People were lined up out the door and around the Seaside Centre in Sechelt for the Wednesday open house on the Sunshine Coast fixed link feasibility study.
For many on the lower Sunshine Coast it was the first chance to see the details of the four proposed fixed link scenarios and question some of the people behind the study.
West Vancouver-Sea to Sky MLA Jordan Sturdy, who’s been taking the lead on the file for the Liberal government and has been at all the open houses, said there were also big crowds in Squamish, West Vancouver and Powell River.
Sturdy also said he thinks regardless of people’s opinions on whether there should be a fixed link, they’re keen to see some detailed technical information on the options.
He also defended the idea expressed in the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MOTI)’s background documents that community leaders and stakeholders have been increasingly advocating for a cost-effective fixed link.
“I have received in my office quite a number of solicitations from a number of places, be it from the private sector, individuals as well as interest from other organizations.”
Ashok Bhatti, MOTI’s regional director for the south coast, has also been at all the open houses. “This is a conceptual study – it’s looking at high-level financial and physical feasibility, and what we want to know is do we need to take a detailed look at any of these options,” he said.
Bhatti said although the four scenarios talk about eliminating ferry service, that might not be what happens if a fixed link becomes reality.
“The links themselves have to have some stand-alone feasibility which is independent of the ferry service,” he explained. “If financially and physically they look like yes, these are possible to construct, to maintain, and they present an option that links the demand, we’d be able to incorporate a more detailed look at the ferry service as well, but that would be a conversation we’d have to have with the respective agencies.”
What would happen with ferries, along with construction and maintenance costs, environmental impact, and whether the other infrastructure on the Sunshine Coast is ready for extra traffic were common questions raised by open house attendees.
And opinion on whether pursuing a fixed link was a good idea in the first place seemed evenly split.
