Twinning the Port Mann would be a of columnist Ransford, without the Highway 1 use and the lessening of disaster in the future, in the opinion imposition of restrictions on Surrey’s restrictions on density.

Headlines this week and last spoke volumes about the direction of urban growth in the Lower Mainland. One appeared on the front page of this paper; the other, in a suburban weekly. They are linked.

The Sun headline, “Rush ‘hour’ now lasts five,” topped a story about TransLink’s latest Greater Vancouver trip survey which indicates the afternoon rush is nearly twice as long as it was only 10 years ago. The survey suggests the region’s transportation system can’t handle more growth in peak traffic loads.

The community newspaper’s headline, “Back to the drawing board for Delsom Estates plan,” went above a report on a recent public hearing on a proposed 1,000-townhouse development on 100 North Delta acres, site of a former gravel pit adjacent to Nordel Way.

A barrage of opposition to the development came from a long list of NIMBYs who proclaimed the 10-home-per-acre development too dense.

If 10 homes is too dense for a site right beside the Alex Fraser Bridge, you can only imagine what twinning the Port Mann Bridge will mean to urban growth in the Fraser Valley.

There might be some sense to twinning the Port Mann Bridge, but only if the new bridge and highway lanes beyond Surrey are restricted to transport trucks and other commercial vehicles and only if Surrey were to agree to triple its residential density.

Otherwise, the expansion of the bridge and Highway 1 all the way to Langley spells disaster for urban-growth management in the Lower Mainland.

The provincial government’s Gateway program has some merit when it talks of supporting the improved movement of people and goods facilitating economic growth.

There is no denying that growth in international shipping through our Pacific coast ports and the Vancouver International Airport will result in a 50-per-cent increase in truck traffic by 2021.

These facilities and the industries they support can’t remain competitive if traffic congestion inhibits the movement of products and services to markets.

Improved access to key economic gateways through improved links between ports, industrial areas, railways, airports and border crossings is essential.

But simply building more road and highway capacity that will also move commuters is not the answer.

The Lower Mainland’s quality of life is the envy of many in other urban centres where they have already made horrible planning mistakes.

If we want to maintain that quality of life, we need to get commuters off highways and main roads, by eliminating the need to commute, by increasing the diversity and availability of public transit and by increasing residential densities in developed areas.

We also need to change our attitude toward new development to accept a more diverse mix of jobs and housing in existing town centers.

I have no doubt that many commuters who currently use Highway 1 will take exception with my position. They want some relief from the congestion that makes daily commuting a time-consuming nightmare. That relief won’t come from twinning the Port Mann Bridge.

What will come is more development further up the Fraser Valley, adding more cars to a bigger network of highways.

Simply look at the Los Angeles Times real estate section. Like the section of this newspaper in which this column appears, the weekend Times has a section full of ads for new-home projects — most of them 90 minutes or more from downtown.

Young families in search of starter homes are forced to look at the new communities in the “high desert,” at least 70 minutes from downtown L.A. during normal traffic conditions. Double that time during rush hour.

Add more lanes to the commuter pipeline that flows out to the Fraser Valley and soon this section of the newspaper will be full of ads for new homes in Agassiz, Rosedale, Harrison Lake and Hope.

© The Vancouver Sun 2005