Pattullo Bridge Public Workshops
byTonight in New Westminster, you can join Translink at a workshop to learn about their latest plans to get the bridge replaced by 2018.
The two-year consultation process getting underway is shaping up to be a tussle between Surrey and New Westminster over how big a bridge is needed.
Surrey’s mayor has demanded a six-lane bridge – which TransLink also leans toward – but many in New Westminster fear it would pour too much traffic into their already congested city, resulting in gridlock. Some suggest the bridge be angled further northeast to it bypass New Westminster altogether and connect better to Coquitlam and Highway 1.
That option has been ruled out, TransLink roads director Sany Zein said, because Burnaby- or New West-bound traffic would have to detour too far, more roadwork would be needed and the river there is wider, doubling the bridge’s price. He said TransLink’s base case calls for a six-lane bridge – four lanes for general purpose traffic and two reserved for trucks. [New West News Leader]
The workshops this week will aim to gather public feedback about the bridge and the proposed configurations that would connect King George, Scott Road and Surrey’s South Fraser Perimeter Road to Royal Avenue, McBride and Columbia in New Westminster.
New Westminster at 6:30pm, presentation at 7:00pm
Where Centennial Community Centre (65 East 6th Ave)
Date Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Where Inn at the Quay
When Thursday, February 23, 2012
Surrey at 6:30pm, presentation at 7:00pm
Where Surrey City Centre Library (10350 University Drive)
When Wednesday, February 22 & Monday, February 27, 2012
The last time I wrote about plans for the new Pattullo Bridge it was September, 2010. Since 2006, I have been writing about the 75-year old bridge, its history, its random fires, and its dangerous corners. You can have your say by attending the workshops or by filling out an online questionnaire until March 9, 2012.
