It’s been just over three months since the stal̕əw̓asəm Bridge, connecting New Westminster and Surrey opened to the public, and the business community in New Westminster is frustrated.
Despite opening, the crossing is still under construction, leading to ongoing, temporary closures, including one that lasted from Friday until 5 a.m. Monday morning.
Angelene Prakash, executive director at the Downtown New Westminster BIA, tells 1130 NewsRadio the communication around the closures and the confusion it’s causing drivers isn’t helping businesses, which are desperately trying to survive.
“Even if it’s a short closure, I think some of them can be the most challenging because drivers are not used to them. There are a lot of these changes that happen that last a weekend or just maybe just a few days, and commuters are not always aware of them,” said Prakash.
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She says the closures are especially difficult for restaurants.
“It’s not just customers not being able to come in and enjoy the space. It’s also things like restaurants not being able to receive their food deliveries. It’s all of those things that need to be considered. When stuff like that happens, businesses need to know so they can let their suppliers and other folks know. Businesses are already dealing with a tough economy, and now they have to be concerned about keeping up with all these closures. With closures, the restaurants know they can expect less people from out of town.”
“We know it’s not over and we’re not finished with it yet.”
She explains that when the bridge opened in February, many were under the impression that the roadwork, for the most part, was done.
“I think some of the messaging was not necessarily clear. Even for ourselves, just communicating out to businesses over the last couple of years with these closures, there was definitely an understanding that when the bridge was done, it was going to be done. And aside from these closures… there’s also the deconstruction of the Pattullo Bridge, which we were informed was going to take another couple of years. We know it’s not over and we’re not finished with it yet.”
Prakash says for the closure that began on May 22, the BIA was only notified on May 19, which she feels isn’t enough of a heads-up.
“It was with very little notice, which is very unfortunate because it’s not really what we expect from the project team. We’ve had a good back-and-forth over the last few months of this project, but I would say since it opened, all of the back-and-forth with them regarding all the traffic pattern changes has been fine. However, we’ve been asking for a bit more. A bit more communication and more signage.”
The next closure is in both directions and begins at 9 p.m. on May 29 through the weekend, with the bridge opening on Jun. 1.
“It’s frustrating, and I don’t anticipate it getting any smoother or easier anytime soon, unfortunately,” Prakash said.
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She admits there is growing concern with each passing shutdown of the bridge.
“This is not the first project in the last few years that has impacted businesses, and they are consistently dealing with back-to-back things like this. There’s also this ‘It is what it is’ and resignation behind it because we know there’s not much that can be done, and that feeling of powerlessness, I think, is what has been very disillusioning for a lot of businesses.”
She recommends listening to the radio for traffic updates on closures or checking the government website.
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