I didn't like shopping with my mom too much when I was a kid. I never got to choose the shoes and clothes that I liked. Nope, they had to be of a certain quality that I simply couldn't grasp. I was told the choices that were made for me were practical and sensible and that the choices would end up lasting a longer life.
As I grew older, practicality and sensibility started to rear their heads in other purchasing decisions, clothing and otherwise. I learned that sometimes you have to save before you spend and that sometimes investing in what may seem to be an expensive item could ultimately pay off in longterm gain.
I feel this way about the bridge to replace the George Massey Tunnel and I know there a lot of people out there like me. I have spent a fair amount of time trying to understand the crossing options and why they are needed, having attended several presentations and briefings on the subject.
Fortunately, I do not have to use the tunnel as much as I used to but I can say that when I do have to go that route, I dread it, and can honestly say the crossing is horribly more congested than it was 15 years ago when I was a regular commuter.
This past Tuesday I had to attend an 11 a.m. meeting in Vancouver. I figured, OK, this should be a cakewalk. If I left at 10 a.m., figuring this should be plenty of time considering rush hour would be over. (I was late.)
As I approached the overpass to Highway 99 from Tsawwassen, traffic was gridlocked. It took me half an hour to get to the actual tunnel. As luck would have it, Mike Smyth was on CKNW doing an interview with Greg Moore, chair of the Metro Vancouver board, saying how the Massey bridge was a non-starter for him.
His reasoning was poor and his off the cuff commentary was baseless and shameful. I hope he heard me swearing at him through the radio. He said something like the bridge would be a 10-lane path to farmland or something like that. If he was paying attention he would know there would likely be a net increase in access to farmable land in the ALR.
This kind of mindless pontificating from politicians and from emotional but ill-informed letter writers leads me to believe we may lose a practical and sensible crossing choice that is already under preliminary construction.
The less than shaky new government has said it might consider other options for the crossing and usually cite cost as the reason. Andrew Weaver, an apparent man of science, uses the Oak Street gridlock ploy in his antibridge rhetoric. As a scientist, he should hone his math skills.
The new government should check its egos and avoid "Trumpatizing" policy decisions made by the previous government. Put your own changes to the bridge project in place and call it your own... just get on with it already.
How about the Dave Barrett Bridge? I could care less, just build the thing.
Fortunately, Delta's chief administrative officer George Harvie and staff have been preparing an extensive report on the George Massey Tunnel that will be made public soon.
I can hardly wait to hear what the usual suspects will have to say about this.
Mike Schneider is founder of Project Pickle and likes to write about growing, cooking and eating food. He is a Jamie Oliver Food Revolution ambassador.
