Half of the new Steveston interchange on Highway 99 opens | Daily Hive

Half of the new five-lane Steveston interchange on Highway 99 opens to traffic

September 2024 construction progress on the new Steveston Interchange on Highway 99. (Government of BC)

As of Thursday morning, a portion of the new Steveston Interchange on Highway 99 in Richmond will open to vehicle traffic.

Today, the provincial government announced the opening of the new interchange to westbound vehicle traffic on Steveston Highway starting on January 16, 2025.

Ahead of tomorrow’s partial opening, construction crews will complete the road tie-ins overnight tonight, enabling westbound vehicle traffic to be moved to the new Steveston Highway overpass structure above Highway 99.

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With the opening of the new crossing, work will now begin on the removal of the old Steveston Highway crossing, which is expected to take three weekends to complete and will require lane diversions down below on Highway 99, as well as periodic lane closures on Steveston Highway. After the old crossing is fully demolished, construction will begin on the second half of the new interchange.

new steveston interchange highway 99 rendering

September 2024 construction progress on the new Steveston Interchange on Highway 99. (Government of BC)

When fully complete in Fall 2025, the new Steveston Interchange will have three vehicle traffic lanes for the westbound direction of Steveston Highway and two vehicle lanes for the eastbound direction.

This new structure will also provide separated east-west pedestrian and cycling pathways across Highway 99 on both sides of the overpass and improved access to TransLink’s bus stops.

The original overpass had just two vehicle lanes — one lane in each direction — and a narrow pedestrian sidewalk on the north side of the structure.

When construction on the new interchange began in Summer 2022, the project’s cost was stated at $87.5 million.

Old overpass of the previous Steveston Interchange at Highway 99. (Google Maps)

Artistic rendering of the new Steveston Interchange on Highway 99. (Government of BC)

new steveston interchange highway 99 rendering 1

Artistic rendering of the new Steveston Interchange on Highway 99. (Government of BC)

The new Steveston Interchange is one component of the early works of the overall project to replace the George Massey Tunnel and upgrade the Highway 99 corridor between Richmond and Delta.

Other early works completed in recent years include expanding bus-on-shoulder lanes along the highway and the construction of a bus-only ramp onto the southbound direction of Highway 99 from Bridgeport Road at the south end of the Oak Street Bridge.

In July 2024, the provincial government announced the bid by Cross Fraser Partnership — a consortium led by the Canadian division of France-based Bouygues Construction, in partnership with Spanish construction company Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas, Quebec-based Pomerleau, architectural and engineering firm Arcadis (formerly known as IBI Group), and Netherlands-based dredging and marine services firm Boskalis — will design and build the new replacement immersed tunnel of 10 vehicle lanes, replacing the existing crossing of four vehicle lanes. Bouygues Construction is particularly known for its work on the Chunnel Tunnel between the United Kingdom and France.

george massey tunnel new replacement 2024 rendering f

2024 preliminary artistic rendering of the new George Massey Tunnel. (Government of BC)

Artistic rendering of the new eight-lane immersed tunnel replacement for the George Massey Tunnel. (Government of BC)

Major construction work on the new immersed tunnel is expected to begin in 2026 and will be completed in 2030. This depends on the approval of the provincial government’s current environmental assessment of the project.

Currently, the official estimated cost of the new immersed tunnel and downsized Highway 99 upgrades remains at $4.15 billion. The provincial government has yet to provide a cost update, but the previous $4.15 billion figure is not expected to hold, as it was created in 2020/2021 — prior to the steep pandemic-induced escalation in market construction costs for labour, materials, and equipment.

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