Rainbow crosswalk, Squamish: TrafficPatterns on Squamish Nation territory

The rainbow crosswalk at Capilano Road and Welchon sits on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Coast Salish peoples, the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish).

Rainbow crosswalks have become meaningful civic installations across BC over the past several years. Done well, they signal community values in a way that lasts. Done poorly, with paint, they fade within a season.

Why preformed thermoplastic

We specified TrafficPatterns™ preformed thermoplastic for this install. The product comes as factory-cut sheets in the exact colour layout required. The crew heats the asphalt surface and the sheet together; as the material cools, it fuses directly into the pavement.

For a rainbow crosswalk, the colour fidelity requirement is unforgiving. Each stripe has to stay distinct and saturated: red isn't allowed to drift toward orange, violet isn't allowed to fade to grey. TrafficPatterns holds its hue substantially longer than any painted or sprayed alternative we work with on BC roads.

We also specified corundum aggregate embedded in the surface layer. This adds traction for both pedestrians and vehicles, particularly relevant at a crosswalk that will see heavy use, while contributing to the structural integrity of the finished marking.

The install

The crosswalk is located at Capilano Road and Welchon. Installation is a one-day operation for a crew this size. The asphalt receives a heat treatment, the sheets are laid in sequence and torched in, and the surface is ready for traffic within hours of cooling.

Service life is the reason to choose the material. The manufacturer builds the anti-skid elements through the full 125-mil thickness of the sheet rather than on its surface, so the colour and the grip wear together rather than the colour wearing off first. Paint is a repaint cycle; thermoplastic is a crossing.

This crossing joins a growing list across BC where municipalities and First Nations communities have chosen thermoplastic crosswalk systems over paint. The reasoning is the same every time: the maintenance calculus changes completely when you're not repainting.

The system

The manufacturer's published facts on TrafficPatterns: a preformed thermoplastic, heat-fused to the pavement; each element manufactured to specification, so there is no spray drift and placement is precise every time; 125 mil thick with anti-skid elements throughout; made to the owner's marking standard; and open to traffic within minutes of application. For a rainbow on an arterial or transit route, TrafficPatternsXD™ (150 mil, aggregate-reinforced, heated and stamped into the asphalt) is the heavier option; our Nanaimo rainbow intersection, installed in June 2025, is the XD version. Specifications are on the TrafficPatterns product page, under our preformed thermoplastic service.

Other rainbow crossings in the record

The West Vancouver Police Department crossing, unveiled on June 30th with a small ceremony, is the same material; the crosswalks gallery also holds rainbow crossings in Sechelt and Nanaimo.

For a municipality, district or First Nation

• Specify the stripe colours as a marking standard, so a future repair or an extension across the next intersection matches exactly.
• Match the material to the traffic. TrafficPatterns for a neighbourhood or institutional crossing; XD where buses and trucks turn across it.
• Plan a short closure. The sheets are heat-fused in place, so installation is quick and the crossing is back in service the same day.

If you're specifying a rainbow or Pride crosswalk for a BC municipality, district or First Nation, send a photo of the crossing and a postal code to office@squareonepaving.com, call 604-612-6209, or use the contact form. We come out, look, and put a written quote together.