Is it back? B.C. Conservatives vow to build 10-lane Massey bridge - Vancouver Sun

Is it too late to cancel the current project to build an immersed tunnel in favour of a new bridge project to replace the aging and seismically unstable George Massey Tunnel? Premier David Eby is arguing that construction of his BC NDP-led provincial government’s new George Massey Tunnel has advanced too far to justify abandoning it, warning that switching to a bridge would disrupt work, threaten jobs, and put significant funding from Prime Minister Mark Carney’s federal government at risk.

British ColumbiaThe B. C. Conservative Party says it will replace Metro Vancouver's aging George Massey Tunnel with a new 10-lane bridge, if elected. Conservatives call NDP tunnel a 'boondoggle,' Eby says stopping work underway would be 'lunacy'Simon Little · CBC News · Posted: Oct 15, 2026 3:02 PM EDT | Last Updated: October 15Listen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results. The B. C. Conservatives are proposing a build replace the George Massey Tunnel in Richmond. (Maggie MacPherson/CBC)The B. C. Conservative Party says it will replace Metro Vancouver's aging George Massey Tunnel with a new 10-lane bridge, if elected. The move would mean scrapping the NDP's plans to replace the crossing with a $8.5-billion eight-lane tunnel. Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson announced the plan in a news release on Thursday. "After nine years of David Eby and the NDP, British Columbia stopped building," Doerkson said in a statement.

The Conservative Party of British Columbia is promising to cancel the BC NDP’s current project of building an $8.5-billion, eight-lane immersed tunnel to replace the aging, seismically-deficient, and congested George Massey Tunnel. Instead, if elected, the party will revive the 10-lane bridge project that was cancelled shortly after the BC NDP formed provincial government in 2017.

The BC NDP scrapped a bridge plan in 2017 and instead planned an immersed tube tunnel. The plan to replace the George Massey Tunnel, built in the 1950s, has changed under successive governments.

On Monday, Albertans vote on whether to stay in Canada or hold another binding referendum on quitting Canada. If the vote goes as polls suggest, a majority of Albertans will mark an X to stay in Confederation, and Premier Danielle Smith has said if that’s so, she expects everyone to accept it and move on. Leaders of the independence movement contest that. And political watchers are divided about whether separation — previously a fringe sentiment — will now be a prominent, permanent feature of Alberta’s political landscape, as in Quebec. Julian Castro-Rea, a political-science professor at the University of Alberta who studies the separation debates in Quebec and Alberta, believes as long as Alberta feels alienated from the Canadian capital — feeling that Ottawa benefits from Alberta’s resource economy without giving back — the movement will have fuel. “Even if the referendum is lost, the westernization will still be around, because it’s kind of a way which, traditionally, Albertans have related to the rest of Canada,” says Castro-Rea, who believes western alienation may remain indefinitely. Story continues below advertisement

It’s no secret the long-held Canadian consensus on immigration has fractured — pulled apart by a rapid increase in new arrivals post-pandemic and growing affordability challenges. Now, that fracture is starting to show up at the ballot box. The Parti Québécois won a minority mandate in Quebec on a platform that included promises of tighter immigration controls, which the party linked to protecting French culture and easing pressure on public services and housing. And when Albertans head to the polls Monday to vote on whether to hold a future referendum on separation from Canada, they’ll also be answering five separate questions on immigration being pushed by the government of Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. Those questions include:— Should the province should have more say over economic immigration?— Should provincially funded services should be restricted to citizens, permanent residents and those with “Alberta-approved” immigration status? Story continues below advertisement