Drivers who use the Pattullo Bridge should get used to five months of delays now that TransLink has begun a scaled-down rehabilitation project to keep the aging bridge open.
The first of a series of closures took place over the weekend, with the bridge closed completely April 30 to May 1 while crews set up to resurface the deck.
Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction on weekdays until early October and that’s expected to result in 20- to 40-minute delays in the morning rush and 10 to 30 minutes in the afternoon peak, with higher volumes on all feeder routes in Surrey and New Westminster.
Complete bridge closures are expected two nights each week and one weekend a month. Cyclists and pedestrians will have access to the bridge at all times along the sidewalk.
“People should be planning ahead for this work,” TransLink spokesperson Jennifer Morland said. “Think about alternatives like transit or car pooling as those might be faster options.”
She noted there will also be some overlap with the Pattullo work and New Westminster’s dismantling of its Front Street parkade, which is sending heavy trucks onto alternate routes through New West until July.
The $10-million Pattullo project has been dramatically scaled down from what was originally intended to be a $100-million rehabilitation lasting 18 months.
TransLink officials last fall rejected the seismic rehab work as too expensive – if it was even possible – and opted to minimize spending since it intends to replace the Pattullo with a new bridge as quickly as possible.
TransLink says it has identified extra parking locations near New Westminster, Scott Road and Surrey Central stations for motorists opting to park and ride. For more details see translink.ca/pattullorehab.
