B.C. Transportation Minister Todd Stone is “blackmailing” New Westminster by only allowing the city to borrow a temporary replacement for the Bailey Bridge if it agrees to accept a second crossing.
The City of New Westminster has been in talks with the Ministry of Transportation about borrowing one of its bridges until a permanent solution is found regarding the controversial crossing that provides a link between New Westminster and Coquitlam via the Braid industrial area. On Thursday, the city received a letter from Stone stating that his ministry has agreed to lend the city a temporary replacement for the Bailey Bridge – but only if it installs a second crossing at the site to allow for “crucial” two-way traffic flow.
“We are being blackmailed here,” said Coun. Chuck Puchmayr.
Puchmayr said the ministry was going to lend the city a temporary bridge so it could provide access to the area, but now it’s being told it can’t borrow the bridge unless it supports a second crossing at the location.
“This is very peculiar in a world that should be as professional as the top level of politics,” he said. “To have this kind of response from a minister, and also not allow us to mitigate the safety (issues) that exist in the guise of their safety concerns is very, very alarming to me.”
The Bailey Bridge has been closed to vehicles since the beginning of March, after engineers deemed it to be structurally unsound. Before the bridge was closed, it had been subject to weight restrictions that prevented heavy trucks from crossing.
On Monday, city council voted to write to the transportation minister and ask him to reconsider his demand for a second crossing and await the results of binding arbitration between Coquitlam and New Westminster, which will decide whether a permanent crossing at the site should be one or two lanes.
Mayor Wayne Wright said the minister’s request is “very strange” as an arbitrator may rule that a one-lane crossing is preferable at the location. Rather than wait until that process concludes, he said city staff had been working to borrow a bridge from the ministry of transportation to allow movement through the industrial area.
“We have materials that we have already purchased to put in the bridge to show our good confidence in what we were doing and trying to move forward to keep that bridge open. We have spent tens of thousands of dollars to put the bridge in,” Wright said. “It’s very difficult right now, the situation that this has put us in and our backs to a wall, but we will do the best we can for our citizens and for the Braid industrial area and will, in actual fact, help Coquitlam.”
Lois-Leah Goodwin has been appointed as the arbitrator who will be ruling on the matter of whether a two- or multi-lane crossing is appropriate for the site. A decision is expected in July.
“This is really supposed to be an impartial process for municipalities to be able to resolve their disputes,” said Coun. Jonathan Cote. “Once again, it’s very unusual that a few months before that process is to be completed, the minister of transportation is sending a letter like this. I just have concerns it is really not upholding what this process is to be about.”
Coun. Bill Harper said “unforgivable” that the minister is taking this action while the process is underway. He said the minister is siding with Coquitlam’s support for a two-lane crossing even though the process hasn’t been concluded.
“He is actually taking sides,” he said. “I think that is completely inappropriate.”
Stone said he’s willing to lend the city two temporary bridges, but he’s not prepared to participate in a one-lane temporary solution. In addition to being an important corridor for commuters and goods movement, he said the route through the Braid industrial area is important because it allows people to get to Royal Columbian Hospital in a timely fashion.
“The truth is, if there is someone who is critically ill and has been involved in some kind of traumatic incident, there is a helicopter – you don’t use the road,” said Coun. Betty McIntosh, who worked as a nurse in emergency at Royal Columbian Hospital for many years.
The transportation minister’s letter to the city suggests he isn’t well informed about the issues New Westminster is raising in the arbitration process, Cote said.
“Certainly we have expressed numerous times about increasing the capacity of the Bailey Bridge with the rail lines that are few blocks away, and the major intersection of Braid and Brunette,” Cote said. “Simply putting in a two-lane bridge is not going to address the issues, and in many cases we anticipate, will create numerous safety concerns and increase congestion to the area, and will not solve any of the issues the City of Coquitlam, I guess, is hoping would be achieved by this.”
Coun. Jaimie McEvoy expressed concern about safety issues posed by increasing vehicle access to an area subject to 42 to 60 train crossings each day.
“What is apparent is the minister didn’t even examine that. He simply took comments coming out of the mayor of Coquitlam as gospel,” he said. “We need a professional approach by the provincial government and not a partisan one. I think there is a need to speak to the minister and follow up.”
Members of New Westminster city council expressed shock about the way in which they learned of Stone’s letter and offer to the city, with most being alerted through media or press releases.
“I first read the letter on Twitter,” Cote said. “I don’t think New West council should be receiving or hearing it in the media or through social media. It should be a more personalized contact between our city and the provincial government. I think it was done a little bit unprofessionally and I think that is unfortunate.”
Stone said his ministry’s offer is a “tremendously good deal” for New Westminster because it’s getting $2 million in value for two temporary bridges. He said New Westminster wouldn’t have to pay any costs related to installation of the second crossing because Coquitlam has offered to contribute up to $800,000 towards those costs.
“I’m pleased with the letter,” said Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart. “I think it’s a responsible approach to make certain that the windows are fully open to clear up this long-standing traffic nightmare.”
Stewart said the minister’s proposal opens up two lanes of traffic and relieves some of the bottleneck at the Brunette overpass by getting some of the trucks back onto the United Boulevard, which is the truck route.
“I think even New Westminster expects that the arbitration decision would be a two-lane bridge because this is two, four-lane truck routes,” he told the Tri-Cities NOW. “This is a long-standing and absurd situation.”
Stone believes a two-lane crossing should have been installed years ago and doesn’t think the additional lane will increase traffic through the area.
“New West doesn’t have to accept our offer here,” Stone told The Record after forwarding the letter to city council. “If they don’t then they can proceed accordingly with an alternative solution, which would be the acquisition of a bailey bridge from some other source, at a cost to the taxpayer, and they can explain to their taxpayers why they are saying no to $2 million worth of infrastructure, albeit from a temporary perspective while the arbitration continues.”
