Earth Day action planned for South Fraser Perimeter Road in Delta
Map of Gateway Program projects.
A long-time Gateway opponent has confirmed that he and other protesters will plant trees on Earth Day at the site where the South Fraser Perimeter Road is to be built.
“Where the road will not be built,” Eric Doherty, spokesperson for StopThePave.org, interjected eagerly during a March 29 phone interview.
On March 26, Doherty and other members of StopThePave.org, formerly the Gatewaysucks.org coalition, held a pre-action teach-in at Grandview Calvary Baptist Church at 1803 East 1st Avenue.
“We're meeting at the Annieville Supermarket [10996 River Road in Delta] at 2 p.m. on Earth Day, April 22, and we're going to occupy the site,” Doherty told the Straight at the meeting. “We're going to plant trees on dirt, where they've cut down trees to build this freeway along the banks of the Fraser River, and we're probably going to stay there for more than one day.”
Paul Landry, president and CEO of the B.C. Trucking Association, told the Straight: “We remain committed supporters of the South Fraser Perimeter Road.”
Landry believes economic activity, particularly port activity, could double in 15 years. “Those containers, at least 30 percent of them, will move by truck, and we need some capacity to do that,” he said.
Landry cited LNG—liquefied natural gas—as a potential “game changer” in the trucking industry as it moves away from its reliance on diesel fuel.
However, Doherty wants the billions invested in highway and urban road expansion nationwide to be redistributed to fund more transit and to build things like an electrified rail network across Canada.
Doherty and his colleagues believe construction of the road, tagged to cost $1.26 billion, can still be stopped. The SFPR is part of the multibillion-dollar Gateway Program, which includes the supersizing of the Port Mann Bridge.
Doherty argued: “With the price of oil soaring, and with the budget crunch, we're actually at a point now where it's much easier for the new provincial government to pull the plug on Gateway.”
Blair Lekstrom, B.C.'s new minister of transportation, would not grant the Straight an interview.
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Comments
Think perhaps Landry has a part time job working for PAB (Public Affairs Bureau).
It's interesting how people in this city get their underwear in a knot over a bike lane costing $2 million but seem to have little trouble with a highway costing more than a billion. Huh?
http://stopthepave.org
I am heading to North Delta on April 22nd!
Building this freeway for trucks that aren't there is even more insane than building for solving traffic problems. The Alex Fraser Bridge is a shining example of the fact that more freeways does not relieve congestion but with the South Fraser Perimeter Freeway route - the question is where is the traffic?
It is not in Bridgeview a small North Surrey Neighbourhood that is being badly impacted by the proposed route even at the preload preparation stage - where the school children and residents will have health problems if they ever actually build it. So good thing it won't happen under Mr. Doherty's watch.
There is precious little traffic in Sunbury and Delta either most of the time either. Took a ride along RIver Road to the Tunnel on Ramp and back at afternoon rush hour (4:30pm - 5:00pm) last week and encountered no traffic bottle necks at all. Oh we had to wait for a light or two but there were no huge back ups like you see on Highway 91, 99 or 10 or the Fraser Highway or Highway 1.
Fact is most of the day and night there is not huge amounts of vehicles on the existing South Fraser Road infrastructure so adding to the existing pavement, is really a waste of the $1.2 billion or so they say it will cost - never mind budget overruns for building a road on peat (which even the Romans figured out you do not do). Especially when we have so many other things like schools, hospitals, seismic upgrading of public buildings, social housing, etc that need funding.
Bernadette Keenan Surrey North Green Party Candidate.
BernadetteK
Rail and short sea shipping (tug and barge) are the efficient ways of moving containers. See for example:
http://www.guygentner.ca/content/rebuttal-south-fraser-perimeter-road-pr...
Of course, it may not really make sense to use expensive oil to ship so munch cheap crap half way around the globe anyway.
Why don't these protesters understand that it will save a lot of gas of both the truckers and the people driving in Surrey. Hwy#10 is full of trucks that could be going around Surrey instead of up Hwy#10 to get to the #1.