B.C.'s Conservative transportation critic has reignited a longstanding debate on the Pattullo Bridge project with comments he made on a podcast criticizing the four-lane replacement bridge.
黑马磁力-Abbotsford MLA Harman Bhangu appeared on the , episode, where he discussed various transportation and infrastructure issues in B.C. with the host.
The host, Andrew Johns, asked Bhangu if he had no choice and had to pick, which transportation projects in the province Bhangu would "shelve."
"Something unpopular, but the Pattullo Bridge," Bhangu replied. "Why are we going to do four lanes with four lanes? Makes no sense to me, and that is why I would say that would be one of the ones that was shelved."
He went on to describe how, when inexperienced truckers cross the current bridge, they often have to take both lanes to cross safely.
The new bridge could have been designed differently, Bhangu said.
"But the way this design is, it needed another lane. We could have had a lane that connected right onto Columbia (Street in downtown New Westminster), and you didn't have to take that U around every time. There are ways we could have done it, kind of like the Golden Ears," Bhangu said. "That was actually a great design because you can exist in two, three different ways, which really helped the flow of traffic. That bridge is built to last for a while."
This is a debate that has been ongoing for years: four lanes versus six.
New Westminster residents have often argued against six lanes because of the lack of space on that side of the bridge to route traffic through largely residential areas.
Surrey residents and the for six lanes. In 2024, Surrey's Mayor Brenda Locke said replacing the four-lane Pattullo Bridge with another four-lane bridge was "absurd."
B.C.'s Minister of Transportation, Mike Farnworth, talked to the Surrey Now-Leader about the project this week.
"The Conservatives are out to lunch," the NDP cabinet minister said. "This is a brand new, state-of-the-art bridge that, when you look at it right next to the old, outdated Patullo Bridge, where trucks drive over into the oncoming lane, because it's that tight, to suggest that one the project should be shelved or that it's poorly designed, is just insane."
Bhangu clarified that he did not mean the project should be stopped, but rather that it should have been designed with six lanes from the outset.
"We should have been building to do it right the first time, because this could be a huge missed opportunity for Surrey and its residents. When they're stuck with another two-lane one-way and two-lane that way, and then when it's going to be time to build another one, they're going to be stuck with a huge cost of it."
He asked why there was no "strategic" thinking about where the bridge exits in New Westminster.
"When these projects are built, when that bridge is built, to change anything, it's going to be another 50, 60 years, and if we're going to extend on to it, it's going to be astronomical costs," Bhangu said. "Why not do things right? The first time? These is taxpayer dollars we're playing with."
Farnworth said that for the new bridge to have six lanes, "significant work" would have to be done in New Westminster.
Traffic would essentially come to a standstill as vehicles funnel off the bridge into New Westminster.
"The reality is, the new bridge is bigger, wider, safer, well-designed, and traffic will flow a lot more smoothly and safely than the current Pattullo Bridge," Farnworth said.
It was also designed to "meet the needs of Surrey and New Westminster," he added."'It's what was requested by Metro Vancouver. We are going to continue investing in the priority projects of people in the Lower Mainland."
Bhangu disagrees and said many companies were willing to work with the province and even provide some of their land in New Westminster for various exits.
"These talks have happened a lot, I've worked in this sector. I've worked for the gravel pits, the asphalt pits all around that area," he said. "I've had a first-hand view, driving across this province, working in different areas, and a lot of people are coming to me because I know all the big companies. I know a lot of their owners, because I've had to deal with them."
Bhangu added that, although the new bridge is wider, it is not big enough with only four lanes.
Farnworth said that, although he did not know the exact measurements of the new lanes on the bridge, the lanes are wide enough for a big truck to feel safe travelling in.
A spokesperson for the ministry later confirmed that the new bridge deck is approximately 29 metres wide, which is more than twice the width of the current bridge, at 14 metres wide. The lanes are each 3.6 m wide, and the two multi-use paths are 3.5 m wide. There is also additional deck space for concrete barriers, medians and road shoulders.
The new bridge is still on track to open this fall, Farnworth said.
Bhangu, on the podcast, said there are too many transportation projects taking place across the province and asked, "Do they have the money for this?"
"That's what it comes down to at the end of the day, you've got to take a business sense to it," Bhangu said. "We are at that point where we have to do something. You can't keep starting these projects and keep halfing them. It creates a labour nightmare. It creates an economic nightmare and it deters business."
Farnworth disagreed with Bhangu that there are too many transportation projects underway. "In some cases, we're not building enough; in my view, we need to be building more, and we're going to do that."
The number 1 transportation infrastructure priority, Bhangu said, is replacing the George Massey tunnel.
