The SkyBridge is a

cable-stayed bridge A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern ...

Metro Vancouver The Metro Vancouver Regional District (MVRD), or simply Metro Vancouver, is a Canadian political subdivision and corporate entity representing the metropolitan area of Greater Vancouver, designated by provincial legislation as one of the 28 ...

, British Columbia, Canada. Built between 1987 and 1989, it spans the

Fraser River The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of Vancouver. The river's annua ...

and connects

New Westminster New Westminster (colloquially known as New West) is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District. It was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the capita ...

with Surrey. The SkyBridge opened for revenue use on March 16, 1990, with the second half of the Phase II extension of SkyTrain to

Scott Road station Scott Road is an elevated station on the Expo Line of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system. The station is located near the south end of the Pattullo Bridge in the South Westminster neighbourhood of Surrey, British Columbia, Cana ...

History

Construction of the bridge began on October 28, 1987. The first half of the bridge heading towards Surrey was completed first, with the

half being completed on March 19, 1990. The bridge was manufactured by

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co., Ltd. (HDEC; ) is a major construction company in South Korea. The company was founded by Chung Ju-yung in 1947 as the Hyundai Civil Works Company and was a major component of the Hyundai Group. Hyund ...

and a

Chilliwack Chilliwack ( )( hur, Ts'elxwéyeqw) is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Chilliwack is surrounded by mountains and home to recreational areas such as Cultus Lake and Chilliwack Lake Provincial Parks. There are numerous outdoor ...

-based construction company with a total cost of

CAD Computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computers (or ) to aid in the creation, modification, analysis, or optimization of a design. This software is used to increase the productivity of the designer, improve the quality of design, improve c ...

$28 million, or $ in dollars. Construction was completed by September 1988, and testing began in 1989.

Details

The SkyBridge does not carry automobiles, unlike the neighbouring

Pattullo Bridge The Pattullo Bridge is a through arch bridge that crosses the Fraser River and links the city of New Westminster to the city of Surrey in British Columbia. It was named in honour of Thomas Dufferin Pattullo, the 22nd Premier of British Columbia. ...

, but has two tracks to let TransLink's SkyTrain pass either way on the bridge on its journey between

King George station King George is an elevated station on the Expo Line of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system. The station is located in the south end of the Surrey City Centre district of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, and is one of the outboun ...

in Surrey and Waterfront station in

Downtown Vancouver Downtown Vancouver is the central business district and the city centre neighbourhood of Vancouver, Canada, on the northwestern shore of the Burrard Peninsula in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. It occupies most of the north sh ...

. A third set of rails in the middle, not connected to the SkyTrain tracks, is used by maintenance crews to truck equipment back and forth on the bridge. The deck is composed of 104 pre-fabricated concrete sections which were built in

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a ...

, transported via barge, and lifted into place with heavy machinery. When constructed, the concrete sections were glued together with an epoxy resin. The bridge has two tall towers and carries trains above the Fraser River and valley. The main span is and the total length is . The bridge was the longest cable-supported transit-only bridge in the world from its opening in 1990 to 2019, when it was surpassed by the

Egongyan Rail Transit Bridge The Egongyan Rail Transit Bridge is a suspension bridge carrying the Chongqing Rail Transit Loop line across the Yangtze. It connects Jiulongpo District in the west with Nan'an District in the east. The Egongyan Rail Transit Bridge is located abou ...

Delayed opening

The opening of the bridge faced some delay as the non-unionized consortium was accused of underbidding unionized firms. In response, labour organizers pressured other unions to boycott the project altogether. The issue was the climax of a series of defeats for construction unions as a result of the Social Credit Party's preference for non-union workers. The situation drew ire from the BC and Yukon Building and Construction Trades Council, who called it a "hot site".

Notes

References

Bridges of Greater Vancouver

External links