Further border delays for Seattle-Vancouver traffic

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Border crossing down to 4 lanes on Monday

 

Construction to cut Peace Arch lanes in half

 

 

Catherine Rolfsen, Vancouver Sun

 

Published: Thursday, May 15, 2008

Crossing at the U.S. Peace Arch Border Station will be more of a headache than usual over the next two years as a construction project cuts the number of southbound lanes in half.

U.S. officials announced Wednesday that only four of the current eight inspection lanes will be operational beginning this Victoria Day Monday as the U.S. General Services Administration constructs a brand-new border facility.

The project includes a secondary inspection area and administration area, as well as 10 new primary inspection booths, explained General Services Administration representative Bill Lesh.

 

 

In the process, a section of the I-5 Highway in Washington and a handful of houses will be torn up to clear the way for a new bridge and freeway that will go over the inspection areas.

The project was originally planned for completion by the 2010 Olympic Games, Lesh said, but now will likely run until the fall of 2010.

"We have run into some problems that are not unusual in major construction projects like this," Lesh said, adding that he plans to have 10 permanent or temporary inspection booths operational during the Olympics.

Border officials say the crunch will likely only be noticed at peak travel times.

"Most days that aren't peak travel days, it is four lanes anyway," said U.S. Customs and Border Protection representative Mike Milne. "What we're losing during the construction process is the ability to expand and open more lanes during peak travel times."

Milne could not estimate how long waits could be during heavy travel times like the Labour Day weekend.

Stewart Peddemors has an estimate of what a 50-per-cent reduction in lanes could mean.

"Sometimes they have up to four hour waits," said the White Rock city councillor and local realtor. "I guess that would be eight hour waits, won't it?"

Milne said the project was much needed for the decades-old crossing. He urged the public to take advantage of other nearby border crossings, as well as check ahead on the radio and at http://www.cbp.gov for current waiting times.

Although southbound traffic will be the most affected, northbound travellers could see an impact, too. Construction to the I-5, which is scheduled to begin in August and last 14-16 months, will mean a detour for traffic on the way to the Canadian crossing, Lesh said.

Meanwhile, a separate construction project continues on the Canadian side of the Peace Arch crossing, where inspection lanes have been reduced from seven to five lanes.

"The Canadian facility is well under way, and we expect to be moving in by fall of this year," said Canada Border Services Agency representative Paula Shore, adding that a delay of a few months is possible.