Re: "Bridging inlet would reduce Malahat traffic," Aug. 11.
Yes, bridging the inlet could reduce traffic, but have the advocates of a bridge thought of the cost?
To reduce traffic on the Malahat, the span would need to be toward the north end of the peninsula, a span that would be several kilometres in length and need to at least in part be high above the water.
It's certainly possible, but at what cost?
I am equally sure that an underwater tunnel could be built, but this solution would be even more costly.
If all the Malahat traffic was diverted to the bridge, there still would not be enough traffic to come close to justifying the cost. Look at the projected cost of the Blue Bridge in Victoria. The span is minuscule in terms of crossing the inlet and the political estimate is nearly $100 million, and the traffic volume is many times the Malahat traffic. The traffic volume a bridge across the inlet would attract is far short of the volume needed to support a bridge.
Norm Ryder
Victoria
