Two blocks of Broadway now closed for six months for subway construction | Daily Hive

Two blocks of Broadway now closed for six months for subway construction, with detour route created

Closure of West Broadway at Alberta Street, as seen at noon on July 20, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

At precisely noon today, Monday, July 20, 2026, the two-block-long stretch of West Broadway between Cambie Street and Alberta Street began its prolonged temporary closure to accommodate a new major phase of construction for the Broadway Subway project.

As previously reported by Daily Hive Urbanized last week, the two-block segment of West Broadway just east of the intersection with Cambie Street will be fully closed to all vehicles — including TransLink buses — for about six months, until late 2026 or early 2027, starting today. In May 2026, the provincial government first announced that this planned closure would begin after the FIFA World Cup.

The pedestrian sidewalks on these blocks will remain accessible for businesses and residents.

General vehicle traffic and TransLink buses — including the busy 99 B-Line and No. 9 UBC/Boundary — are now detouring along two blocks of West 8th Avenue just to the north via the intersections with Cambie Street and Alberta Street.

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Concrete traffic barriers have been installed on the portion of the detour route along and near Alberta Street. As well, there are new bus-only lanes in place to aid the efficient movement of TransLink buses making turns through the detour, such as bus-only lanes on West Broadway eastbound for the left turn onto Cambie Street northbound and on West 8th Avenue westbound for the left turn onto Cambie Street southbound.

New temporary traffic signals and turning restrictions are now in place for general vehicle traffic at Cambie Street’s intersections with West Broadway and West 8th Avenue.

broadway cambie closure detour map july 20 2026

Map of the six-month temporary full closure and detour of West Broadway between Cambie and Alberta streets for Broadway Subway construction, starting on July 20, 2026. (Government of BC)

Map of the six-month temporary full closure and detour of West Broadway between Cambie and Alberta streets for Broadway Subway construction, starting on July 20, 2026. (TransLink)

The West Broadway bus stops that directly serve SkyTrain’s Broadway-City Hall Station have now been moved to the west, with the westbound bus stops for both the 99 B-Line and No. 9 slightly shifted closer to the end of the block.

Moreover, the station’s eastbound bus stop for the 99 B-Line has been relocated to a consolidated bus stop with the No. 9 almost one block to the west, closer to Ash Street. A northbound bus stop on Cambie Street next to the station for the No. 15 Cambie Street/Olympic Village Station bus route has been temporarily removed.

Major vehicle traffic congestion was observed shortly after today’s noon closure, especially for eastbound vehicle traffic on West Broadway heading towards Cambie Street.

Drivers and bus passengers are strongly advised to allow extra travel time when passing through the area. Motorists may also want to consider West 2nd Avenue or West 12th Avenue as alternative east-west routes.

99 bline bus stop relocation west broadway cambie july 20 2026

Relocation of Broadway-City Hall Station’s 99 B-Line eastbound bus stop, as seen on July 20, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

west broadway cambie closure july 20 2026

Congestion on West Broadway at Cambie Street at the start of the closure and detour at noon on July 20, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

west 8th avenue alberta street detour july 20 2026

West 8th Avenue detour at Alberta Street, as seen on July 20, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

This six-month closure is deemed to be a necessary step to safely and efficiently remove the temporary traffic bridge structures above West Broadway, spanning above the Millennium Line’s new Broadway-City Hall subway station structure and a major crossover track switch.

After the traffic bridge structures — first completed in 2022 to enable the continuation of arterial vehicle and bus traffic flow during the overwhelming majority of the subway’s overall construction timeline — are removed, crews will fill the excavation above the tunnel roof with gravel, complete new underground utilities, and construct the permanent new roadway. Upon completion, the area will have four general vehicle traffic lanes, plus turning lanes and wide pedestrian sidewalks.

West 8th Avenue detour at Alberta Street, as seen on July 20, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

west 8th avenue cambie street detour july 20 2026

West 8th Avenue detour near Cambie Street, as seen on July 20, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

West 8th Avenue detour at Cambie Street, as seen on July 20, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

This closure is similar to the previous four-month shutdown of a one-block-long section of East Broadway between Quebec Street and Main Street, which was required to restore the roadway above Mount Pleasant Station. That closure began in late January and ended in mid-May 2026, with general vehicle traffic and buses detoured along East 8th Avenue during that period.

The provincial government has confirmed that this is the final full road closure required to remove the temporary traffic bridge structures over the subway station construction blocks. For the remaining new subway stations below the Broadway roadway — Oak-VGH, South Granville, and Arbutus stations — only partial lane closures will be required for the overall process leading up to the restoration of the roadway.

Upon the opening of SkyTrain’s Millennium Line Broadway extension to Arbutus in late 2027, Broadway-City Hall Station will become a new major regional interchange between the Canada Line and Millennium Line, with underground pathways linking the platforms of the two SkyTrain lines providing passengers with the ability to make a transfer.

Process to remove the temporary traffic decks for the Broadway Subway’s station construction sites. (Government of BC)

Diagram showing the interchange hub between the Millennium Line and Canada Line at Broadway-City Hall Station. (Government of BC)

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