The cost to travel across the new Port Mann Bridge

[Soundy]

You know, considering the tolls were originally announced to be in the $5 range, I'm surprised everyone's getting so wigged about this now.

[MindBomber]

Originally Posted by Roach

The part I find a little annoying is:

The Evergreen line - a $1.4B project that will mainly benefit Coquitlam/Maple Ridge - is being partially paid through a newly approved gas tax that applies to all metro vancouver residents (that includes Surrey & Langley).

The Port Mann Bridge - a $3.3B project that will benefit those from many communities, truckers, and out of province users has to be paid for by the users. Also keep in mind this project includes the expansion of 37km of Highway 1 roadway from Langley to Burnaby.

I can see the alternative argument that the users should have to pay for what they benefit from. However, Surrey/Langley residents are being hit with taxes for projects that benefit other communities while also being told to fund a project that benefits everyone.

Kev

It's been discussed many times, but Langley residents still have zero direct access to skytrain while having helped fund the projects for decades. I'm an environmentalist, I support skytrain expansion into all regions, I understand each community needs to wait it's turn for expansion into their region, but Langley residents receive a fraction of the benefit of any other community in the gvrd while paying equal taxes. It's bs.

Back to bridge tolling discussions..

I believe that the Port Mann is the equivalent of an essential service and as such should not be tolled, I hope Soundy's math transfers over to commuters, but weekend and evening users when there is minimal volume will still not be benefiting..

Also, I don't think that we should be looking for an explanation as to why the province has switched to a tolling policy, there are countless things that it can be pinned on but none are overly accurate. Whether it be paying back the feds for HST, the olympics, immigrant health care, rising operating costs for all government services, lower tax revenue as a result of the recession, it just turns into a guessing game.

[tiger_handheld]

I heard some hippies want to turn the old bridge into a park ?!?O!

I would keep both bridges and only toll the new ones. If anyone wants to "go faster" feel free to pay the toll and use it. But it will never happen - need the hippie votes so fat cats can continue their lifestyle ...

[Nabatron]

Just wondering when we cross the portman brigde it take pictures of our license plates? or a big shot of our whole car with license plates? I'm asking this why because back in the day my dad had this screen that was like a hologram/clear where you could put over your license plate and if say u ran accidently went through a red light and a camera snapped a picture of your license plate it wouldn't register...another way you could go over the port man brigde but i guess if u got caught u would be fucked lol

[Presto]

^^^

Still camera vs video. That shit that supposedly prevents your plate from being photographed doesn't apply when flash isn't used.

[spyker]

Originally Posted by murd0c

It's BS fucken loophole and it's a joke plain and simple.

I jsut don't understand where all of our money is going? back in the old days even the 80's with the Alex Fraser no tolling our tax's went towards it with no issues. Now we have more people with higher tax's and we have to pay more then in the past?? I just don't understand where the cash is going can someone explain this???

You wanna hear something really fucked up?

Two of my friends work for Keiwit( one is a driller,the other is a iron worker),both are working on this mega project,they told me,if Keiwit finishes this project in time,Keiwit will recieve a BIG fucking bonus,if they finish early,they will get the bonus plus a percentage of the tolls for a certain amount of years.

Pissed off yet or raging mad?

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by Nabatron

Just wondering when we cross the portman brigde it take pictures of our license plates? or a big shot of our whole car with license plates?

Pretty sure it will use the same QuickPass system as the GEB. About Quickpass

I'm asking this why because back in the day my dad had this screen that was like a hologram/clear where you could put over your license plate and if say u ran accidently went through a red light and a camera snapped a picture of your license plate it wouldn't register...another way you could go over the port man brigde but i guess if u got caught u would be fucked lol

Seems to me, Mythbusters disproved pretty much all the anti-photo-radar/anti-redlight-camera tricks.

Either way, covering your plate with anything IS illegal...

[MindBomber]

Originally Posted by tiger_handheld

I heard some hippies want to turn the old bridge into a park ?!?O!

I would keep both bridges and only toll the new ones. If anyone wants to "go faster" feel free to pay the toll and use it. But it will never happen - need the hippie votes so fat cats can continue their lifestyle ...

Turning the old bridge into a park would be amazing, there's nothing else even remotely like that in the world.

Leaving up the old bridge for vehicle use isn't an option, it costs to much to maintain the dilapidated structure.

[Indy]

Originally Posted by Nabatron

Just wondering when we cross the portman brigde it take pictures of our license plates? or a big shot of our whole car with license plates? I'm asking this why because back in the day my dad had this screen that was like a hologram/clear where you could put over your license plate and if say u ran accidently went through a red light and a camera snapped a picture of your license plate it wouldn't register...another way you could go over the port man brigde but i guess if u got caught u would be fucked lol

AFAIK, it will be the same as the Golden Ears Bridge. If you have a transponder, it will be at the cheaper cost, and the bridge will use that to "see" your car.

If you don't have a transponder then you the bridge will utilize cameras taking pictures of the cars(I don't think it targets individual cars. It will see the whole bridge deck and software will "read" the license plates)

Looks like they changed their tolling fees too. Originally it was going to be $2.90 for registered vehicles only, then the price increased to something like $4 for unregistered cars. Looks like it's $3 for all excluding the noted exceptions/discounts.

How much will the tolls cost?

Tolls for cars will be about $3 on opening day, which is anticipated to be Winter 2012/2013.

The toll rate for mid-size vehicles such as cars pulling trailers or light trucks will be twice the rate for cars, while the rate for heavy trucks will be three times as much. The rate for motorcycles will be half the car rate.

To reduce congestion, a discount of 25% will be offered during peak periods for registered carpools with two or more passengers and an overnight discount of 50% will be offered for large commercial vehicles. Other incentives are also being considered and a refined tolling framework is expected to be released early in 2012.

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Will anyone be exempt from paying the toll?

The following vehicles, after they register, will be able to receive a toll exemption:

Taxis;
Persons with disabilities (as defined under Section 2 of the Employment and Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Act);
Vanpools (with six or more people);
Transit buses; and
First responders (e.g. police, ambulance, fire departments).

Source: Tolling

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by spyker

You wanna hear something really fucked up?

Two of my friends work for Keiwit( one is a driller,the other is a iron worker),both are working on this mega project,they told me,if Keiwit finishes this project in time,Keiwit will recieve a BIG fucking bonus,if they finish early,they will get the bonus plus a percentage of the tolls for a certain amount of years.

Pissed off yet or raging mad?

The alternative is that they slack around and take their time and it takes longer and costs more than it should. On-time bonuses are common and *included in the budget*.

[Roach]

Originally Posted by Soundy

All metro Vancouver residents, including those of us in Coquitlam/Maple Ridge, have already been paying for the other SkyTrain lines... so how is this any different?

All metro Vancouver residents, including those of us in Surrey/Langley, have already been partially paid for the Pitt River Bridge & Mary Hill Bypass interchange project .. so how is this any different?

Kev

[Nabatron]

^^worth a shot! the film covers the plates but to the naked eye u can still see the numbers and letters...

[Roach]

Originally Posted by Great68

There are two things that will be interesting to watch and see how they play out:

1) How much traffic that is currently using the Port Mann (because it's currently free) switches over to using the Golden Ears

The Golden Ears is also tolled. So the congestion will likely shift towards the aging Patullo bridge and the Alex Fraser.

Kev

[spyker]

Originally Posted by Soundy

Trans-Canada Highway - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



The Confederation Bridge connecting PEI is also part of the TCH and has a $50 one-way toll.

The Nanaimo/Horseshoe Bay ferry route is also considered part of the Trans Canada Highway.

BTW, according to British Columbia Trans-Canada Highway Route: Hope, BC and Kamloops via the #5 Coquihalla (toll) Highway, the Coquihalla is considered a part of the TCH system... it had tolls until just recently as well.

The Coquihalla is the biggest scam,it runs right through private property,they could have built it on provincial land and it would have been free for everyone,but chose not to,for some fucked up reason Bill Vanderzan chose to run it through someone's backyard.......gee I wonder why.

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by Roach

All metro Vancouver residents, including those of us in Surrey/Langley, have already been partially paid for the Pitt River Bridge & Mary Hill Bypass interchange project .. so how is this any different?

Kev

And ALL the other bridges and roads all over the LM. Plus other transit subsidies.

You're right, it IS no different. So why all of a sudden should it be different for the Evergreen Line?

[spyker]

Originally Posted by Soundy

The alternative is that they slack around and take their time and it takes longer and costs more than it should. On-time bonuses are common and *included in the budget*.

If Keiwit does not finish on the date of the deadline when the new bridge is suppose to be open for use,they will be fined 1 million dollars a day until completed.

[Roach]

Originally Posted by Soundy

And ALL the other bridges and roads all over the LM. Plus other transit subsidies.

You're right, it IS no different. So why all of a sudden should it be different for the Evergreen Line?

Absolutely. To be clear, I'm not lobbying for the Evergreen to be paid for by it's users. I'm simply using it as an example to point out the irony of the situation given that the Evergreen gas tax was recently approved by Metro Vancouver Mayors.

Kev

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by Roach

The Golden Ears is also tolled. So the congestion will likely shift towards the aging Patullo bridge and the Alex Fraser.

Kev

Well then, the time and gas savings you can get from the tolled routes should be even greater, right? 20 minutes via PMB or 3 hours via Patullo?

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by Roach

Absolutely. To be clear, I'm not lobbying for the Evergreen to be paid for by it's users. I'm simply using it as an example to point out the irony of the situation given that the Evergreen gas tax was recently approved by Metro Vancouver Mayors.

Kev

It's really nothing unusual. There's been a transit levy on Hydro and natural gas bills for decades. And it still shows that the "I don't use it, why should I pay for it" argument is stupid.

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by Nabatron

^^worth a shot! the film covers the plates but to the naked eye u can still see the numbers and letters...

And will still get you a $196 ticket if you get caught with it. That would pay for 65 crossings right there.

[TheKingdom2000]

I'm just curious. did anyone email their MLA or MP about this issue?
Because i'm sure people knew that this was going to happen?

Personally, i'm a lazy fcuk who probably wouldn't have emailed/contacted anyone even if I knew this was happening.

But, curious to see if anyone here contacted anyone.

[dinosaur]

Originally Posted by tiger_handheld

I heard some hippies want to turn the old bridge into a park ?!?O!

I would keep both bridges and only toll the new ones. If anyone wants to "go faster" feel free to pay the toll and use it. But it will never happen - need the hippie votes so fat cats can continue their lifestyle ...

Port Mann bridge park - News Hour - Videos | Global BC

[dinosaur]

What drives me crazy, it that lazy people like me who don't pay there tolls on time and forget until they re-new their car insurance, can't pay them at the the insurance place.

You can pay traffic tix, etc...but you have to pay quickpass directly. Also, if you pay online, it takes 2-3 business days to process so you have to phone before 4pm on weekdays to have confirmation.

I had to delay getting my car insurance for a couple days b/c of a $4.00 toll fee. TOTALLY my fault, but really annoying.

I hope they change that and allow ICBC to collected the toll fees like traffic tix.

[Roach]

Originally Posted by Soundy

Well then, the time and gas savings you can get from the tolled routes should be even greater, right? 20 minutes via PMB or 3 hours via Patullo?

You're assuming rush hour traffic. What if you're driving home at midnight? And the Patullo does not take anywhere near three hours in spite of it's shortcomings.

Originally Posted by Soundy

It's really nothing unusual. There's been a transit levy on Hydro and natural gas bills for decades. And it still shows that the "I don't use it, why should I pay for it" argument is stupid.

Indeed. Hence the outrage about why the Fraser Valley crossings are being singled out for tolling.

Originally Posted by dinosaur

What drives me crazy, it that lazy people like me who don't pay there tolls on time and forget until they re-new their car insurance, can't pay them at the the insurance place.

You can pay traffic tix, etc...but you have to pay quickpass directly. Also, if you pay online, it takes 2-3 business days to process so you have to phone before 4pm on weekdays to have confirmation.

I had to delay getting my car insurance for a couple days b/c of a $4.00 toll fee. TOTALLY my fault, but really annoying.

I hope they change that and allow ICBC to collected the toll fees like traffic tix.

It hasn't and likely won't change unfortunately. I work for a large auto group. We a few hundred plated demos & service loaners running around. When even a single bill is overdue for a certain period, they will suspend the insurance for all of our stores. It's extremely heavy-handed and the actual non-payment was a result of a poorly administered system by Quickpass. Payments being mis-applied and statements sent incorrectly.

I imagine the first few months of the Port Mann toll will be equally as frustrating.

Kev

[MindBomber]

Originally Posted by dinosaur

Port Mann bridge park - News Hour - Videos | Global BC

Oh god, I hope the idea gains some support and is seriously considered..

A project like that would be so unique, so amazing, it would help to redefine the image of Vancouver and continue what the olympics created.

Am I the only one who would love to see this happen?