The Gateway Project’s proposed freeway system is far from being the only option for development in the Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD). Extensive research has been done to propose alternative development plans for the region. Alternatives to the South Fraser Perimeter Road (SFPR) fall under two groupings: those that wish to abolish entirely the development of a freeway system throughout the FVRD, and those that offer an alternative freeway route.
The Canadian Pacific Gateway Strategy is a federal initiative outlined in Bill C-68, also known as the Pacific Gateway Act (“Gov.” 2005). The Pacific Gateway Act sets policies to increase the economic prosperity of Canada through international trade with Asia. With rapidly expanding Asian economies, the coast of British Columbia is intended to serve as a gateway to Asia through exporting Canada’s natural resources, in return for cheap consumer products (“Gov.” 2006).
Regardless of the Pacific Gateway Strategy, a significant growth in population for the FVRD is expected to occur over the next 40 years. Vancouver’s current population of 2 million is expected to be 3 million by 2025, and 4 million by 2050 (“Sustainability” 2007). Most alternatives to the Gateway Projects freeway system do not address whether they advocate getting rid of the current proposed freeway system for the FVRD. Most alternative plans focus on how to manage an increasing population; however, it becomes clear that the two are undeniably linked.
Vancouver-based transportation consultant Deming Smith calls Vancouver “one of the healthiest and most liveable cities on the continent” (Doherty 2004). This is because Vancouver is “the biggest city in North America that does not have a freeway running through its heart” (Doherty 2004). According to Northeast Environment Watch, “one reason for Vancouver’s success is B.C.’s province-wide farmland protection policies, which established the ALR in the 1970s” (“Northwest” 2002). Seattle spreads across ¾ more land per resident than Vancouver. It has been estimated that if Vancouver had adopted Seattle-style sprawl development, approximately 4/5ths of the agricultural land that remains today would be developed.
Yet this is now the direction that development is heading in Vancouver with the Pacific Gateway Strategy and provincial Gateway Project. The SFPR and the other proposed freeways will encourage greater urban sprawl by making areas such as Delta, Langley, and Surrey more accessible by car. This will encourage increased development, and possibly even more roads in the future, which would mean removing more land from the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) for these purposes. Building compact communities is essential to preserving agricultural land. Instead of building Vancouver like another Seattle or Los Angeles, Patrick Condon of the University of British Columbia (UBC) has led a team of researchers and architects to come up with a 50 year vision for the region that promotes compact communities as well as a variety of transportation alternatives to the automobile. This plan is called “Sustainability by Design” (SxD), and does not involve building any new roads, yet it would still accommodate the projected population growth for the region. Dense urban nodes, and low-intensity transit such as walking, cycling, and a tram system, are at the heart of this plan.
The SxD plan does not necessarily imply that the Pacific Gateway Act be eradicated. By building compact communities that encourage walking and cycling, as well as investing in public transportation, already existing roads may be freed up to allow a greater transfer of goods (Doherty 2004). Eric Doherty, a master’s graduate from UBC’s School of Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), wrote his thesis on alternative transportation ideas to the proposed freeway system in the FVRD. Eric argues that while freeway expansion has shown to increase car usage, when connected and located properly, transit expansion has shown to increase transit ridership (Doherty 2004). Doherty recommends buying more Skytrain cars instead of twinning the Port Mann, because the current Expo and Millennium Skytrain lines are only being used to half of their capacity: the tracks and station are designed for trains up to 2X as long as currently exist. He also recommends improving bus services South of the Fraser in Surrey, Langley, and Delta, which would improve connections to the Skytrain and reduce pressure on the Port Mann. This would not only eliminate the need for a new bridge, it would also eliminate the need for the SFPR – regardless of whether the Pacific Gateway Act is carried through.
More dense urban communities and increased transportation has also been proposed by the City of Vancouver in their Regional Growth Strategy (RGS). This strategy recognizes that 5.4% of the FVRD’s 1.4 million hectares is highly productive agricultural land, and it aims to support and enhance the agricultural sector – among other things. It states that “the RGS promotes the development of a transportation system that supports compact urban development, promotes a network of sustainable communities, and minimizes intrusions on rural, recreational and agricultural lands” (RGS 2004). However, the city’s plans have been overridden by the larger provincial and federal strategies.
One alternative to the SFPR that does not challenge the idea of a freeway system for the FVRD is the Hoover/Naas Proposal. This plan would help to protect much of the farmland and the bog that is currently being threatened by the SFPR; however, as it would still encourage urban sprawl, it would increase the threat of future development in these areas. In short, the new route would follow an existing railroad line that goes out to where the rail line crosses with Hwy. 99. From there, semi-truck traffic could either go South on Hwy. 99 or North on Hwy. 91, and trucks would not be allowed access to the Massey Tunnel. There would also be a tunnel under the area from Surrey to Nordel and Hwy. 91, which would be much less destructive than building a highway right along the river bank. This proposed alternative highway would be faster and cheaper to build, and less disruptive to Delta residents. It would also protect Burns bog, as well as preserve farmland. This proposal has been rejected by the province because “The Hoover/Naas proposal to limit truck access to the George Massey Tunnel would significantly impact the transportation services necessary for a strong economy” (Haig 2008).
As worded by the Sustainability by Design proposal, “Our challenge, in this generation, is to transform our liveable region into a sustainable one” (“Sust.” 2007). A sustainable region is one that consists of substantial farmland to feed its citizens. All of the alternatives discussed here attempt, either directly or indirectly, to protect local agricultural land and to preserve the ALR: the Gateway Project does not. The SFPR threatens food security in the FVRD by paving over valuable farmland while more food will be imported from California – even though “a recent report by the National Geographic Society warns that studies predict the Southwestern U.S. is descending towards drought conditions, making it vital that we protect all farmland for a sustainable food supply” (Haig 2008). For this reason, among many others that have not been discussed here, the SFPR is not in the best interest of the FVRD, and alternative development strategies should be adopted.
References:
Government of British Columbia. Pacific Gateway Strategy Action Plan, April 2006.
Web. December 1 2009.
Government of Canada. Bill C-68, October 2005. Web. November 25 2009.
Doherty, Eric (2004). Freeway Insanity. Seven Oaks Magazine. Web. November 23,
2009.
Haig, Wilma. “Re: 163107 ‐ South Fraser Perimeter Road.” Message to Minister of
Transportation. 4 March 2008. E-mail. Web. December 3, 2009.
Sustainability by Design 2.0: 2007-2020. UBC Design Centre for Sustainability. Web.
November 25, 2009.
Regional Growth Strategy. City of Vancouver, 2004. Web. November 23, 2009.
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