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Editorial: Questions about new Crown corp for road/bridge building

Wasn't there an easier, cheaper way to get the same community benefits?
Tri-City News
Community benefits
The NDP government has set up a Crown corporation to look after hiring for the construction of the new Pattullo Bridge. We wonder if there was a cheaper, easier way to get the same community benefits.

The NDP is either rewarding friends by creating a Crown corporation that will act as a hiring hall for infrastructure projects or making a stand in the effort to include more apprentices, women and Indigenous people in the construction of bridges and roads.

We suggest the aim is good but creating a whole level of bureaucracy to do this work seems like overkill, and probably will add to the costs of projects.

We need assurances that this won’t be the case as well as an explanation as to why these requirements aren’t just part of the requests for qualifications, with the winning bid the one with the best job managing costs and engaging in progressive hiring practices.

What will this new Crown corp cost and will it be worth it?

All the same, we applaud the fact that a request for qualifications is finally being issued for the rebuilding of the 81-year-old Pattullo Bridge. The new bridge will be safer, with wider lanes and a centre median, and could be open by 2023. More than four lanes would have made sense, but that’s a topic for another day.