A BRIDGE TOO FAR?
Massey tunnel plan to start anew
The B.C. government will begin consultations with Metro Vancouver municipalities and First Nations early next year about what kind of crossing should replace the George Massey Tunnel.
On Monday, the province released a consultant’s report that recommended B.C. conduct a feasibility study to decide whether it should relieve congestion at the tunnel by building a shorter, smaller bridge or a new tunnel.
The B.C. NDP government cancelled construction of a 10-lane, $3.5-billion bridge to replace the 59-year-old Massey tunnel last September. It then commissioned a $1-million review by professional engineer Stan Cowdell, which was completed and delivered to Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Claire Trevena this summer.
Trevena said the upcoming consultations will help the province come up with new criteria and goals for a crossing that better aligns with regional plans than the previous 10-lane bridge proposal. It’s expected that a new business case will be developed by fall 2020.
“People are understandably frustrated with the unacceptable congestion and bottlenecks at the George Massey Tunnel and we understand that,” said Trevena. “Had the former government looked at the options fully and objectively, we wouldn’t be in this situation, but they did push ahead with a $3.5-billion mega project without listening to communities and we won’t make the same mistakes.”
Richmond-Queensborough MLA Jas Johal and Delta South MLA Ian Paton were disappointed and “stunned” by the lack of an immediate solution to the congestion.
“The NDP has failed 85,000 of my people who live south of the Fraser,” said Paton. “They have been stuck in this tunnel in the worst congestion in B.C. for year after year after year and this announcement this morning has done nothing to alleviate this issue.”
The review looked at the life span, safety and seismic vulnerability and congestion of the existing tunnel, as well as the technical assumptions and analysis for the tunnel and bridge options.
Cowdell found that it’s widely accepted that additional capacity is required to improve reliability — particularly in non-peak directions during peak hours — and there are economic, social and environmental drawbacks if no improvement is made to the tunnel.
However, Cowdell found deficiencies with the planning process and business case.
He notes that three draft “key design considerations” identified in 2012 were not carried forward as primary goals in later stages of the project, including alignment with community, regional and national objectives, community livability and cost.
“The project did not formally record how these key design considerations were handled in the project planning; the lack of formal inclusion in the project goals, and the accompanying solutions necessary to address them, is seen as a significant factor in the resulting stakeholder concerns and a potential deficiency in the planning process,” the report states.
B.C. Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson disputed the report’s assertion that there were flaws in the planning process. He pointed to what he called a “massive” fiveyear consultation and study process that produced thousands of pages of reports and said all of the available options were weighed.
“The idea that we need to do more and more and more consultations is an excuse for not making a decision and leaving 85,000 people adrift,” Wilkinson said.
In the past, Metro Vancouver mayors, with the exception of Delta’s, had opposed the idea of building the 10-lane bridge. They had said the bridge would have a negative effect on the region and they had concerns about an inadequate stakeholder input process and insufficient access to technical information.
The review found that a number of project goals essentially determined the scope of the project, making it a 10-lane bridge. Cowdell said he would have expected to see, given the effect of the goals on scope and cost, formal trade-off studies and present value analysis. However, the review was unable to find such studies.
“(I)f this was not done, the review considers that to be a deficiency in project planning.”
The review said the goals were subjective and different interpretations could have been made that could have resulted in a different concept.
“Mr. Cowdell’s review reveals that there are better options for the region and we need to take those into consideration,” Trevena said.
The review suggested that the province, in its study, look at a six- to eight-lane bridge or a new tunnel and it said the old tunnel could be rehabilitated and used in conjunction with a new tunnel.
The review concluded that allowing bridge alignment to be offset from the main highway and allowing construction adjacent to or in the river will simplify the bridge design. That and cutting the number of lanes could reduce project costs by $500 million or more and increase the odds it will be accepted by the region.
The review also recommends that the province eliminate HOV or transit provisions at the bridge median in favour of lower-cost alternatives, such as shoulder bus lanes.
Retrofitting the old tunnel should be considered in more detail, Cowdell said, though the cost will not be insignificant.
A structural retrofit was completed in 2006, which included installing steel plates at the ends of the tunnel and reinforced concrete through the tunnel. A recommended retrofit meant to improve ground conditions around the tunnel and prevent or mitigate the effects of soil liquefaction in the event of a major earthquake was not done.
It’s anticipated that the tunnel has about 50 years left in its service life, but the existing electrical and mechanical systems need to be upgraded along with the lighting.
The review states that a new tunnel of up to eight lanes is feasible and may result in increased benefits and cost savings compared to a new bridge, particularly if the existing tunnel is used in conjunction with a new tunnel. The review also points out that the conditions at the project site are comparable to similar crossings elsewhere and could be constructed to seismic safety standards.
In the meantime, the province will begin scoping work for improvements to the Steveston interchange in Richmond in an effort to reduce congestion and make improvements on the Delta side of the corridor.
Upgrades will be made to the existing crossing to respond to safety concerns from communities and first responders, including lighting, drainage, paving the highway, replacing signs and safety systems.
“All this work means safer and more reliable commutes,” said Trevena.