The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen is pleased to announce the completion of the Kaleden Lakeshore Pedestrian Corridor. The two-kilometre paved multi-purpose pathway provides a safe walking and biking route for pedestrians between Highway 97 and the Lower Kaleden lakeshore; with its access to recreational amenities including the KVR Trail, this corridor offers rich opportunities for outdoor activities that contribute to physical and mental health.

In 2013, concerns for pedestrian safety on Lakehill Road prompted a community petition for the pathway. The Kaleden Parks and Recreation Commission supported the petition stating that “Lakehill Road is a heavily used corridor between the highway, the post office and the beach at Skaha Lake including access to hundreds of homes and the KVR trail. Lakehill Road is used by children to walk to school, residents to walk on, cycle on, and ride horses on. The road is narrow, heavily used and outdated.”

The new corridor encourages people to be active and is accessible to a wide range of users; allowing school children, young families and retirees to move around on foot or bike within their neighbourhood. Active transportation improves individual health and the health of our communities by cutting down on greenhouse gas emissions, reducing air pollutants, noise pollution and congestion. By choosing to use the corridor, individuals are also causing less wear and tear on the roads and increasing their contact with their neighbours and community.

RDOS Electoral Area “D” Director Tom Siddon praised the project, saying that “this long awaited and much-needed project will give Kaleden its first-ever pedestrian walkway in the historic community’s more than 100-year history. The walkway will provide a pedestrian friendly and safe walking connection to several important community services and the lakefront amenities of Lower Kaleden.”

Quick Facts:

•Local and Provincial dignitaries will be on hand for the Official Grand Opening
•The $600,000 project was made possible thanks to $300,000 from both federal Gas Tax Fund and the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure