Alaska Highway Special Area Maintenance Guidelines, Yukon
Tetra Tech created maintenance guidelines for areas of the Alaska Highway (or Shakwak Project) in Yukon that pass through environmentally sensitive northern terrain and lands that are of traditional significance to local aboriginal groups.
Specific areas along the 325-kilometer highway require special consideration beyond typical highway maintenance activities. Special Area Maintenance Guidelines documents these areas and provides guidelines for enhanced maintenance activities in a format that is useful to maintenance operators.
Tetra Tech produced the Special Areas Maintenance Guidelines for the Alaska Highway from Haines Junction to the U.S. border beyond Beaver Creek. The project included two seasonal inspections of the highway to identify special areas and their maintenance. Tetra Tech collected data along the highway corridor and produced a digital video log. Tetra Tech conducted community consultation, including consultation with Highways and Public Works staff and regulators, provided information about additional special areas and their maintenance.
Tetra Tech developed maintenance practices and compiled them into a comprehensive guide, including a map atlas of the highway, details of the special areas, permit or license requirements, maintenance requirements and other information.
The guidelines divided the special areas into four groups:
- Highway Features, e.g., pits, multiplates, roads, and trails
- Land ownership, including placer claims
- Environmental components, e.g., wildlife presence, zone of caution indicating archaeological or heritage value areas, and recreation and tourist use
- Highway structure, e.g., road surface distress, permafrost