Golden Ears Bridge, Vancouver
Translink
Vancouver’s new Golden Ears Bridge is expected to reduce travel times across the river by at least 20-30 minutes.
Our role
With a network of rivers, inlets and creeks crisscrossing through Greater Vancouver, getting from one part of the city to the other can be a real challenge.
The Gateway Program was created five years ago to improve transportation accessibility in the region. Steer Davies Gleave was brought on board from the start and has been advising on several projects including the Golden Ears Bridge, a new six-lane bridge that will link the communities north and south of the Fraser River.
How we did it
We initially developed investment grade traffic forecasts for the bridge. To predict the impact that the construction of the new bridge and other associated Gateway Program schemes (such as the Port Mann Brudge and South Fraser Perimeter Road) would have across the region, an updated and well-validated regional transport model was required.
We developed the regional transport model and in the process managed an extensive new data collection across Vancouver. Surveys included state of the art ‘willingness to pay’ surveys to understand the impact of bridge tolling on driver route choice and the costs that people attribute to time savings. Further work undertaken included the review of tolling structures and toll levels and advice on the tolling technology implications.
The bridge is now currently under construction and is expected to open in 2009.
For more information please contact
Charles Russell
t +44 (0)20 7910 5000
e charles.russell@sdgworld.net