Coastal residents are being asked what they think about a plan to connect the Sunshine Coast to the Lower Mainland with a series of roads and bridges.
Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure and consultants RF Binnie and Associates held open houses recently in Squamish, West Vancouver and on the Lower Sunshine Coast to gather the public’s thoughts on four options. Powell River’s open house took place on Tuesday, October 25, at Town Centre Hotel.
West Vancouver-Sea-to-Sky MLA Jordan Sturdy said the public consultation process is a chance for the government to present options that have been narrowed down after consulting with local governments, business leaders, first nations and school districts.
“It was time to look at what the alternatives actually are and make sure we have examined them at least at a high level to get a sense of what is practical,” said Sturdy.
Sturdy said that at this point the government is not necessarily making a decision to move forward.
“This is not a go-no-go kind of situation,” he added. “This is a let’s look at what the alternatives are, what the orders of magnitude are, and what business cases could be put in place as a next step.”
Powell River-Sunshine Coast MLA Nicholas Simons said that instead of spending money on investigating a potential fixed-link connection, it would be better for the provincial government to boost ferry service levels to help coastal communities grow.
“They are comparing the fixed-link options with the current ferry service level,” said Simons.
During his time in office, Simons has had fewer than 12 people write and ask him to advocate for a road link, he said.
Ongoing since last winter, the fixed-link study has included several invitation-only meetings with local government, business and first nations leaders. The open houses were the first opportunity for the general public to learn about the proposed routes.
According to the transportation ministry, the feasibility study will take into account a variety of factors, including travel times, emergency evacuation access, the effect on private property values, tourism and natural resources development potential. It will also look at potential socio-community, environmental impact and first nations’ considerations.
The study has been narrowed in scope to focus on four options: two for Powell River and two for the Lower Coast.
The first, called the Powell River Road Link, is what many Powell River residents will recognize as the Third Crossing Society’s proposed 200-kilometre highway route from Powell River to Squamish. Cost for that project is estimated at between $2.5 and $3 billion.
Third Crossing Society president Gary Fribance said his organization has talked with members of the consultation team to discuss the Powell River road link.
“We know that we have a dialogue going,” said Fribance. “My concern has always been that it will be a study to reject the road.”
The second option, called the Powell River Bridge Link, involves connecting the Upper and Lower coasts with two bridges; one from Earls Cove to Nelson Island and another from Nelson Island to Ahlstrom Point, east of Saltery Bay. This option would retain the Langdale ferry. All told, the project would require four kilometres of clear-span suspension bridge and comes with a price estimate between $1.5 and $2 billion.
Option three, called the Langdale Road Link, connects Port Mellon to Squamish along a 58-kilometre highway. This option would eliminate the need for the Langdale ferry, but retains ferry service from Earls Cove to Saltery Bay. Its cost is estimated at between $1.5 and $2 billion.
The fourth option, called Langdale Bridge Link, connects the Lower Sunshine Coast to the Sea-to-Sky corridor with a bridge across Howe Sound via Anvil Island, north of Lions Bay. It also requires 33.5 kilometres of highway to be constructed from Langdale to the bridge. That project’s estimated cost is between $2 and $2.5 billion.
More information about the options can be found online at gov.bc.ca/sunshinecoastfixedlink.ca. A survey is available at this website to capture public feedback.
