Wow, a 10-lane, 3.5 kilometre toll bridge, soon to be the largest ever built in the history of British Columbia.
This is a game-changer, and it’s what we are being told to expect if the provincial plan to replace the Massey Tunnel is realized.
The provincial Liberal government has been gang busters on this bridge for years now, so perhaps this proclamation should come as no great surprise, but the magnitude of the project is still somewhat shocking.
What is also shocking is who was (and was not) at the announcement on Wednesday morning. Although the press conference was held in Richmond’s Ironwood Plaza, and the bridge is connecting Richmond and Delta, there were no representatives from our city.
When asked why (see page 8), Mayor Malcolm Brodie simply said no one from the city was invited.
Wow, again. You’re kidding me? This massive project is coming to Richmond and our city representatives are cut out of the loop. Granted, this may just be an announcement/photo op, but the fact our local voice, which happens to be critical of this project, was not invited to the party is worrisome. (Delta’s mayor, who supports the bridge, was there.)
I’m sure Mayor Brodie’s ego is healthy enough to get over the slight, but what none of us should get over is the fact this is yet another example of a government blatantly shutting out dissent. Too often, elected officials (civic ones included) forget about this little, and often inconvenient, thing called democracy.
The Liberals have good reason to be looking for solutions to the current traffic snarls created by the tunnel. It’s ridiculous that our transportation infrastructure is so fragile that a single stalled car can bring thousands of commuters to a standstill. But, while no one can deny the problem, we can debate solutions. And despite the glossy posters passed off as “public consultation,” there has been precious little public input on this.
Granted, I’m totally onside with Brodie in terms of looking for alternatives, such as public transit. (That recent climate change conference in Paris was not just a show. Serious commitments were made, and serious consequences were spelled out if we don’t take action.)
I also admire Brodie’s willingness to call out the province for providing too few details and underplaying the role Port Metro Vancouver has played in all this. To say this project has little to do with creating a waterway for massive vessels carrying LNG, oil and coal to and from Asia is...hmmm...highly suspicious.
But even if I thought a 10-lane bridge was the best thing ever, I would still argue that alienating dissenters and refusing to adequately inform citizens are tactics we need to slam the brakes on.
