Image: Supplied by FVRD / Extra RCMP officers will be out this weekend to address illegal parking along Columbia Valley Highway, far beyond the main beach area of Cultus Lake.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Cultus Lake parking

RCMP, towing companies ready to address illegal parking over the long weekend at Cultus Lake

Aug 30, 2022 | 11:20 AM

CHILLIWACK — When hundreds of vehicles parked along the shoulder of both sides of Columbia Valley Highway near Entrance Bay and around the bend of Cultus Lake over the August long weekend, it created a logistical nightmare for first responders who had to navigate what seemed like a gauntlet of cars galore.

To avert a similar ordeal like that in the event of an emergency this weekend, visitors are being advised that their vehicles may be towed this Saturday, September 3 through Monday, September 5.

According to an interagency news release issued Monday (Aug. 29), the RCMP, Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, Fraser Valley Regional District, and the Cultus Lake Park Board have partnered together to implement the temporary towing solution. Parking is prohibited on Columbia Valley Highway as it presents a hazard to drivers and pedestrians and prevents emergency services from moving safely through the area.

Extra RCMP officers will be deployed to address parking along Columbia Valley Highway, said Taryn Dixon, director of Electoral Area H on the Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) board of directors.

“There’s a huge concern right now around safety and emergency response times,” Dixon said. “Obviously, the FVRD is involved and we want to work together to improve things.”

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Visitors to the lake are required to park only in designated paid parking lots in the Cultus Lake community itself, or in limited parking lots at Cultus Lake Provincial Park like Entrance Bay or Maple Bay. Signage for parking lots is located at the entrance of Cultus Lake near the roundabout.

Image: Supplied by Cultus Lake Park Board / Visitors to Cultus Lake Park this weekend will see extra RCMP officers enforcing illegal parking along Columbia Valley Road, far beyond the main beach area.

Vehicles that are illegally parked over the long weekend may be towed to a temporary tow lot at the Cultus Lake Community Hall, located closer to the main beach area. The news release indicated there would be no charge to claim a vehicle, but drivers might be inconvenienced if they have to travel to the tow lot by taxi, for example.

“We need to deal with this,” Dixon said in an interview with Fraser Valley Today. “A lot of people are used to nothing happening [if they park illegally]. We have to change that thinking.”

Dixon clarified that B.C. Parks does not have the authority to issue parking tickets to people parked along Columbia Valley Highway. That authority rests solely with the RCMP, she said.

“We’ve been interacting with Supt. Davy Lee of the RCMP about the Motor Vehicle Act,” she said. “Even though it’s a road through B.C. Parks, it’s still highway jurisdiction.”

by Mike Vanden Bosch

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RCMP, towing companies ready to address illegal parking over the long weekend at Cultus Lake

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