Months-long road closure blocking key Courtenay-Comox route comes to an end

British ColumbiaCommuters and businesses in Vancouver Island’s Comox Valley are breathing a sigh of relief as construction work that partially shut down a key road for several months has come to an end. Some businesses say they should have been compensated for loss of customers during constructionMaryse Zeidler · CBC News · Posted: Dec 06, 2025 7:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 2 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.A key connection between the Vancouver Island communities of Courtenay and Comox has just reopened after it was closed due to construction for several months. (Maryse Zeidler/CBC)The construction work that partially shut down a key road in Vancouver Island’s Comox Valley for several months has come to an end, and residents and businesses are breathing a sigh of relief.Parts of Comox Avenue and Comox Road had been closed in sections since March, when construction began as part of the Comox Valley Regional District’s sewer conveyance project to replace sewage pipes and pump stations. During the construction, drivers from Comox were able to head westbound towards Courtenay, but closures along various parts eastbound blocked traffic on the way back, and a detour lengthened the commute for many.Comox resident Robin Clark said the road reopening Friday evening was “awesome.””Being able to go back to the way it was is going to be very, very convenient,” said Clark, who commutes to work in nearby Merville. Like many residents, Clark says she understands why the project was needed — but that didn’t keep her from complaining about it. “I just hope it’s a long time before we have any more major projects,” she said.Read more news from Vancouver IslandEnvironmental riskCharlie Gore, senior manager of capital projects with the Comox Valley Regional District was on site Friday morning, watching workers remove construction signs and concrete barriers. Gore said the risk of the old sewer pipe breaking and leaking into a nearby estuary was significant, and he was glad to see the project come to fruition. Charlie Gore, left, is the capital projects manager at the Comox Valley Regional District. (Maryse Zeidler/CBC)”It’s been a really hard slog to get it over the line these last couple of months with the cold, wet weather,” he said. “We’re very excited to finally be able to say that we’re reopening the road fully.”The project also added two new roundabouts in Comox, which Gore said were necessary to accommodate traffic in the growing community. Challenging for businessAna Young, owner of women’s clothing consignment store the Wolf SheD, says the past few months have been difficult. “It’s definitely been hard on all the small businesses in the area,” she said. “It kind of took away my ability to have any sustenance or savings to support me down the road.”Ana Young, owner of the Wolf SheD near Comox, B.C., says construction near her store has reduced business. (Maryse Zeidler/CBC)Young says she suffered a 40 per cent drop in business since the closure started, including during the key spring and summer months that keep her afloat through winter. Young’s shop is on Comox Road, known locally as Dyke Road. Two-way traffic leading to her store has been open for weeks, but she says the closure further up the way and the resulting detour heading into Comox has kept tourists and other customers away. Initial project discussions with the regional district included some talk of compensation, she says, but nothing came of it.”We’ve just been left to kind of get through it,” she said, adding that she hopes the district could have a better system in place to support businesses like hers during major projects. Some businesses in the town of Comox itself also complained about how the construction affected them.Mayor Nicole Minions said the downtown business association did its best to promote the area as a destination while the regional district’s project was in progress. She added that it would be hard to determine a metric for financial compensation for businesses during construction.ABOUT THE AUTHORMaryse Zeidler is an award-winning reporter who covers news from Nanaimo and north Vancouver Island. Have a news tip? You can reach her at maryse.zeidler@cbc.ca.