FRIDAY
JANUARY 30, 2015
TRI-CITIES
on March 31, 2016
3
thenownews.com
THE NOW
BURRARD THERMAL Facility set to be decommissioned
FITNESS FOR FUR BABIES Teen partners with dance studio
to raise funds for animal shelter
11
Serving COQUITLAM, PORT COQUITLAM, PORT MOODY, ANMORE and BELCARRA since 1984
Sinkhole Keep right for meeting the Tri-Cities 1 WESTBOUND WILL on Monday HIGHWAY BE SEPARATED BY A BARRIER
EVERGREEN OFFICIALS WILL MEET RESIDENTS BEGINNING THIS WEEKEND And drivers who have been using Jeremy DEUTSCH the bridge since it first opened a AT SEAVIEW SCHOOL jdeutsch@thenownews.com little more than two years ago but
Jeremy DEUTSCH
jdeutsch@thenownews.com A second meeting has been scheduled for Port Moody residents affected by tunnel boring for the Evergreen Line, but this one will be in their neighbourhood. The Evergreen project team has set up a meeting for Monday, Feb. 2 at Seaview Community School, to provide information and take questions regarding construction on Cecile Drive and Clarke Road. A bulletin put out by the project team noted the information will be the same as what was presented at an earlier meeting in January. Monday’s meeting will run from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the school, located at 1215 Cecile Dr. Both residents and Port Moody council had asked Evergreen officials to meet in the affected neighbourhood to discuss concerns around the project. Two sinkholes have formed in the last couple of months related to tunnel boring, one in late October in the parking lot of a townhouse complex on Chateau Place, and the most recent on Jan. 2 on Cecile Drive. Following the second sinkhole, residents mobilized and asked for a meeting with Evergreen Line officials to get answers, which prompted the recent get-togethers. In an e-mail to the Tri-Cities NOW, Kerry Lecorre, a Chateau Place resident who has helped organize people in the community, noted some residents weren’t able to make it to the first meeting and hoped word would be spread around the neighbourhood to give more people a chance to attend Monday’s local information session. twitter.com/jertricitiesnow
Construction on the Port Mann Bridge is heading into its final stages, and drivers are being reminded about a configuration change that’s set to begin this weekend. According to Transportation Investment Corp., starting this weekend, drivers will have a choice as they approach the Port Mann Bridge on Highway 1 westbound from Surrey. The highway will be separated by a barrier near the 152 Street overpass in Surrey and drivers will choose to go right or stay straight — with both lanes realigning as they head onto the bridge. Drivers heading for Coquitlam should use the right-hand lanes to avoid the need to change lanes on the bridge. “We want drivers to know that if they’re going to Coquitlam, they should be in the very far right lane,” said Greg Johnson, with TI Corp. He noted the configuration is a preview of what drivers will see when the final 10 lanes of the bridge are complete. Johnson said construction on the massive project is in the home stretch, but drivers will likely see traffic cones for a number of months.
haven’t paid their tolls are learning a hard lesson. TI Corp. said if a driver owes $25 or more and is 90 days overdue, ICBC will refuse to renew their driver’s licence or issue vehicle insurance for any of the cars they own if payment is not received. Drivers receive at least three notifications requesting payment before being designated “Refuse to Issue.” The company indicated at any given time, between 10,000 and 25,000 customers are labelled Refuse to Issue. The process, which has been in place since September 2013, appears to be working as TI Corp. noted when customers are notified their account has been designated Refuse to Issue, between 80 and 85 per cent make payment. While the value of the outstanding accounts varies from day to day, the current balance is about $3 million. When asked for a breakdown of how many drivers in the Tri-Cities have an outstanding bill, TI Corp said it couldn’t provide those numbers due to privacy concerns. The bridge operator said Refuse to Issue drivers make up about one per cent of all Port Mann users. twitter.com/jertricitiesnow
IMAGE COURTESY TI CORP.
If you’re returning to the Tri-Cities from Surrey, you’ll have to stay in the far right-hand lane to get to Coquitlam.
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