Dear Editor,
RE: [Maple Ridge council proceeds with Yennadon Lands project, The News, May 24]
I read with interest the article regarding council’s approval of an industrial park on the Yennadon Lands.
I’m not opposed to opening up opportunities for commercial and industrial development in Maple Ridge, after all we’re still suffering from decades of short-sighted, wrong-headed decisions by previous councils on land use planning for commercial and industrial development.
But here’s another example of council approving development without appropriate infrastructure to support it. It was amusing to read about the two projects touted to improve Abernethy Way. Widen two blocks, from 230th to 232nd? That’s a joke. Extending out to 240th? What’s the point? These are half measures that will have no impact in dealing with the increased traffic resulting from the development let alone the current traffic volume.
A look at previous Official Community Plans will illustrate that Abernethy Way was originally conceived as a northern arterial road to facilitate traffic flow out to the developments on 256th Street. Of course the land that was set aside for that was sold for residential development. (Let’s not talk about the tidy little relationships between real estate developers and council members that have resulted in some of the previously mentioned short-sighted and wrong-headed land-use decisions.)
As recently as the construction of the Golden Ears Bridge we were promised that Abernethy Way would be four lanes from the bridge out to 232nd once traffic volume increased. I think we’re there now as anyone who uses Abernethy Way on a daily basis can attest.
As a resident of the east side of Maple Ridge in the Webster’s Corners area I’m still waiting for improvements to Dewdney Trunk Road to handle the greatly increased traffic volume from the industrial and commercial development on north 256th Street and all the residential development that’s being shoehorned into the area around 112th to the south.
Dewdney Trunk Road from 240th east is two lanes wide. It was not designed to handle the traffic volume it currently receives. It is dangerous. When is it going to be widened? We could use a wider road now, thank-you council, as well as the extension of Abernethy Way to 256th.
Now is not the time for half measures.
Simon Challenger, Maple Ridge
.
• READ MORE: LETTER: Mind blown by council’s thinking
.
Do you have an opinion you’d like to share? Please send us a letter to the editor, including your first and last name, street address, and phone number. Email: editor@mapleridgenews.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.