The good news is that tolls to use the new bridge won't be as expensive as the ones being charged today. The bad news is we'll all be paying to cross the river before the bridge ever opens.
OK, so I'm being a little speculative, but with every new voice added to a growing discussion it's difficult to think we won't see some kind of region-wide tolling program in effect before the bridge to replace the George Massey Tunnel is scheduled to open in 2022.
Concerned by growing congestion on the Alex Fraser Bridge, Delta council has asked for a meeting with the provincial transportation minister to discuss regional tolling options. Delta South MLA Vicki Huntington continues to push Victoria to make good on its promise of a tolling review, while the B.C. Trucking Association has called for tolls on all major water crossings in Greater Vancouver to reduce congestion and improve fairness.
And that's just in the last couple of weeks.
With new life in the efforts to replace the aging Pattullo Bridge and the tunnel replacement moving ahead, you can bet the noise surrounding Lower Mainland tolling will only intensify in the months to come. Combine that with the fact the region's mayors are desperate for a way to raise revenue for planned transportation improvements and it's hard not to see some form of widespread tolling, or road pricing, put before voters in the not too distant future.
Up to this point provincial policy has limited tolls to new infrastructure, but if the mayors are willing to front a plan that would charge a fee, albeit a much more nominal one, to use every crossing in the region, Victoria would almost certainly go along with it, presuming voters do as well.
Two new bridges would not only put unbearable pressure on the Alex Fraser, the last of the free alternatives, but it would also fan the flames of the fairness debate, particularly as it relates to those south of the Fraser. Why do some people have to pay for the privilege of driving to work while others are spared from coughing up a daily fee?
That question could torpedo the goodwill generated by billions worth of engineering work so I can't imagine the valley-friendly Liberals allowing the situation to get to that point.
