Ongoing Highway 99 upgrade construction has left motorists facing a dangerous situation at one exit, says Delta South MLA Ian Paton.
Paton is raising the alarm about what drivers are facing exiting Ladner Trunk Road southbound, just before the Ladner Trunk/Highway 99 interchange, to get onto Highway 99 southbound.
If drivers on Ladner Trunk keep to the right to take the exit instead of the overpass, once they get off the narrow exit lane, there is currently not enough merge roadway at the construction zone on the highway itself for drivers to smoothly merge.
The merge lane is ripped up and construction pilons force drivers onto the highway more immediately, or to stop, which Paton fears will result in serious accidents.
“So, if you’re doing 70 km/h you go past the old fire hall on Ladner Trunk Road, take the exit and, suddenly, most run-ups to get onto a freeway are quite long, giving you time to see what the traffic is like and look over your shoulder, but when you hit this one, suddenly you look to your left and there’s nothing but cars going 100-clicks-an-hour heading towards South Surrey/White Rock. You’ve got nowhere to go and are forced to stop and wait for an opening and hit the gas,” he said.
Paton said he raised his concerns with Delta Police Chief Neil Dubord and plans to discuss the issue with Transportation Minister Rob Fleming.
The Optimist made an inquiry to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure and response will be provided in the next couple of days, a spokesperson noted on Tuesday.
The Highway 99 Tunnel Program involves a series of upgrade projects over the next several years, projects to be completed in advance a new eight-lane immersed tunnel that is to open in 2030.
The projects include bus-on-shoulder transit lanes on Highway 99 to make trips by transit quicker.
