Murray Clarke Connector Alignment Outdated

I’m uncertain if I should be pleased with Port Moody’s Regional Growth Strategy (RGS) exemption granted by Metro Vancouver, as reported in “Metro mayors not happy with Coquitlam”.

With almost nothing new on the development books the past year, and few new sources of tax revenues moving forward, what is planned to replace these lost revenues, to cut city operating costs, or do both?

Also, what plans are there for Port Moody to update the recently adopted Port Moody OCP, which has been referred to as, “inappropriate for transportation planning”.

For instance, the Road Network Map stills shows the Murray Clarke Connector (MCC) as a dotted line coming to a “T” intersection at the end of Clarke Street. Given the long-term and stated importance of the MCC, how did this happen?

This MCC alignment was prepared more than 5 years ago when we were expecting LRT coming down St. Johns.  Today with ALRT planned to run parallel with the CPR tracks on Clarke, this MCC configuration makes absolutely no sense whatsoever!

So then why does this outdated alignment remain on our road network map? Leaving this alignment on the map makes about as much sense as referring to this OCP document as a “long-term vision”.

If the City is ever going to get the MCC built, which the Tri-cities desperately needs given the development on Burke Mountain and throughout the rest of the north east, it will need to direct traffic in a continuous flow onto the Barnet Highway, and not grinding to a halt at a “T” junction; exactly the same as what we have today!

This flaw has been conveniently overlooked by the highly paid Evergreen Line planners who have to tow the line of the provincial government rather than act according to their professional codes of ethics; pretty sick!

The City Council will need to move swiftly to adopt Transit-oriented Development (TOD) principles as prescribed in the RGS, and with TransLink integrating an alignment for the MCC with the Evergreen Line. To do any less is an affront to the taxpayer.

Hopefully we’ll have funded plans in place soon so we don’t have to hear any more political BS.

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