Yukon who is who

Raymond Eric Magnuson (1937 – 2016)

Ray Magnuson was born in Atlin to parents Manne and Anna Magnuson. He worked with his father at the family sawmill and placer mine in the Atlin area. Ray and Roberta met and married in Atlin in 1956. In 1960, Magnuson started working with the Yukon Government as a heavy equipment operator at Swift River. He went on to become the highway foreman in Teslin and then in Haines Junction.¹⁾ In 1972, Ray was promoted to superintendent.²⁾

In 1973, Magnuson reviewed the cost of mainstreaming Yukon's gravel roads and, thinking they were too high, started a test for Bituminous Surface Treatment (BST). The process was successful in southern Canada, but it was thought that permafrost would not allow its use in the north. The first test was a four mile stretch through Teslin in 1973. He continued on through Watson Lake and north during the next two years. It was hard to convince his superiors that BST would be effective and that there was a need for it in the north. Today, over 2000 kilometres of road in the Yukon is paved with BST. By 1981, Ray was the Director of Highway Maintenance, a position he held until retirement in December of 1990. During his tenure, the highway system expanded from 4400 kilometres to 4900 kilometres. Ray Magnuson received the BC and Yukon National Transportation Award of Excellence in 1990 for his lifetime contribution to transportation in the Yukon.³⁾