Surrey - The Editor, Re: "Chestbeating over bridge rings hollow," the Now, April 17.
Sadly, we are dealing with the two most retrograde cities in recent memory when it comes to traffic.First of all, years of Vancouver city councils who believe that if they can create even more bottlenecks and congestion, the traffic will somehow disappear. Think about it. Vancouver has no through roads except for Highway 1, which cuts across the northeast corner. Every other road ends in a dead end or a side street except perhaps, Kingsway, which connects to Georgia Street by a viaduct which they are itching to tear down.Close behind are the Neanderthalthinking councils of New Westminster, which have done their best to inconvenience those heathen commuters who dare to trespass into the Royal City.Highway 99 used to follow Kingsway and 12th Street to Columbia and the Pattullo, but years ago, traffic was diverted along 10th Avenue to McBride as a grudging concession. Connections for traffic between Highway 1 and Marine became a cruel joke.Today, with their insistence of a tolled, four-lane replacement, New Westminster is again guaranteeing years of bottlenecks and congestion.Well, let's get real. Since this is part of our highways system (are you listening, Todd Stone?), it should be the B. C. provincial highways department that builds a new bridge and connecting roadways.At a minimum, it should be a six-lane bridge, and if we think for the future (a novel idea), an eight-lane one.Build it between the Tannery Road - 8th Street alignments. Build a proper access road system along the Brunette, Columbia, Front and Stewardson route, elevated if necessary. Build connector roads along 12th Street and 8th Street to access Kingsway and Canada Way.From Surrey, it would be a short diversion from the King George along Scott to Tannery and the Highway 17 interchange or, perhaps a Fraser Highway, Old Yale, 104th Avenue connection.When this is completed, give the Pattullo to New Westminster to do with as they like.They can fix it, maintain it, plant flowers on it or tear it down - we don't care!Gordon E. Swanson,SurreyYOUR LETTERS: Email letters to edit@thenownewspaper. com. Please include full name, phone number and where you live.