Alice Wong, MP

The following is from a City of Richmond press release concerning the expansion of Lansdowne Road, from Hollybridge Way to Gilbert Road. The announcement was on November 27, 2009:

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Lansdowne Road expansion provides new linkage to Richmond Olympic Oval

Richmond, BC – Access through Richmond’s City Centre to the Richmond Olympic Oval and the Canada Line rapid transit system is now greatly improved with the opening of a new arterial route. Lansdowne Road has been extended to four lanes from Gilbert Road to Hollybridge Way, with help from the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund (ISF).

“This passage is an important link in our transportation network,” explains Mayor Malcolm Brodie. “The increased roadway capacity will not only reduce traffic delays and congestion, it will encourage transit and pedestrian use with the new bicycle lanes, street lighting and sidewalks.”

Through the ISF, the City of Richmond received $1.33 million of federal and provincial grant funding. The total project cost was $2 million, with the City contributing the remaining third of the cost.

“This partnership with the Government of British Columbia and the City of Richmond will fund a very useful transportation corridor,” said Alice Wong, MP for Richmond. “The financing for this project, coming from the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, is yet another example of how Canadian tax dollars are being used responsibly as part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan.”

“The expansion of Lansdowne Road will improve traffic flow around the Olympic Oval, not just during the Olympics, but well into the future,” said John Cummins, MP for Delta – Richmond East. “Working together with the province and the municipality of Richmond, the federal government provided a third of the cost for this expansion through the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund.”

“This is yet another improvement to Richmond’s infrastructure,” says Richmond Centre MLA Rob Howard. “This is an important link to our iconic Richmond Olympic Oval and our new Canada Line.”

“Expanding Lansdowne Road will not only reduce congestion and make it easier for people to get to the Canada Line,” says Richmond East MLA Linda Reid, “it is another example of a needed project creating jobs when we need them most.”

“All of the progress we’re seeing in Richmond shows that we are ready to take our place as a world-class city,” says Richmond-Steveston MLA John Yap. “These are exciting times.”

The Infrastructure Stimulus Fund (ISF) is a new infrastructure program introduced this year to promote a stronger economy, cleaner environment and better communities while assisting with local and regional infrastructure needs.

The Lansdowne Road extension also features two green initiatives, as part of the City of Richmond’s commitment to including sustainable initiatives in its capital projects. The first is the use of LED roadway lighting instead of conventional lighting. This will result in energy savings of over 50 per cent. LED lights also have a significantly longer life expectancy, reducing maintenance costs and reducing the carbon footprint.

The second initiative is a pilot project at the corner of Lansdowne Road and Gilbert Road to create a sidewalk that will not ice over. This is the first in North America. Free Energy Solutions, a Richmond based company, has donated thermal superconducting rods that have been laid in a 50 square foot patch of sidewalk.

The rods were drilled 35 feet below the sidewalk where the earth’s temperature remains a constant 12 degrees Celsius. The rods will heat the sidewalk above, preventing ice from forming, reducing the opportunity for injuries as well as decreasing maintenance costs. The City will be monitoring this sidewalk throughout the winter and looking for other opportunities to use this innovative technology.

The Lansdowne Road extension will be open to traffic for the evening rush hour on November 27.

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