DELTA City Council is renewing its call for a new River Road Overpass (RRO) to be included in the Fraser River Tunnel Project.
A new analysis by KPMG concludes that the RRO is a vital infrastructure component and its inclusion in the Fraser River Tunnel Project will help to meet the housing needs of a growing region.
Additionally, the RRO project will enable over $7.6 billion in economic benefits over the next 30 years, while minimizing severe congestion on Highway 17A and 99, when delivered as a broader infrastructure package.
The RRO provides economies of scale to undertake the project concurrent to the new tunnel, and the result will be the addition of critical infrastructure and transportation corridors in Delta and beyond. It also serves to reduce congestion and disruption during construction.
“The River Road Overpass would be an essential piece of infrastructure, improving safety, managing congestion, enabling the supply of new homes to meet provincial housing targets, and allowing our City to continue to grow sustainably,” said Delta Mayor George V. Harvie on Monday.
“Turning down the opportunity to include the overpass in the Tunnel Project is incredibly short-sighted and will come with much higher costs in the future when it is inevitably constructed. We sincerely hope the Province reevaluates their decision and are happy to work with them on a pathway to deliver this needed infrastructure.”
The City says that despite years of advocacy from it, and evidence of the potential benefits for the region, regrettably the Province continues to refuse to include the overpass in the current scope of the Highway 99 Tunnel Program. This lack of forethought undermines the current and future needs of the region and the province as a whole. Therefore, the current position of the BC government will have significant impacts on the surrounding community, and Delta Council is urging them to reconsider.
“The existing George Massey Tunnel clearly demonstrates what happens when infrastructure is built without future growth in mind,” said Harvie. “The Province now has a chance to avoid making the same mistake—it’s time for this government to include the River Road Overpass in the Fraser River Tunnel Project and deliver an infrastructure package that meets the needs of our region for years to come.”
Information on the findings can be found in the third-party report commissioned by the City of Delta.
Delta Council will receive an update on the Fraser River Tunnel Project from TI Corp and the Ministry of Transportation and Transit at the October 20 Regular Meeting.
