Dear Editor,
The replacement bridge for the Massey Tunnel is the wrong solution to the wrong problem.
We need to find a long term solution to Metro Vancouver’s transport and transit problems. To do this, every level of government and government department must look past their own narrow mandate and plan broadly for the future. If they could do this, the Massey tunnel tie-up would be solved as part of a more comprehensive system.
Population and commuting patterns have changed significantly over the past decades, with more people living south of the Fraser River. We have very good commuting data available from the 2011 National Household Survey, and soon will have the data from the 2016 Census. We already know that people commute from every metro municipality to every other one, so just building a huge bridge to replace the Massey Tunnel won’t solve the larger problem.
People will take transit where it’s available. This includes commuters, students, retirees, tourists — everyone who needs to move around. Why spend $3.5 billion on a single bridge when that money could buy many miles of at-grade transit?
If Metro Vancouver had a regional Light Rapid Transit (LRT) system south of the Fraser that connected to municipalities north of the river, everyone who needs to travel through the tunnel would have an alternate to driving in a private vehicle. If the LRT were to run alongside the freeways, vehicle drivers would soon see the value of taking transit. Transit saves travel time, vehicle and parking expenses, and wear and tear on the driver. By taking private vehicles off the road, LRT would open up space for truck transport and tourist vehicles. A transit solution would also vastly reduce carbon emissions in the metro area and throughout the Fraser Valley.
Eventually, with our limited land mass and expanding population, we will have to develop a regional transit system. We need to start building that system now. Our transit and transportation problem is not a game, where someone wins and someone else loses. This is serious business, and it’s time the people who make the decisions, and provide funding to the municipalities, realize that taxpayers are tired of the gamesmanship and want to see genuine solutions.
Marion Smith
Richmond
