NDP takes flak for pace of review for Massey tunnel replacement
VICTORIA B.C.’s transportation minister says she’ll need the entire summer to read a report into how to fix or replace the aging Massey tunnel, drawing criticism that her government appears to be in no hurry to replace B.C.’s worst traffic bottleneck.
Claire Trevena said a report by professional engineer Stan Cowdell into options to fix or replace the 60-year-old tunnel that links Delta and Richmond will be done this month.
“I anticipate it on my desk, hopefully, by the end of (June),” Trevena said. “I’ll be absorbing it over the summer and taking next steps from there.”
The public likely won’t get to read the report until Trevena is done following the summer.
“I don’t know what is in it yet, so I’d prefer to get it first myself and make the decision then,” she added. “I want to get the review, and I’ve got every confidence Mr. Cowdell has been doing a very thorough job. It’s a big task to do.”
Trevena cancelled construction of a 10-lane, $3.5-billion Massey replacement bridge project in September. That bridge across the South Arm of the Fraser River was proposed by the previous Liberal government to replace the seismically unsafe tunnel and to clear massive traffic jams that affect commuters daily in and around the crossing. But the NDP cited opposition from some local mayors as justification to scrap the project and go back to the drawing board.
“Here we are still waiting a year later for the review,” said Ian Paton, the Delta South Liberal MLA. “There’s already been two reports ... that both concluded the bridge should be built. It’s the best option out of five different scenarios.”
Paton accused the NDP government of “stalling tactics.”
“I can’t believe she’s going to take all summer to review a redundant report,” said Paton. He also suggested one reason might be the government has run out of money.
By cancelling the Massey bridge, the NDP freed up $3.5 billion in capital spending, giving the new government more to spend on new schools and hospitals, and helping absorb almost $5 billion in debt the province took on by cancelling the tolls on the Port Mann and Golden Ears Bridges.
However, the province faces a limit on what it can borrow for projects while still retaining its AAA credit rating.
The government did not set any money aside for a future Massey replacement in the most recent provincial budget.
“It’s politics and money,” said Delta Mayor Lois Jackson, who has supported a bridge. “I don’t think they have the money.”
Jackson called the government pace “discouraging,” adding it will do nothing to help commuters stuck in gridlock or the economy by quickly transporting goods on trucks.
“I’m really sorry to hear they haven’t taken this seriously,” she said. “And I guess the future will judge them.”
The pace at which Trevena intends to review the report is a marked contrast from the urgency the government showed in giving Cowdell’s firm a $350,000 contract in November. The engineer and his company did not have to go through the province’s normal competitive open bid process, after Trevena’s ministry cited the need to “move ahead with this review in a timely fashion.”
The review could end up costing $1 million due to an additional $650,000 allowance the government authorized in case Cowdell required outside geotechnical experts in the fields of tunnel, bridge, road construction, and transportation planning.