heading to the Okanagan, Kamloops, or beyond have been forced to rethink plans, cancelling winery tours, lake trips, and even mountain biking excursions (which is just a downright tragedy, let’s be honest).
- Interior BC residents needing to visit Vancouver for work, appointments, or even a beach day have had to budget an extra three hours of travel time along detour routes.
One family from Chilliwack was overheard at a gas station lamenting:
“We thought we’d be on the water in Kelowna by now. Instead, we’re stuck in line for the bathroom on Highway 3!”
🏪 Local Businesses: Sinking Profits, Rising Frustration… and Surprise Boosts
It’s not just the transport sector taking the hit:
- Small businesses in Hope, Merritt, and along the Fraser Valley have seen a surge in cancelled reservations and reduced foot traffic. Restaurants that normally cater to highway travellers report sales slashed in half, while gas stations that depend on the endless flow of commercial rigs are seeing their tanks stay full and profits drained.
But here’s the kicker, some businesses along the open detour routes are seeing a surprising boost:
- Highway 1 (Fraser Canyon) and Highway 3 (Crowsnest) are pulsing with extra traffic.
- Small-town coffee shops, convenience stores, and scenic viewpoint stops that typically see moderate traffic are suddenly humming with activity, like a fitness class with an instructor who just yelled “Last 10 seconds—GO!”
A coffee shop owner in Yale shared:
“We usually get hikers and day-trippers. This weekend? Truckers, families, everyone looking for a caffeine fix and a chance to stretch their legs!”
🤸♀️ A Body-Positive Takeaway: Stay Flexible, Stay Ready
Yes, closures and delays are a pain in the glutes, like a surprise hill climb on your mountain bike ride. But here’s the silver lining:
- Stay moving: Truckers and drivers stuck in traffic can use that downtime to do some calf raises or seated stretches, better than letting that seatbelt cut circulation like a compression band.
- Adaptability: Just like in fitness, where muscle confusion keeps you growing, these unexpected closures remind us that flexibility (in both traffic and training) is essential for survival and profitability.
🛠️ What’s Next?
The Ministry says repairs will wrap up by Saturday evening, June 7, around 7:30 pm, pending final inspections. Businesses are cautiously hopeful that traffic will soon flow, and their balance sheets will bounce back.
In the meantime, businesses along those detour highways are seizing the moment, turning traffic woes into opportunity, proving that resilience and creativity are the real MVPs, whether you’re stuck in traffic or pumping out lunges in your living room.
👉 Need real-time updates? Visit DriveBC for live cams and travel advisories.
By Troy Tyrell, Founder of Tsquared Personal Training
WBN Contributor | Community Builder | Mountain Biker | Advocate for Local Business & Fitness
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#Coquihalla Closure #Sinkhole Drama #BC Business Impact #Detour Traffic #Highway Hustle #Stay Flexible #Business Resilience #Travel Detour #Support Local BC #Drive Safe BC #Troy Tyrell
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