(Youtube clip is from yesterday evening – Ken Hardie is doing the voiceover.)

BRIDGE WORK

Demolition work on the compromised portion of the bridge began yesterday, starting with the asphalt being lifted. The wooden part of the structure will be demolished starting Tuesday, and we will be working round the clock until that section is fully demolished.

VEHICULAR BRIDGE ROAD AND TUNNEL TRAFFIC

One of the more challenging points of the afternoon rush yesterdaytook place on the roadways leading to the Queensborough Bridge, and then connecting onto the Alex Fraser Bridge. Compared to the Knight Street Bridge, this area experienced very high traffic volumes.

The Alex Fraser Bridge, Port Mann Bridge and Massey Tunnel also experienced significant congestion yesterday afternoon, though the Massey Tunnel’s counter flow lane, operating an extra 25 minutes, helped ease the way for commuters travelling south-bound.

**For those who cannot use transit, we ask that you assist us with congestion problems by adjusting your commuting times for both the morning and afternoon rush hours. Please consider starting your trip before 7am or after 9am. Carpooling and telecommuting are other options that would help the cause.

TRANSIT

SkyTrain

For travellers from Surrey, SkyTrain is the best alternative to getting to where you need to go. SkyTrain was running smoothly with new passengers taking advantage of the Expo line, and also wisely using the Millennium Line. No capacity problems were found yesterday as we ran extra trains during extended peak hours and extra cars during off- peak hours.

Today, volumes are higher at King George, Scott Road and Columbia Stations. The trains are on time. There are extra trains in service from King George to Waterfront. Please squeeze in, carry your backpacks, allow extra travel time and remember that bikes are not currently permitted on the train.

We’d like to remind our biking passengers that bikes cannot be brought onto SkyTrain until further notice. Thanks for your patience during this time — cyclists are still a big part of our system and we will restore access for you guys just as soon as we can. For those with backpacks, we would appreciate it if you could carry and not wear them onboard the SkyTrain or buses. This will allow us to make everyone’s ride more comfortable.

CMBC (buses)

Buses are being diverted around Guildford and are missing a few stops on 152.
Delays on 108 towards Guildford means buses are diverted onto 104.
There are shuttles in place and the seem to be helping the above mentioned diversions.
If possible, it’s best if people can board on 104.

72/Scott Road is experiencing heavy backups, so buses are being diverted off of 72 and going on 80.

The 601 service is being diverted due to an accident (Delta Port Way/53?) – it is servicing downtown Ladner from 44.

Trolleys in Vancouver are experiencing some difficulties due to the colder temperatures on the east side.
Shuttles are servicing Renfrew, Hastings, Powell and Nanaimo. On Hastings the 135 and 160 are picking up at local stops, so the buses are crowded.

The 4 and 7 are not going east of downtown, so the 210 is picking up at local stops.

Yesterday, the rush was fairly slow till after 4pm, which was normal.
We experienced very heavy traffic onto the Queensbourough Bridge, and slow going around Braid, Stewardson Way and Columbia.
Shuttles helped keep us on schedules at various stops on the south side of the Fraser.

We’d like to thank the provincial Ministry of Transportation, the municipalities of New Westminster and Surrey, and the RCMP for all the contributions they are making to make travel in the region as easy as possible at this time.

I’ll continue to update you on the traffic situation as I can, and remember, you can also check out our Customer Alerts page or the Youtube info stream for more info.