Just a follow up on the Project Manager RFQ today Translink issued another request this time for a technical consultant. I've pared down the document by a few pages.
1.2 The Pattullo Bridge crosses between New Westminster and Surrey at the narrowest section of the Fraser River within the Lower Mainland and is in close proximity to the New Westminster Rail Bridge, and the SkyTrain bridge (SkyBridge).
1.3 The Pattullo Bridge was constructed in 1935-37 by the Dominion Bridge Company for the Ministry of Public Works, now known as the Ministry of Transportation. Ownership of the bridge was transferred to TransLink in 1999 with the formation of the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority (TransLink). As the owner, TransLink is responsible for operating and maintaining the aging structure.
1.4 The structure consists of nine steel truss spans that vary in length from 60 m to a main span of 145 m. Vertical clearance at the main span is 45.7 m. The deck is 12.0 m wide, allowing four 3.0 m travel lanes. There is a 1.8 m wide sidewalk cantilevered over the west side. Several utilities have been installed beneath the deck, including water mains for municipalities to the south.
1.5 The Pattullo Bridge carries an average of 70,000 vehicles per day, of which 6% (approx.) are trucks. There are significant traffic queues during the AM and PM peak periods.
1.6 In 2007, as a first step towards the development of a long-term replacement and/or rehabilitation strategy for the existing Pattullo Bridge, TransLink commissioned the Pattullo Corridor Study. The study, completed in May 2008, considered the merits of retaining and rehabilitating the existing bridge and examined a number of alternative alignment corridors for a new crossing in the vicinity of the existing structure including connections to key municipal and provincial highways.
1.7 While the Pattullo Corridor Study did go so far as to recommend that the existing Pattullo Bridge be replaced it did not recommend a preferred alignment for a new crossing.
The study did provide a shortlist of alignment options that warrant further study and recommended that consideration be given to the value of direct network connections to the proposed South Fraser Perimeter Road, North Fraser Perimeter Road and a Stormont-McBride connector.
1.8 Based on the details provided in the Pattullo Corridor Study, the TransLink Board directed staff to proceed with the next steps to replace the existing bridge.
This direction also included instructions to examine the possibility of replacing the bridge with a new tolled facility.
1.9 TransLink staff is proposing a phased approach to advance the design and construction of the replacement bridge including a Functional Design Phase, a Procurement Phase and an Implementation Phase.
The Functional Design Phase will define the scope of the project, confirm a preferred alignment, and develop a preliminary traffic and revenue model that can be used to test the elasticity and feasibility of tolling strategies. The Procurement Phase will build on the results of the first phase to further develop the traffic and revenue model and determine the most appropriate delivery method.
The procurement phase will also include the development of specifications and standards and the management of the Request for Qualifications and Request for Proposal process. The project will be built during the Implementation Phase, however, the details of this phase cannot be defined until the delivery model is determined in the Procurement Phase.
1.10 The purpose of the Functional Design Study is to identify, from the current short listed options, a preferred bridge alignment and to develop a functional design for the new bridge and connecting road network on both sides of the river.
1.11 In doing so, the Functional Design Study will result in a preferred alignment, a functional design (including typical sections) and cost estimate for the replacement crossing. The Functional Design Study will also provide an assessment of the anticipated traffic volumes and potential revenues assuming a range of tolls.
1.12 The Functional Design Study will include input from the directly affected municipalities on either side of the river as well as the public and other stakeholders. As such, the preferred alignment, functional design, cost and revenue estimates derived through this Functional Design Study will be completed to a sufficient level of detail to prepare the project for procurement and implementation.
1.13 It is anticipated that the Functional Design Study will be completed by the December 2009 thus enabling the Procurement Phase to commence early in the new year. Given the current condition of the bridge, and in light of the recommendation to build a replacement bridge rather than rehabilitate the existing structure, it is critical that the proposed functional design schedule is achieved. Prolonging the schedule to replace the aging bridge increases the likelihood that TransLink will incur significant rehabilitation expenditures to maintain the existing structure.
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Finally some sense! That is exactly what needs to be done! We would have the through freeway traffic underground and the surface streets reserved for local traffic, trams, bikes and pedestrians. Now there is some European thinking!
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