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One group worried over economic impacts with Massey Tunnel replacement project

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DELTA (NEWS 1130) – We’ve already heard about the traffic concerns and possible environmental issues surrounding the Massey Tunnel replacement bridge, but at least one group is worried about the economic impact the new span could have.

The Tsawwassen Business Improvement Association sees it is a situation of short-term pain, and long-term gain.

“We have been in a process of going through ongoing road construction and traffic with the work on Highway 17 as well as the expansion of Highway 17A. So our communities have been dealing with construction on the roads for quite some time,” says Lydia Elder with the Association.

So the prospect of several more years of it once the bridge starts going in, is not appealing.

“We’re already going to having as a business community, the impact of large new malls that are being built. At the same time, there may perhaps be a reduction in how appealing it would seem to come down to South Delta due to the congestion that would be required for the construction,” says Elder.

The province maintains construction on the bridge will be finished by 2022.

It’s at that time, says Elder, that the business community will finally be able to benefit.

“Once the construction is complete and there is a bridge, there’s an opportunity for more traffic to flow through South Delta and people to see it as being a more appealing opportunity and something they may not have considered before. So a lot of businesses have mixed feelings about that because there’s a potential for good things but there’s a certain fatigue about ongoing road construction.”

The issue then becomes whether or not businesses can survive the lengthy construction before things eventually pick up.

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