Kudos to Translink
Luck has smiled on the Lower Mainland, and in conjunction with a round-the-clock repair effort that
Translink CEO Thomas Prendergast has described as “aggressive,” the Pattullo Bridge was open again for business and traffic first thing this morning.
The
Pattullo Bridge closure has been an eye-opening experience for everyone in the Lower Mainland. The chaos caused by the bridge closure has been well-documented in the media as well as in the daily lives of hundreds of thousands of Lower Mainland residents. There isn't anyone who hasn't been affected in some way by this crisis.
Get Moving BC spokesperson,
Jordan Bateman, was on
Global News last night stressing the importance of staying on top of our transportation infrastructure needs so that we aren't always scrambling to catch up because of generational gaps between projects. As always, great job
Jordan!
Labels: Gateway, Get Moving BC, Pattullo Bridge, Port Mann Bridge, TransLink, transportation
Face-to-Face with "Total Gridlock"
Translink officials are to be applauded for the swift action they’ve taken to resolve the
Pattullo Bridge crisis. The bridge is expected to be back in action two weeks from now, which is a relief to the hundreds of thousands of Lower Mainland residents who’ve been adversely impacted by the closure.
The world renowned North Vancouver bridge engineering firm of
Buckland and Taylor is credited with having located a suitable replacement section at the
Surespan Construction works yard in Langley. The replacement section was previously used during the Canada Line construction to bridge over an excavated station location.
Fortunately for everyone, Translink was already planning to replace the 60 foot wooden section of the Pattullo Bridge that was destroyed last Sunday and Buckland and Taylor were well underway with the design work and planning.
The economic cost of the Pattullo Bridge closure is going to be massive. According to the
BC Trucking Association, the added cost to the trucking industry alone could be as much
$10 million per day (costs that get passed on to you and I as consumers).
On the positive side, the loss of the Pattullo Bridge this past week has been a timely wakeup call. The closure has provided everyone with a taste of what's in store for the Lower Mainland if we don't get on with building the kind of transportation infrastructure we need to serve the region's growing population; and that includes increasing bridge lane capacity over the Fraser River with important projects like the Port Mann Bridge twinning and the replacement of the Pattullo Bridge.
The havoc caused by the closure of the Pattullo Bridge this past week has dramatically, albeit painfully, underscored the fact that we don't have an adequate amount of
bridge infrastructure crossing the Fraser River, something fairly obvious that we at
Get Moving BC have been diligently pointing out for quite some time. Let’s just be grateful that this disruptive face-to-face encounter with “Total Gridlock” is only temporary and not a permanent reality - yet.
Labels: Gateway, Get Moving BC, Pattullo Bridge, Port Mann Bridge, TransLink, transportation
Total Gridlock: Day One
Traffic in the Lower Mainland was predictably snarled today as people did what they could to cope without the Pattullo Bridge.
The evening
newscasts have been filled with horror stories recounting four hour commutes and hopelessly gridlocked traffic.
The sudden loss of the Pattullo’s four traffic lanes has dramatically, although painfully, underscored the fact that we don’t have an adequate amount of
bridge infrastructure crossing the Fraser River. In fact, we have no margin for error whatsoever.
Most, if not all, of those interviewed on the newscasts tonight echoed what we’ve been saying for quite some time: Namely, that we don’t have nearly enough bridge infrastructure crossing the Fraser River for the population we currently have let alone for future population growth or for emergency situations like the one we’re facing right now.
We can’t begin to imagine what the final cost to the Lower Mainland and BC economies will be over the next month or so due to the loss of this vital, albeit decrepit, link in Greater Vancouver’s fragile transportation system. 80,000 vehicles a day depend on the Pattullo Bridge, and we’ve been brought face-to-face with “Total Gridlock” for the sake of an 18-metre section of the bridge that’s been burnt to a crisp.
By the time this Pattullo Bridge crisis is over in a month or so – and we can only hope – our collective nerves in the Lower Mainland are going to be seriously frayed.
Labels: Gateway, Get Moving BC, Pattullo Bridge, Port Mann Bridge, TransLink, transportation
Pattullo Bridge Fire Raises Traffic Fears
News of this morning's fire at the south end of the Pattullo Bridge has spread quickly.
According to Translink, the Pattullo Bridge will be out of commission for the rest of today and tomorrow.
There’s also a distinct possibility the bridge could be out of commission even longer, possibly months.
One of our
Get Moving BC supporters travelled to the scene late this morning and spoke to the fire crew on site. They confirmed that the bridge was not driveable and that it would probably not be driveable until the damage is repaired.
The damaged section of the bridge is the 30 to 40 foot section at the south end of the bridge where the bridge joins the King George Highway. Unlike the rest of the Bridge, this 30 to 40 foot section is constructed from wooden beams instead of steel and concrete. According the fire crew, this section of the bridge was scheduled to be replaced in the summer.
It’s definitely frightening to contemplate the traffic chaos that will result from any long-term closure of the Pattullo Bridge, and we certainly hope it doesn’t come to that. As our Get Moving BC
Bridge Infrastructure Study demonstrated last September, the Lower Mainland already has an inadequate supply of bridge infrastructure crossing the Fraser River. Losing four traffic lanes will only make things worse and it raises the spectre of “Total Gridlock” for our regional transportation system.
As our Bridge Study also showed, the Vancouver area would have to triple and quadruple the bridge infrastructure crossing the Fraser River just to match what other cities in Western Canada already have on a per capita basis.
Labels: Gateway, Pattullo Bridge, Port Mann Bridge, transportation
