Liard Highway

75px Liard Highway
British Columbia Highway 77 Northwest Territories Highway 7
Route information
Length:	393 km (244 mi)
Existed:	1984 – present
British Columbia Highway 77
Length:	138 km (86 mi)
South end:	BC 97 near Fort Nelson, BC
North end:	BC-NWT border
Northwest Territories Highway 7
Length:	255 km (158 mi)
South end:	BC-NWT border
North end:	Highway 1 near Fort Simpson, NT
Highway system
← 25x20px BC 62 BC 91 25x20px → ← 25x20px Highway 6 20px Highway 8 25x20px →

Liard Highway in winter.

The Liard Highway (designated Highway 77 in British Columbia and Highway 7 in the Northwest Territories ) is a 378 kilometre, two lane highway in Canada which serves as the only direct road-link between British Columbia and the Northwest Territories. It travels through sparsely populated areas of Canadian Boreal Forest, and serves as the sole road access route for the communities of Fort Liard and Nahanni Butte

Route

The highway begins at a point on the Alaska Highway 28 km (17 mi) northwest of Fort Nelson and runs 138 km (86 mi) northeast through expanses of the Canadian Boreal Forest to the border of British Columbia and the Northwest Territories. Beyond the border, it continues for 254 km (158 mi) as a very rough packed dirt and gravel road designated as Highway 7. It terminates at a junction with Territorial Highway 1 south of Fort Simpson.

History

The highway was built between 1975 and 1982 and officially opened to traffic in June 1984. The section in British Columbia was built under contracts given by the Ministry of Transportation and Highways and cost $26 million (equivalent to $54.4 million in 2021). The section through the Northwest Territories section was built by the federal government at a cost of $55 million (equivalent to $115.08 million in 2021). British Columbia assigned the number 77 to their portion of the route in 1986.

In 2012 Peter's Bros. Construction Ltd. was awarded a contract valued at $8,911,212.00 to pave (level course and overlay) over the existing sealcoat from the end of the existing pavement at 83 km (52 mi) in B.C. to the Northwest Territories border at 137 km (85 mi). The project was completed August 2012.

As of 2018, Highway 77 has been fully paved up to the Northwest Territories border.

Major intersections

From south to north:

Province / Territory	Regional district / Region	Location	km	mi	Destinations	Notes
British Columbia	Northern Rockies R.M.	​	0	0	BC 97 (Alaska Highway) – Fort Nelson, Fort St. John, Whitehorse	Hwy 77 southern terminus
			42	26	Crosses the Fort Nelson River
British Columbia – Northwest Territories border			138 0	86 0	BC 77 northern terminus • Highway 7 southern terminus
Northwest Territories	Dehcho	Fort Liard	38	24	Access road
		​	131	81	Nahanni Butte access road
		Checkpoint	255	158	Highway 1 (Mackenzie Highway) – Fort Simpson, Fort Providence, Hay River	Highway 7 northern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Route transition

External links

• Google Maps: Highway 77 route in British Columbia
• Google Maps: Highway 7 route in the Northwest Territories