B.C. to pay for and build new Pattullo Bridge in Metro Vancouver

NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C. – The British Columbia government has taken on the $1.37 billion cost of replacing a major commuter crossing in Metro Vancouver, relieving some financial pressure on the transit authority.

The provincial government will fund a new Pattullo Bridge spanning the Fraser River between Surrey and New Westminster. The four-lane bridge was the top priority for a council of mayors that deals with transit and transportation issues on the Lower Mainland.

The original bridge opened in 1937 and was expected to have a lifespan of 50 years. Premier John Horgan said it is “well past its best-before date.”

The announcement also has deeper political implications and signals a better working relationship between the provincial government and the council.

“This is not just a bridge across the river, it’s a bridge between governments,” Horgan told a news conference at the aging bridge on Friday. “For too long the provincial government pointed at municipalities and blamed them for a lack of progress.”

Translink, Metro Vancouver’s regional transportation authority, shares responsibility for the major roads network and bridges with local municipalities, in addition to operating buses and trains.

The mayors council launched a campaign before last May’s provincial election aimed at getting more provincial government spending on transportation.

At the time, Ottawa and the former B.C. Liberal government pledged $4.4 billion for transit improvements, but Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said that wasn’t enough to fund a 10-year plan supported by the mayors.

A 2016 report on the condition of the Pattullo Bridge said it must be replaced or closed by 2023. The report said the bridge might not be able to withstand an earthquake or even a powerful wind storm.

Construction on the new bridge is expected to start by 2019, with traffic flowing by 2023.

Transportation Minister Claire Trevena said the new bridge will ensure public safety and make it easier to connect between Surrey and New Westminster.

Andy Yan, director of the City Program at Simon Fraser University, called the bridge a strategic investment on the part of the NDP government.

“Understand that with Surrey growing by 800 people per month in the last five years, it’s knowing that a pool of voters that are particularly engaged in this piece of infrastructure. It helped shape this funding,” he said.

The New Democrats won six of the nine ridings in Surrey in last spring’s election, and the party has held the riding on the other side of the bridge in New Westminster for most of the last 50 years.

Yan said the decision also makes good sense for Metro Vancouver’s regionally integrated economy.

“We’re not talking about these isolated suburbs anymore,” he said. “It’s not only just a connection between New Westminster and Surrey.”

Mayor Richard Walton of the District of North Vancouver said the council was pleased with the bridge announcement.

“Any time we manage to find a way of upgrading or replacing one of our existing core assets, it’s a good day for all of us and in many ways a symbol for all of the bridges we need to build in order to keep moving forward.”

Walton said he hopes the provincial government and Translink can apply co-ordinated approaches to other infrastructure needs.

Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson said the announcement of the new bridge is good news for commuters, but the lack of federal government support for the project is a telling sign about the state of affairs between the provincial government and Ottawa.

“There is no regional or federal buy-in for this bridge and it sets a very expensive precedent for large-scale projects,” Wilkinson said in a statement.