Comments on: Third Crossing – Here we go again

By: e.a.f.

e.a.f. — Fri, 22 Aug 2025 07:40:29 +0000

In reply to Pierre Biurassa. no third crossing keeps the rif raf out.

By: Pierre Biurassa

Pierre Biurassa — Mon, 18 Aug 2025 15:50:36 +0000

In reply to kelvin.

The Mt. Seymour – Port Moody option appears to be the most palatable and financially viable?
A huge number of current users of both North Shore bridges appear to travelling beyond the North shore or the Downtown. The widening of Highway 1 on the North Shore is also a must in order to accommodate the new crossings additional traffic! This “ Third Crossing” should not be dumper on the North Shore as quick solution to this 50 plus years old situation.
There appears to no problem building new bridges and replacing old ones anywhere else in the Lower Mainland!!!
However for the North Shore, it’s appears to be a monumental problem!?!

By: Mike

Mike — Mon, 18 Aug 2025 05:44:05 +0000

The feds own Burrard Inlet, the province will likely own the bridge, and the crossing lands in two different municipalities. People don’t understand the complexity and needed cooperation between all 3 levels of government. Lastly, anyone who thinks the Port wants a structure or tunnel to interrupt their anchorages doesn’t know the Port.

By: Fabian

Fabian — Mon, 18 Aug 2025 03:21:52 +0000

This summer two, separate American tourists asked me where the bridge was that went from Vancouver to North Vancouver. For both I started my reply with “good question.” People from out of town shine a light on the overall stagnation of Vancouver infrastructure, and the carelessness of all levels of BC government. I used to often tell the people I grew up with that Vancouver did it better than Seattle. But consider all of the thoughtful work that the City of Seattle had done over the last decade by the water which is now paying off. And contrast the approach of Vancouver. Some say progress is all too hard. But other cities around the world who value the environment have leapt ahead with better bridges, better tunnels, and better rapid transit.

By: e.a.f.

e.a.f. — Sun, 17 Aug 2025 19:59:54 +0000

Condo towers are just getting too tall. The developers make a lot of money and the cities have a lot of expenses due to the influx of people. These high rises do nothing to create a better atmosphere for people or animals, i.e. you know, birds, wild life. It might be better if cities decided how high towers could be so cities remained human friendly. High rises ought to be required to have a % of units built to be family friendly, storage room in unit of kids bikes, etc. and a play ground also for children and not some postage stamp square of pavement but rather a grass field with trees, flowers, perhaps a community garden. People could walk there sit out side. Sitting in nature is a good way to maintain health, “green washing” There is nothing attractive about 50 towers and cement and roads.
Scientists have told us for decades we will have another large or mega earthquake some time in the future. They tell us those new towers will with stand such an event, but really how do we know. A large group of mega towers could result in a large number of deaths if they all come down. Just the clean up would keep governments busy for decades.

By: e.a.f.

e.a.f. — Sun, 17 Aug 2025 19:43:42 +0000

In reply to Ray. Agree, a third crossing from deep Cove to Port Moody or Burnaby makes good sense. A third crossing in a traffic clogged area is just going to make things more clogged. There is a need for a larger highway to Langley and beyond also. It might need to be built before a third crossing. It may come down to politics as to which gets built first. The North Shore has been constrained by a lack of crossings but the Fraser Valley has already been expanded to. If there is a highway, then expect there to be pressure to remove land from the ALR to build houses and create a few more millionaire developers. What ever is built first, someone ought to keep a very careful eye on the process because it may get very confusing and there is so much money to be made on the sale of land then. Regardless of what is built first, lets at least this time make sure the infrastructure is there first, you know, schools, hospitals, roads, fire departments, parks, community centres, day care centres, another college or university, affordable housing for seniors, and houses which more people can afford and not million dollar starter homes, you know all those things they are short of in Surrey and other areas. In the 1970s took a welding course at BCIT. The instructor had worked on building the Lions Gate bridge and had a black and white silent film of some of the building. Very interesting. Actually it was amazing.

By: ANTHONY MAW

ANTHONY MAW — Sat, 16 Aug 2025 18:39:08 +0000

I remember 1971 when they proposed the tunnel idea. Some preliminary geotechnical studies were done and they drilled cores from the bottom of Burrard Inlet to see what’s down there. After the project was shelved all of the studies and engineering proposals were stored at the old Vancouver Public Library Central Branch at Burrard and Robson for many years with public access. In the 1980s remember finding and flipping through the drawing books and thought it would never fly because the proposal called for a causeway to be built out in the water very close to Brockton Point before going underwater which just plain looked ugly. Also in the 1980s I remember Premier Bill VanderZalm announcing the “twinning of the Lions Gate Bridge” which of course never panned out either. So now we are left with one-hour traffic lineups in rush hour to get from North Van over Lions Gate or Second Narrows.
Traffic problems are only going to get worse as they build more condo towers in North and West Vancouver and burgeon the upscale population.
Extending the Canada Line light rail passenger train under Burrard Inlet to Lonsdale Quay as a tunnel seems to be the most logical choice.
But good luck getting that built now that Bill C-15 requires aboriginal consultation and consent (and taxpayer payoff).

By: Claire Heffernan

Claire Heffernan — Sat, 16 Aug 2025 17:30:41 +0000

Cars, cars, cars and more cars – create more roads, tunnels and bridges for more cars – that will fix the problem.

By: kelvin

kelvin — Sat, 16 Aug 2025 17:19:00 +0000

Mt. Seymour Parkway was built expecting the bridge to Port Moody, via Belcarra, which today would allow commuters to go straight to the valley. Makes transit sense, however, a little more “politics” might never allow it see the light of day. Meanwhile, a recent trip from 13th to the Superstore took 1 and 1/2 hours which taught me to go before 2 pm. Enjoyed your article though.

By: Ray

Ray — Sat, 16 Aug 2025 16:23:08 +0000

The third crossing [Bridge] from Deep Cove to Port Moody or Burnaby would be a good solution. Have you seen the amount of vehicles [cars & trucks] on the roads and bridges now! People do not want to get out of their vehicles. Using heavy trucks, delivery vans, p/u trucks and other work related vehicles are a necessity and taking transit is not an option.
Think of all the pollution that idling cars produce now!
Encourage the use of EV vehicles and even consider road ways where EV vehicles can charge while driving over the electrified roads / bridge.

By: Michelle

Michelle — Sat, 16 Aug 2025 16:06:21 +0000

I remember this in the ’70’s! My parents were all for the tunnel, and my father noted that it could be connected up with the rail tunnel that was already downtown (which of course got incorporated into the Skytrain). They way they spoke, the tunnel would run under downtown and only emerge into daylight at the Granville Street Bridge? My recollection, anyway!

Regardless of the tunnel idea, I sure wish Vancouver had been more proactive over the decades, instead of just reactive, when it comes to development. Vancouver is (justifiably) proud of the fact that it has no freeways, but when the freeways were stopped, what did they do instead? Nothing. That was the mistake. They should have begun proper rapid transit back in the 1960’s and shaped the way the Lower Mainland developed, not just reacted to it. I recall reading in the 1990’s, in the Vancouver Sun, that so much of the commuting was no longer just in and out of downtown Vancouver, but from suburb to suburb, which is why I guess they finally saw the light and built the South Fraser Perimeter Rd and the Golden Ears Bridge. Still, it’s disheartening that there was better transit (the old BC Electric) 100 years ago (and more), when you could take the tram all the way to Steveston even out to CHILLIWACK and we can’t do that now. And why there was that gap of years between the ending of the old North Van ferries and the launching of the SeaBus defies logic.