In early April, the ministry will start rehabilitation work on the south tower of the Lions Gate Bridge to replace the expansion joint.

Acknowledging the traffic delays which occurred in August 2015 as a result of the Lions Gate “bump”, the ministry has developed a comprehensive plan to keep traffic moving smoothly during this renewal work.

The plan involves installing a temporary bridge cover and two 13-metre approach ramps on either side, so the drive remains smooth for all motorists. As a result, there will be no“bump”, so the flow of traffic will remain efficient and delays minimized.

The rehabilitation work is to replace the south tower expansion joint. This expansion joint has exceeded its design life and components of the existing joint must be removed and replaced with new parts. The total estimated cost of the south tower joint repair project is $1.1 million.

A temporary bridge cover will be constructed over the expansion joint to span the gap that will be open during the repair. The structure will allow sufficient space beneath the bridge deck for the repair work to take place and for crews to work safely. The expansion joint replacement will take up to eight weeks to complete.

(flickr.com)

The temporary cover and the approach ramps will be installed the weekend of April 2 – 3, 2016, weather dependant. This installation will require a single-lane closure from 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 2 and single lane alternating traffic from 10:30 p.m. April 2 to 9 a.m. April 3. Motorists should expect delays during this period and may want to consider an alternate route.

In February, the ministry completed work on the $7-million Stanley Park Causeway Improvement Project. A new safety fence has been installed separating cyclists and pedestrians from vehicle traffic on both sides of the causeway, and both sidewalks have been widened. This project was part of B.C. on the Move, the Government of B.C.’s 10-year transportation plan.

Quick Facts:

• Traffic volume on the Lions Gate Bridge is between 60,000 – 70,000 vehicles per day.
• The Lions Gate Bridge opened in 1938.
• Since 2001, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure has invested $26.4 million on rehabilitation work to the Lions Gate Bridge.
• This work has included: the structural steel coating suspension bridge and north approach viaduct project, the north approach viaduct expansion joint replacement, the Marine Drive and Lions Gate transit priority project, and deck resurfacing.
• In 2002, a seismic retrofit was completed on the Lions Gate Bridge.

Learn More:

TranBC Blog Article:Solving the Lions Gate Bridge “Bump” for Repairs (tranbc.ca)

To learn more about B.C. on the Move, go to: https://engage.gov.bc.ca/transportationplan/

To follow what’s going on in transportation, go to: http://tranbc.ca/

To follow the ministry on twitter, go to: https://twitter.com/TranBC