B.C. Conservatives pledge to replace Massey Tunnel project with a 10-lane bridge

B.C. Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson says that if his party forms government, it would abandon plans for an eight-lane tunnel to replace the aging George Massey Tunnel and build a 10-lane bridge instead. In a statement Thursday morning, Oct. 15, the party also pledged to complete Surrey Hospital in Cloverdale, which is already under construction and scheduled to open in early 2030, and build a new women’s and children’s hospital in Surrey.

A B.C. Liberal-led government had planned a 10-lane bridge between Richmond and Delta, but the incoming BC NDP cancelled the project in 2017. It was estimated to cost $3.5 billion and was slated for completion in 2022. In August 2021, the NDP government announced the Fraser River Tunnel Project: a toll-free, eight-lane immersed-tube tunnel with one dedicated transit lane in each direction and a separate multi-use path for walking, cycling and other active transportation. The crossing was to be built just upstream of the 65-year-old George Massey Tunnel, at an estimated cost of $4.15 billion, with completion expected in late 2030.

The Conservatives say that after nine years of NDP government, “nothing has been built.” Doerkson said in Thursday’s statement that “David Eby is good at making announcements and very bad at finishing projects.”

In June, the province cancelled its contract with the consortium hired to design and build the project. A Ministry of Transportation and Transit statement said the parties could not agree on “the commercial terms for final construction of the tunnel.” On July 2, the federal and provincial governments signed a $20-billion agreement under which Ottawa would contribute $3 billion to the Massey Tunnel replacement. Four days later, B.C.’s transportation minister said the project was now expected to cost about $8.5 billion, nearly double the 2021 estimate. Despite the higher cost and a return to tender, the minister said the project would proceed as planned: pre-construction work was underway, the environmental assessment was expected to conclude by the end of this year, and major work was set to begin in 2027. Completion is now expected in September 2031, rather than December 2030.

Doerkson said a Conservative government would build the 10-lane bridge instead, which he said could cut current commute times by up to 30 minutes and help businesses move goods more efficiently. “Families in the Lower Mainland are stuck in traffic every day because the NDP cancelled a bridge that should already be open. My government will build it, on time and on budget,” he said. He did not provide a cost estimate or possible completion date. The Reporter said it had contacted the campaign for those estimates and to ask whether the party intended to reuse the bridge design cancelled in 2017.

### NDP says change could delay project and jeopardize funding

A day before the Conservative announcement, the BC NDP warned that Doerkson’s plan to stop construction of the tunnel could set the project back years and put at risk the $3 billion the federal government committed to the new crossing in July. “People living south of the Fraser can’t afford to wait longer while the BC Conservatives change course on the project — they want it to move forward and get done,” the party’s statement said.

BC NDP Leader David Eby repeated that position while speaking to reporters in Surrey on Thursday. He called Doerkson’s promise “lunacy” and said the Conservative leader had “no plan.” Eby said 200 workers were at the tunnel site beginning construction and that large metal structures could be seen going up. “That’s the tunnel construction that’s underway,” he said.

Eby said Doerkson would cancel the work and send the workers home, then start from scratch with a new plan, environmental assessment, procurement process and contractors. He questioned whether drivers would be stranded for two years or longer. Eby again said changing direction would mean losing the federal government’s $3-billion investment, and accused Doerkson of avoiding questions about how long his proposed bridge would take to build, how much it would cost and whether it would have tolls. “It’s not that [Doerkson] doesn’t have the answers. He has the answers to all of these questions — he just knows that you will not like those answers at home,” Eby alleged.

Eby also said Doerkson had done a broadcast that morning without taking questions, had not answered a follow-up question for six days and had not appeared at a Conservative-organized media scrum for six days. “He has the answers. He just doesn’t want to give them to the people of British Columbia,” Eby said.

### Unions criticize Conservative plan

The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 115, which represents more than 14,000 workers in high-altitude or high-risk settings, called the Conservative proposal “completely irresponsible” and said it showed a “fundamental lack of understanding of infrastructure development.” Its members include mechanics, road builders, crane and heavy-equipment operators, and dam builders. The union said significant project work had been underway for nine months, with more than 200 workers on site this year alone, and that $581 million had been spent as of June.

Work to date includes tree clearing, utility relocation and several temporary structures to support the project. Much of it has taken place on Deas Island, where a casting basin for tunnel sections is being built. The union said the environmental assessment was imminent and major construction was expected to begin within months.

Union business manager Bryan Railton said in a statement that scrapping the project and starting over would be reckless and wasteful. He said that if Doerkson was serious, it showed a fundamental lack of understanding of how major infrastructure is procured and built, and that the lack of knowledge could hurt British Columbians. Railton said cancelling the project would put the federal government’s “crucial” $3-billion commitment at risk. “Wasting $581 million in construction costs and turning away a $3-billion investment from the federal government would be financially negligent,” he said. He added that the promise showed the BC Conservatives were more serious about ideological battles with political opponents than delivering infrastructure for British Columbians.

LiUNA Local 1611 also called scrapping the tunnel “unconscionable.” In a social media post, the union, which represents workers in sectors including road building, paving and utilities, said Doerkson’s proposal sent skilled tradespeople the message that “your work doesn’t matter.” Business manager and secretary-treasurer Nav Malhotra said members had worked on the project for almost a year. Including highway corridor improvements that are part of the tunnel program, he said, their work went back several years. Malhotra accused Doerkson of putting that work at risk with a hasty announcement driven by anti-worker ideology rather than common sense.

LiUNA Local 1611 said the replacement project is being delivered under a project labour agreement (PLA), which ensures workers receive good wages and benefits while building public infrastructure. It also noted that B.C. Conservative MLA Kiel Giddens had unsuccessfully introduced a private member’s bill earlier this year to end PLAs on public infrastructure.

Malhotra said the BC Conservatives and their predecessors, alliances and offshoots — the BC Liberals, BC United, CentreBC and OneBC — had repeatedly shown contempt and disrespect for working people. He said the union knew of the Conservatives’ hostility toward organized labour but was stunned they would waste $581 million in taxpayer money and turn away $3 billion in federal funding to make a political point. “Lorne Doerkson has just given us 581 million reasons why his party is not ready to lead this province,” Malhotra said.