Opinion: Breaking up the work is the right way to build new George Massey Tunnel | Daily Hive

Opinion: Breaking up the work is the right way to build the new replacement George Massey Tunnel

Concept of the new replacement George Massey Tunnel. (Government of B.C.)

Written for Daily Hive Urbanized by Doug Parton, the business manager of Ironworkers Local 97.

For the better part of a decade, the men and women I represent have watched the George Massey Tunnel age out from under us. Anyone who has sat in traffic at that crossing knows it needed replacing years ago.

When the Government of British Columbia confirmed last week that the Fraser River Tunnel Project is moving ahead with a modern, toll-free, eight-lane crossing, that was welcome news.

What caught my attention, however, was not the tunnel itself. It was how the Province plans to build it. Instead of awarding the entire project to a single international consortium under one massive contract, the government has chosen to divide the remaining work into several procurement packages and put them out for competition. That may sound like a technical procurement decision, but it is actually smart public policy.

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When governments bundle major infrastructure projects into a single multi-billion-dollar contract, very few companies can realistically bid. The field is often limited to a handful of global firms with the financial capacity to take on the entire project. B.C. and Canadian contractors, including many highly qualified small and medium-sized enterprises, are effectively shut out of the prime contracting role. Breaking the work into packages changes that.

A Canadian contractor that could never bid on a multi-billion-dollar megaproject can compete for structural steel, reinforcing steel, tunnel approaches, concrete works, and other major components. Instead of waiting for subcontracting opportunities, Canadian firms can compete directly based on expertise, capacity, and value.

That is what smart procurement looks like.

More bidders create more competition. More competition creates better pricing, stronger accountability, and better value for taxpayers. Public infrastructure should be built through a procurement process that rewards competitiveness and performance, not one that limits participation to a handful of international players.

The existing George Massey Tunnel. (Government of B.C.)

The benefits extend beyond the bidding process. When Canadian companies win work, they hire local workers, support local suppliers, and create opportunities for apprentices entering the skilled trades. The wages earned on these projects are spent in B.C. communities, and the experience gained helps build the workforce we will need for future infrastructure projects across the province.

The timing could not be more important.

Canada is being reminded that economic resilience matters. Strong transportation infrastructure supports trade, strengthens supply chains, and improves access to critical gateways such as the Port of Vancouver. Building that infrastructure through a competitive procurement process that allows Canadian firms to participate only strengthens those benefits.

Some may view the decision to move away from a single-project procurement model as a delay. I see it differently.

The government included a termination option from the beginning. When the commercial terms on the table did not deliver the value taxpayers deserved, it chose a more competitive approach rather than proceeding with a deal that was not in the public interest. That is responsible decision-making.

Breaking the Fraser River Tunnel Project into multiple procurement packages is smart procurement policy. It opens the door for B.C. and Canadian contractors to compete, increases competition, creates opportunities for local workers and apprentices, and delivers better value for taxpayers. Most importantly, it helps ensure the work, the skills, and the economic benefits stay here at home.

That is a model worth repeating, not only on this project, but on the next one and the one after that.

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