Eby Street Staircase/Trails Construction - Capital Project

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Connecting the Bench and the City below

The Bench area in Terrace has limited options for safe and accessible walking and cycling routes to the City below.

Currently, pedestrians and cyclists can use two official routes that connect the two areas:

  1. Lanfear Drive (also referred to as Lanfear Hill)
  2. Kalum Street (also referred to as Kalum Hill or Skeenaview Drive)

These routes, however, are primarily designed for motor vehicles and not everyone is comfortable walking or cycling on them.

Another option for pedestrians and cyclists to travel between the Bench, and the area below it is to use unofficial off-road

Connecting the Bench and the City below

The Bench area in Terrace has limited options for safe and accessible walking and cycling routes to the City below.

Currently, pedestrians and cyclists can use two official routes that connect the two areas:

  1. Lanfear Drive (also referred to as Lanfear Hill)
  2. Kalum Street (also referred to as Kalum Hill or Skeenaview Drive)

These routes, however, are primarily designed for motor vehicles and not everyone is comfortable walking or cycling on them.

Another option for pedestrians and cyclists to travel between the Bench, and the area below it is to use unofficial off-road routes that run from different areas of the Bench to the Howe Creek Trail network. These unofficial routes, however, are quite steep and are generally in poor condition, with loose dirt and gravel.

Two of these unofficial routes are:

  1. Pumphouse Trail
    Runs from the Eby Street Fish Hatchery, up the hill, to the base of Eby Street on the Bench.

  2. Terrace Viewpoint Trail
    Runs from the Howe Creek Trail, just a couple hundred metres east of the Fish Hatchery, to the Terrace Viewpoint. (This view point may also be referred to as the Kalum Hill lookout or the Skeena Viewpoint.)

Planned routes of the two new official trails that will connect the Howe Creek trail to the Bench. Two "new" City trails (Phase 1)

The intent of the Eby Street Staircase/Trails project is to make these two informal routes into official trails, that are safe and accessible to the general public. The goal is to improve walking and cycling options between the Bench and the city and neighbourhoods below.

The upgraded Pumphouse Trail is intended to mainly be a walking trail. While the route won't change significantly, the grade of the trail will be lessened to make it more walkable and accessible. Stairs made out of wood and stone will be built into the steeper corner sections of the trails, at the switchbacks.

The upgraded Terrace Viewpoint trail will be for pedestrians and cyclists. This trail will start and end at the same locations but it will be re-routed to reduce the trail grade; inexperienced cyclists should be able to ride down the trail once it's complete.

In addition to upgrading these two trails, this project includes removing and upgrading unsafe infrastructure in the area, and decommissioning and rehabilitating (regrading and revegetating) other existing informal routes.

See the planned routes of the two new official trails in the image above, or a larger image size is also in the 'Project Images' section on the right.

  • Get out and enjoy the new trails!

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    New stairs on the upgrade Pumphouse Trail

    The new trails are now open and ready to be enjoyed! City staff completed a final walk through in mid-October to ensure the trails were stable and safe- and they are!

    The Pumphouse Trail, the steeper of the two which connects the top of Eby Street in the Horseshoe with the bottom of Eby Street on the Bench, now has natural stairs made of wood and stone that make it easier to walk up and down. The Viewpoint Trail, which connects Howe Creek Trail to the Viewpoint at the top of Kalum Street is now almost three times as long and much less steep. It's much more accessible for pedestrians, bikers and even strollers and walkers.

    Many community members have commented on how happy they are with the new routes.

    The next phase of this project, planned for 2025 will be upgrading a larger, aging stormwater main in the area.

    We also need to install signs.

    Grateful for Funding

    We'd like to acknowledge that this project would not have been possible without funding from the Northern and Rural Communities Infrastructure Stream of Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.

    The cost for this project was split, with 50% coming from the Government of Canada, 40% from the Government of BC, and 10% paid by the City of Terrace.

    The project budget will be split approximately evenly between Phase 1 (trail construction) and Phase 2 (stormwater infrastructure upgrades)

  • Phase 2 - Stormwater management upgrade

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    A second part to this project includes the replacement of a 40-year old stormwater main that runs down the hillside, near the trails. Replacing this pipe will result in more efficient stormwater management as well as minimize potential water quality issues and fish habitat harm in Howe Creek. This work will likely take place in 2025.

  • Trails Closed for Construction

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    Throughout the summer, various trails in the Howe Creek Area will be closed to allow for construction. This includes:

    • Parts of Howe Creek trail
    • Pumphouse trail
    • Viewpoint trail (s) (former and newer route)

    See trail closure map in 'Project Images' section on the right for details.

    Thank you for your patience and stay tuned for when the new trails are ready to be enjoyed and the Howe Creek section is open again!

  • Updated project design offers many benefits

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    The original concept of this project was to upgrade the Pumphouse Trail only and install a metal staircase - hence the project name 'Eby Staircase'. An engineering review by McElhanney in 2023, however, determined the concept to be infeasible given that the budget is limited to a set amount of grant funds the City received for this project. The project has since evolved to include the upgrading of two trails, and the stairs on the Pumphouse Trail to be installed in key sections and made of natural materials (wood and stone).

    This updated design and the overall project presents numerous benefits:

    • Two new official trails resulting in an expanded trail network and new recreation opportunities
    • Improved walking and cycling accessibility between the Bench and the neighbourhoods and city below
    • New trail design is easier to maintain, which will result in future cost savings
    • More natural stairs and materials will have less of an environmental and visual impact
    • Elimination of trespassing on private land
    • Removal and replacement of old infrastructure

  • Funding split between trail construction & infrastructure upgrades

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    This project is funded by the Northern and Rural Communities Infrastructure Stream of Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. The project budget breakdown is as follows: 50% paid by the Government of Canada, 40% paid by the Government of BC, and 10% paid by the City of Terrace.

    Approximately half of the budget is for Phase 1, the upgrading of the two trails, and approximately half is for Phase 2, the removal and replacement of the old stormwater main.

Page last updated: 22 Oct 2024, 10:36 AM