Chris Bryan, editor of the New Westminster NewsLeader, tweets:
Wonder what @MayorWatts and #Surrey might think of this Pattullo pitch, inspired largely by @pricetags comments.
His column is here, with this proposal:
… what I propose is a compromise.
Let’s keep the existing bridge, but rehabilitate it. Make the lanes wider and safer, as was done in 2001 with the Lions Gate Bridge. Add ample cycling and pedestrian sidewalks. And paint it, too. Make it look pretty.
TransLink estimates this would cost about $200 million.
That’s about $800 million less than the cost to build an entirely new bridge.
And now, I propose we immediately gift that $800 million to Surrey, to give it what it desperately needs. Better transit. Fast track light rail between Surrey City Centre and Guildford, get the rapidbus plans for King George Highway and over the new Port Mann back on the table.
With a new Port Mann Bridge doubling capacity in the coming months, my guess is that if we put our new money into transit south of the Fraser, we’ll soon find ourselves in a situation where everyone wins.
Sincerely,
Your New West Neighbour
Don’t know about Mayor Watts, but I find it inconceivable that TransLink could proceed with (or Surrey support) plans for an expanded Pattullo but not be out vigorously fighting for expanded transit.
This is an interesting finding from the Delcan Report: http://www.translink.ca/~/media/documents/bpotp/projects/roads_bridges/pattullo_bridge_replacement/assessment/pattullo%20bridge%20option%20assessment.ashx
Pattullo Bridge Truck Closure Analysis, Terry Partridge
Associates, (Apr. 2007)
Key Findings:
− The TransLink model was used to test the impacts of
closing the Pattullo Bridge to trucks in 2004 and 2011
scenarios. The results indicated “relatively small and
effectively unnoticeable” changes in truck volumes over
most of the network; the largest changes were at the
approaches to the Alex Fraser and Port Mann Bridges,
with two way diversions of 180 and 250 trucks per hour,
respectively.
Further down:
Significant numbers of
larger vehicles have been observed occupying a portion of the adjacent
lane as they cross the structure, likely to avert potential sideswipe
collisions.
Remove trucks from the bridge? There will be the new Gateway and SFPR to move trucks around the city along with improvements on the north side. This should be seriously considered. Trucks also add to pedestrian and cyclist discomfort much more so than passenger vehicles in my experience. Trucks push large amounts of air and that blows against pedestrians and cyclists.
Sidewalks can be expanded using a cantilevered structure like the Alex Fraser has.
To get from the SFPR to the Port Mann, a 15km detour is required. The two biggest road construction projects in the history of BC are NOT CONNECTED. This is why the Port is pushing to enlarge the Pattullo – so that trucks can get from Delta Port to HWY 1 (through New West). The Port then sells an expanded bridge to Surrey residents as “congestion easing” – which of course it isn’t, because New West roads cannot be widened to accomodate the traffic increase.
I don’t think your view of the Pattulo replacement project is correct, knittybiker. There were calls for a Patullo replacement several years ago from Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan. It was based on the conclusion that the present structure cannot be satisfactorily rehabilitated.
Tim, thanks for that link. Very useful! It does make it plain that there is no possibility of rehabilitating the existing structure and bringing its lane widths up to acceptable minimum standards, with or without a protective median.