FINAH, REPORT

FRASER RIVER NORTH AND SOUTH ARM

+ CROSSING STUDY

Prepared For:

PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA Mnvmz~ OF R~ANs~ORTA~ON AND HIGHWAYS

BC TRANSPORTATION FINANCING AUTHORITY GREATER VANCOUVER REGIONAL DISTRICT

AGRICULTURAL LAND COMMISSION BC FERRIES CORPORA~ON

BC TRANsrr

Prepared By:

REID CROWTHER & PARTNERS LTD. #300 - 4170 Still Creek Drive

Bumaby, BC vsc 6C6

And

WARD CONSULTING GROUP #520 - 1112 West Pender Street

Vancouver, BC V6E 2Sl

32802-3

July, 1995

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

4 Background to the Study

The South Coast Transportation System Plan builds from and responds to the recommendations of the GIRD’s Livable Region Strategy Plan (LRSP) and Transport 2021’ and represents an important stage in an on-going transportation planning process. The general principles set out by the Provincial Transportation Strategy apply to this process and these are:

o To make better use of existing transportation facilities and services.

o To make more strategic transportation investments

o To develop more costs effective methods for project service and delivery.

o To strengthen links between transportation revenues and expenditures, and between responsibility and accountability for transportation initiatives; and

o To maintain competitiveness of transportation service providers.

The Fraser River North and South Arm Crossing Study is one of four component studies of the South Coast Transportation System Plan. The regional studies include:

o East-West Connector Study

o Trans-Canada Highway Study

o HOVStudy

o Fraser River Crossing Study (with a sub-component dealing with the Ladner- Tsawwassen Area.)

’ Transport 202 1. ‘A Long Range Plan for Greater Vancouver.’ A Joint Project of the Greater Vancouver Regional District and the Province of British Columbia. September, 1992.

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This report summarize s an assessment of the trafk characteristics of the demand for the crossing of the North and South Arm of the Fraser River during the morning peak period. The base land use data for this study is the Livable Region Strategic Plan and the traffic data is taken from the recommendations of the Transport 2021 Study. The Transport 2021 recommendations could result in increased transit and High Occupancy Vehicle trips during peak periods through the implementation of selected infrastructure and transport demand measures. In the analysis, this report examines these implications through a series of twelve options. The options are reduced to three using an evaluation technique based on Multiple Account Evaluation. A preferred option is identified and an implementation strategy developed for inclusion in the regional transportation system.

4 Study Area

The Study Area is located in Exhibit ES. 1. The area is bounded by the Strait of Georgia on the west, the east end .of Annacis Island in the east, Marine Way in the North and the Canada-U.S. border in the south, and encompasses most of Richmond and Delta.

The existing crossings of the North Arm in the area are the Arthur Laing Bridge, the Oak Bridge, the Knight Street Bridge and the Queensborough Bridge. The South Arm is currently crossed by the Alex Fraser Bridge and the George Massey Tunnel. Additionally, the Puttallo, Port Mann and Pitt River Bridges east of the study area affect the total trafk in the area at any time.

. Major controlled access highways in the area include the following:

Highway 99 from the United States border to the Oak Street Bridge. There are interchanges at the Ring George Highway, Crescent Road, Highway 9 l(south interchange), Matthews and Highway 10 south of the Fraser River. Highway 99 crosses the river through the George Massey Tunnel. There is a southbound access to River Road immediately south of the tunnel. On Lulu Island, there are interchanges with Highway 99 at Steveston Highway, Westminster Highway, Highway 9 l(north interchange) and Bridgeport Road. Peak Hour volumes through the George Massey Tunnel in excess of 6000 vph have been observed.

Highway 91 extends from Highway 99 (north of Westminster Highway) eastward to Hamilton/Highway 91A and then south across the Alex Fraser Bridge to rejoin Highway 99 west of 120th Street. There are interchanges at Knight Street, River Road/Nordel Way,

72nd Avenue, 64th Avenue and Highway 10 before the facility rejoins Highway 99. There

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are traflic signals on Highway 91 at Hamilton Avenue, Highway 91A, and 72nd Avenue. Northbound morning peak period volumes have been observed in excess of 5800 vph.

Highway 17 between Highway 99 and the ferry terminal has limited access control with signal&d intersections at Highway 10, 56th Street and 52nd Street. There is a partial interchange at Deltaport Way. Tsawwassen Road is an at grade intersection.

Additionally, major urban arterials in the study area include Steveston Highway, Gilbert Road, Bridgeport Road, No 3 Road, Westmmster Highway and Garden City Road in Richmond. In Delta, major arterials include Highway 10 and River Road.

The population of the study area proper is projected to be 335,000 persons by the year 2021, while employment is expected to be 175,000 jobs.

Activity centres are defined as centres of economic activity which has significance nationally, provincially, regionally and locally. Many of these tend to be important trafIic attractors and generators. It is further assumed that because of the economic significance of the activity centre, a higher value can be placed on these trips. As such, service to and from these centres should be available at a very high level of service. Three primary activity centres have been identified in the study area and these are the BC Ferries Terminal at Tsawwassen, the seaport facilities at Roberts Bank, and the Vancouver International Airport. Additionally, four secondary centres have been identified and these are the Boundary Bay Airport, the North Richmond Industrial area, the South Richmond Industrial Area and the Mitchell Island, Marine Drive area.

c) Review of Study Approach

A base transportation network encompassing the recommendations of the Transport 2021 Study served as a basis for developing trafIic projections for the study area. The traffic simulations for the morning peak period for the year 2021 were examined in respect to capacities of the river crossings in the study area and selected expressway links on Highway 99 and Highway 91. From this examination, it was possible to establish transportation objectives for a series of feasible options. The objectives for the transportation options, included the following:

q Improve levels of service for the river crossings in the Study Area including; George Massey Tunnel, Alex Fraser Bridge, Queensborough Bridge, Knight Street Bridge and

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the Oak Street Bridge. Options identifying new capacity and new HOV designations were developed.

Improve level of service for the East West trafIic by improving Highway 91 capacity and or adding HOV lanes

Reduce the high trafEc accident rate at the south entrance to the Massey Tunnel.

Improve service to the BC Feries’ Terminal at Tsawwassen by improving the level of service from Highway 99 along the Highway 17 Corridor.

Improve service to the Vancouver International Airport by improving network connectivity in a north/south and east west direction. At the same time, cross border and provincial traffic would receive increased levels of service.

Ensure that transit competitiveness is maintained.

0) Evaluation of the Options

In total, 12 feasible options were identified in three corridors; the Highway 99 Corridor, the Highway 91/Tree Island Corridor and the Boundary Corridor. An analysis of the traffic planning model output indicated that from a traI%ic perspective, the options met the objectives to a greater or lesser degree and that they could be implemented. In other words, all the options were feasible.

The feasible options were compared in an evaluation matrix, that identified criteria from a

number of sources as follows:

o The transportation planning model provided base information of vehicular and transit volumes, average speeds, vehicle kilometers travelled and so on.

o Financial information was developed for each option through capital and maintenance estimates.

o An environmental overview of the study area provided base information on the environmental impacts.

o Estimates were developed for the land requirements that would be needed for each

option from the Agricultural Land Reserve and from Indian lands.

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o other variables such as emergency response, transit encouragement and provincial connectivity which were qualitative in nature were based on descriptions.

The evaluation was used to identify three favoured options and these were:

o One option based on the Tree Island Corridor

o One Option based on the Highway 99 Corridor

o One Option combining features of the Tree Island and Highway 99 Corridors.

The options were modified to incorporate the recommendations of the Ladner/ Tsawwassen area and to ensure the overall network was continuous, logical and flexible. The transportation planning model again served as a basis for projecting the morning peak period travel for the year 202 1. The evaluation criteria were reassessed and a preferred option identified.

The Referred Option’

The preferred option summarized as follows:

is shown in Exhibit ES.2 and the physical components are

9 The Oak Street Bridge3 is extended to five lanes and additional lanes are constructed on Highway 99 from 8th Avenue in White Rock to the Oak Street Bridge, a road distance of approximately 35 kilometers. The deficiency of river crossing capacity over the North Arm in the Highway 99 corridor was identified through sensitivity

analysis. The Oak Street Bridge improvement is recommended as additional infrastructure along with the HOV lanes on Highway 99 South to the Richmond Freeway. These are added to the preferred option for logical system development, HOV and SOV traflic service improvements, and future flexibility.

’ The timing and need for specific facilities will ultimately be influenced by transportation demand initiatives which are outside the scope of this study but which could be in effect at the time of implementation. 3 Additional north arm crossing capacity is recommended on the Highway 99 Corridor. The Oak Street Bridge location may not be the best location. Feasibility analysis of alternative crossing capacity is recommended.

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RECOMMENDED

I PI 3

- NEW HIGHWAY CHANGES TO LANE USAGE

Y ADDITIONAL LANES BOUNDARY BAY

NEW INTERCHANGE

a+b - SOUTHBOUND SOV + HOV

/ cd- NORTHBOUND SOV l HOV

INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARY

Exhibit ES.? PREFER- OPTKIN

FRASER RIVER cFlossu4G STUDY

=s A new two lane tunnel tube is added at the George Massey crossing. This includes two additional lanes between the Steve&on Highway and Highway 99117 interchanges. Further, both of these interchanges are modified to accommodate the additional lanes. The Highway 99/17 northbound ramps from Highway 17 are realigned southeast to reduce the difficulty of the merge between that interchange and the tunnel.

a Highway 17 between Highway 99 and the causeway is upgraded. New interchanges are provided at Highway 10 and 56th Street and an overpass is provided at 52nd Street.

3 The Tree Island Component adds two lanes to the entire length of Highway 9 1. A new four lane connection is provided between the Highway 9 119 1A interchange and Marine Way. This includes a new four lane crossing of the North Arm at Tree Island

3 Lane designations call for the Oak Street Bridge to operate with two SOV lanes in each direction and one HOV lane reversible with the peak traffic direction. Highway 99 would operate as two SOV’s and one HOV in each direction. The length of the Highway 91 Corridor will operate as two SOV’s and one HOV lane in both directions. The Tree Island Corridor including the crossing, will operate as one SOV and one HOV in each direction. Transit buses would operate on the HOV lanes.

The preferred option has a number of strengths and these were identified as follows:

The Highway 99 Corridor will have one additional HOV lane across the North Arm directly on the corridor. This is achieved by adding the lane to the Oak Street Bridge

superstructure.

HOV capacity will be added to the Highway 99 Corridor.

The Highway 99 Corridor will have superior flexibility and be able to respond in traffic service to tral3’ic increases outside of the Transport 202 1 projections.

The increased road capacity in the north/south direction will improve access to the Tsawwassen Ferry terminal, Vancouver International Airport and the Vancouver Central Business District. Access to the secondary activity centres at Mitchell Island

and the Richmond Industrial Centre will also be improved. The level of service to

trans-border trafk will also be positively afkcted.

Transit and HOV usage are encouraged.

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9 The Livable Region Strategic Land Use scenarios are encouraged.

= The use of current facility location for improvements minimizes the intrusion on new facilities on Indian Lands and the Agricultural Land Reserve.

a The Tree Island crossing provides a new crossing location spreading out the vehicles entering the Vancouver and Bumaby road systems across the North Arm. There is the

opportunity to improve connectivity to the provincial system and reduce congestion on the Queensborough Bridge.

The preferred option will operate more than satisfactorily under the TDM and land use assumptions made in the traf3ic simulations. Sensitivity analysis examined what is likely to happen if the actual land use is not as concentrated or if the Traffic Demand Measures are less successful than assumed with the transportation planning model.

u Sensitivity Analysis

The sensitivity tests on the preferred alternative included the following:

0 Removal of all river crossing tolls in the study area. The crossings include the Oak Street, Knight Street and Tree Island Bridges on the North Arm and the George Massey Tunnel and the Alex Fraser Bridge on the South Arm.

Cl Removal of all TDM measures, including tolls, gas tax increases and HOV priority.

Cl Imposition of trend land use growth, that is the cluster densities of the livable region strategic plan were assumed not achieved.

0 Removal of the Richmond Sky Train from the network and no Richmond Skytrain or bridge tolls.

0 Implications of not improving the Highway 99 capacity north of the Richmond Freeway.

If the north end of the Highway 99 Corridor is improved through additional crossing capacity, the system can respond to unanticipated growth in traffic. The system is flexible,

delays are reduced and provincial level traffic on the Highway 99 Corridor is appropriately served. The importance of improving the roadway capacity of the Highway 99 Corridor

between the Richmond Freeway and 70th Street regardless of the level of TDM measures

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or the success of the Richmond Skytrain is demonstrated in the sensitivity analysis. If the

Oak Street Bridge, f& financial or technical reasons, cannot accept an additional lane, then

other options in the area should be pursued.

G) Implementation Strategy

An implementation strategy for the preferred alternative is shown in Table ES. 1.

Table ES.l: Proposed Implementation Strategy for the North South Crossing Study

Component and Individual Tasks Comments Time Frame

Phase I Des&n Phase Detaikd design of Oak Bdg Seismic review of Oak Bdg and 1996-2002 lanes, tunnel tube, merge tunnel. Implement TDWs.

lanes, I/C modifications on Monitor success of TDM’s. Use Hwy. 99. Traflic operations performance measures as design for Highway 99. Land input. Obtain approval and requirements, negotiations, financing. Initiate constmction EIS if req’d & approvals phase I for summer of 1998.

Construction S/l3 lane on Hwy. 17: 56th St Construction Estimates 1998-2000 to Causeway. HOV lanes . Hwy. 17: 56 to Cswy %3.OM

from Oak B.to Steveston. l HOV Ins to Steveston $13.0 M Modify interchanges l l/C modifzations $8.OM

Performance Measures Measure success of TDM’s, Understand TDM’s. Identify land 2000-2008 track tolls, Hwy. 99 Corridor use patterns. Identify traffic

patterns. Growth in traffic on Hwy. 99 corridor

Construction Hwy. 99: Construction Estimates: 2001-2005 Oak Bridge HOV lane l Oak Bdg HOV lane $43.0 M

Steveston to Hwy. 17 l Steveston i Hw-y. 17 $16.0 M Two lane tunnel tube . Tube $68.0 M I/C Steveston l I/C Steveston $10.0 M I/C Hwy. 99/17 . I/C 99117 $8.0 M

Construction Hwy. 17: Construction Estimates 2006-2010 HOV lanes . Addt’l Lanes $2 1.2 M

Hwy. 17 Interchanges . Interchanges $42.5 M 52nd St Overpass l 52nd St. Overpass % 5.0 M Hwy. 99: HOV lanes Hwy. 17- 8th l Addt’l Lanes $48.0 M Ave. Modi@ Interchanges . Modify I/C $8.0 M

?erformance on Measure success of TDM’s, Understand TDM’s. Identify land lhvy. 91 track tolls, Hwy. 91 Corridor use patterns. Identify traflic 1004 - 2008 patterns for Tree Island. Growth in

traffic on Hwy. 91 corridor %ase II Construction Highway 9 1: Construction Estimates: !008-2012 Knight - 9 1 A, HOV lanes l HOV: Knight - 91A $22.5 M

91A - 99 via Fraser l HOV: 91A-99 South $22.0 M Interchange Modifications l I/C modifications $18.0 M

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Componeht and Time Frame

Construction 2013-2016

Individual Tasks Comments

Trek Island Connector: Construction Estimates: 4 lanes 91A -Marine Way l HOV & SOV lanes $16.0 M River Crossing l Bridge $45.0 M I/C @ Marine Way l l/C @j Marine $22.0 M

Performance measures are recommended from the time TDM’s are implemented through the first Phase of construction. This will provide the opportunity to develop better planning information and to review the decision to upgrade Highway 17 from 56th Street to Highway 99 and the advisability of proceeding with the Highway 99 and Tree Island improvements. The opportunity is available to implement the most approprmte transportation network serving the Richmond / Delta area.

H) Construction Scheduling

The proposed construction schedule covers the period from 1998 to 2016. Phase I of the schedule is the Highway 99 corridor. This includes the improvements from the Ladner/Tsawwassen area through the tunnel and on Highway 17.

Phase II of the schedule is for the Highway 91 and Tree Island Corridors. It is proposed to begin construction on the Highway 91 Corridor in 2008. The Tree Island connections are scheduled to begin construction in 20 13 and be completed by the year 20 16.

The total estimated construction cost for all improvements is $460.0 million spread over a twenty year time frame. The proposed construction scheduling is summarized in Exhibit ES.3.

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