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| 2010watch NEWS |
| Port Mann twinning plan stays under wraps |
By Jeff Nagel
Black Press
Oct 26 2005
It could be weeks, even months before Greater Vancouver residents get a look at the province's detailed vision for twinning the Port Mann Bridge and a big stretch of Highway 1.
The long-awaited project definition report - previously promised earlier this fall -will now take longer, Gateway officials told chamber of commerce representatives from around the region at an Oct. 20 briefing in Surrey.
"It will be later this year," said Gateway executive director Mike Proudfoot. "It's just the volume of technical work we're doing, putting it all together and finalizing some of the details."
The one certain thing, he said, is the twinned bridge won't be open by 2010.
"It would take five years of construction from the time the project is awarded," he said.
The Port Mann, and other Gateway projects such as the South Fraser Perimeter Road, depend heavily on both financing and gaining environmental approval, Proudfoot said.
The project definition report, when issued, is expected to detail a series of measures for the bridge and highway twinning to ensure better movement of trucks, high-occupancy vehicles and buses.
Under consideration are tolls, more HOV or truck-only lanes, and special lanes to allow buses to jump past congestion.
Those and other measures are promised as an answer to critics who argue the twinning will be a failed effort to build out of congestion.
Business leaders also questioned the usefulness of cycling routes promised for some of the major corridors.
Proudfoot said most of the major roadways, including the South Fraser Perimeter Road and twinned Hwy. 1, will designate the road shoulder for cycling -meaning riders won't be separated from traffic.
Some of the regional chamber reps said heavy trucks rolling by will deter all but the hardiest cyclists.
They also urged the province to accelerate long-range plans to deal with congestion at the Massey Tunnel and consider improvements to 16 Avenue.
Surrey chamber president Peter Holt said it could be the ideal route for a needed new east-west connector that would run from near the Abbotsford Airport - where increased industrial and commercial development is expected -through Langley and Surrey to Delta, with connections to Highways 99 and 15.
Holt said the South Fraser Perimeter Road remains the top transportation priority for business leaders.
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This site was last updated 10/26/05
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