Opposition to transportation projects in Greater Vancouver is on the rise as the May provincial election draws nearer.

"We'll probably see more protests organized," predicts David Fields, co-organizer of the activist group Cross Pedestrians.

Fields recently organized a street hockey game that shut down traffic on a one-block stretch of Commercial Drive, and is now helping to organize upcoming events.

The province's handling of the proposed Richmond-Airport-Vancouver Rapid Transit Project (RAV) line between Vancouver International Airport in suburban Richmond and downtown Vancouver; the twinning of the Port Mann bridge between Surrey and Coquitlam; the expansion of Highway 1 and the Sea-to-Sky Highway between West Vancouver and Whistler have all raised the ire of business owners, politicians and residents alike.

Photos by Bayne Stanley, Business Edge
Street hockey players and supporters take a break from their protest on Commercial Drive to allow a Vancouver transit bus to continue on its route.

Elections tend to spur more protests, but, even if the election were not coming up, more events would be held against the Highway 1 expansion because it is such an important issue to the region, says Fields.

Protesters contend that the province has not consulted with the public as often and as extensively as necessary.

The purpose of the protests is to share information with more people, he says, and to empower more people to take action.

"Hopefully, with these types of events, more people will be asking questions," says Fields.

Action was fast and furious during the Cross Pedestrians’ street hockey game.

He says protesters are "concerned and becoming angry" about the province's willingness to approve Highway 1 quickly while being slow to provide funds for RAV. They want the province to consider the environmental, social and economic effects of the projects.

The protests range from the street hockey game on Commercial against the Highway 1 and Port Mann upgrades to a lawsuit against an overland portion of the Sea-to-Sky Highway in Eagleridge Bluffs in West Vancouver to an underground portion of RAV in Vancouver.

Cambie Street residents and merchants recently held a one-hour rally at Vancouver city hall calling for governments and private builders to do RAV right - which refers to their website name - www.doravright.ca. The protesters are upset with RAVCO, the SNC-Lavalin-led consortium building the line, for switching to a cut-and-cover model rather than just boring a tunnel. Last week, the province's Environmental Assessment Office declined the group's request to extend public input on RAV's environmental impact beyond last Wednesday's deadline.

During the street hockey protest held by Cross Pedestrians, buses were allowed to get through as goalies pulled their nets aside and the game was halted temporarily.

The event, complete with a band that played O Canada and the theme from Hockey Night in Canada, was designed to encourage more people to use public transit - and oppose the province's proposed twinning of the Port Mann bridge and Highway 1 expansion.

"We don't want to see Highway 1 expanded," Fields told reporters. "There are other alternatives that are available. If they're going to sink $1 billion into transportation, we'd rather see it put into public transit instead. In our opinion, the Highway 1 expansion is nothing but horse hockey."

Fields said his group is concerned that talks between the province and Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) on the bridge and highway upgrades are not going well. He accused provincial Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon of pushing the expansion ahead without consulting with communities.

"We're asking the GVRD to stick with the game," said Fields. "They want to see pedestrians made a priority. They want to see an expanded public-transit system. We say stick with the gameplan. What we're calling on Kevin Falcon to do is to amend his plans and, at the very least, consult with communities."

Premier Gordon Campbell says the province agrees that more rapid transit is needed, but he insists the province has consulted British Columbians on Highway 1.

Contending that some people will be opposed to any kind of transportation improvements, Campbell says a bigger-picture view is needed of Greater Vancouver's transportation needs.

"You don't end up with a healthy transportation system in focusing on only one asset," Campbell said in a recent interview. "You've got to move people, you've got to move goods and you've got to design a community around trying to make sure they don't have to move as much.

"I know this: You can't ever build yourself out of a transportation problem. You have to design yourself out."

"In any transportation issue, we're always going to have people that don't agree with us," says TransLink chairman Doug McCallum, whose group governs transportation in Greater Vancouver.

"We've seen it literally in anything that we do. I think it's part of our role to listen to those people and try to convince them that it's better for the whole region, not just their particular region. We'll continue to work with those people to show how important it is to make those improvements."

Ray Straatsma, policy director for the group Better Environmentally Sound Transportation (BEST), and other opponents to the Highway 1 expansion contend that the province is ignoring the GVRD's livable region plan.

The GVRD, which oversees major infrastructure projects, including transportation, for area municipalities is TransLink's parent group.

Straatsma charges that Falcon has refused to meet with TransLink officials to address their concerns and is ignoring questions raised by municipal governments.

But McCallum says neither he nor his organization have ever had any problems getting Falcon's ear.

"In fact, we've had probably the best communication with the transportation minister (than) any of the ones in the past, on either side of the (Liberal or NDP) government."

McCallum says the Port Mann bridge-twinning project is "a critical component" to movement of goods in the region.

But Straatsma says studies show such projects provide short-term benefits, but actually increase traffic and congestion over the long term by bringing more vehicles into the area.

Vancouver Councillor Peter Ladner, an outspoken advocate of environmental, social and economic sustainability, is calling for transit buses to be allowed on Highway 1 and wants the Vancouver Port Authority to implement rules requiring trucks to transport goods at night after rush hour.

He unveiled a motion, to be introduced to Vancouver city council this week, that calls for the city to obtain more information from the province's Gateway team. Gateway is a program designed to reduce congestion at Vancouver-area docks and on roads.

Meanwhile, Ravco is setting up a team to help ease the impact on Cambie Street merchants. The community liaison program is designed to listen to merchants' concerns and answer their questions.

Darcy Rezac, managing director of the Vancouver Board of Trade, says the economic activity around the RAV line is "phenomenal," and that companies will more than make up for construction-related business declines when RAV is running.

"That's one of the ways you can justify those public projects. The increased economic activity and increased tax revenue actually ends up paying for the investment," says Rezac.

(Monte Stewart can be reached at monte@businessedge.ca)