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| The future end (or start) of the Expo Line in Langley City. Select the image to enlarge. |
As you may know, I am a bit of a transit nerd, so I was absolutely thrilled when the folks from Transportation Investment Corporation invited me for a tour of the Langley City Centre Station construction site. I had no choice but to say yes.
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| I was having a good look around the construction site with our tour guides. Select the image to enlarge. |
It was an extremely rainy day yesterday, but even in the pouring rain, ironworkers were still busy at work.
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| Ironworkers are building columns to support the Langley City Centre SkyTrain Station. Select the image to enlarge. |
One thing I learned from the tour is that much of the infrastructure supporting the SkyTrain stations and guideway is underground. For example, in the Serpentine River valley, they have to drive pilings down 100 metres (about the same height as a 30-storey building) to reach firm ground. Langley City is also on mucky ground, so they have to pile-drive down to about 30 metres (about 9 stories).
The station columns themselves are also connected together below ground to prevent them from shifting or twisting.
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| The interconnected columns for the Langley City Centre SkyTrain Station. Select the image to enlarge. |
Work is currently underway on Fraser Highway to support the SkyTrain in Langley City. They are running the power ducting and cabling to support the SkyTrain. This work is expected to be finished next summer. Next year, you will start to see sections of guideway along Industrial Avenue in Langley City. The first guideway section will be near 203rd Street and on the old ICBC site at Fraser Highway and Production Way.
There will be impacts on travel patterns, and you may notice vibrations from pile driving as guideway construction kicks into high gear. To stay up to date on construction, you can sign up for email notifications on the project’s website.
This is a once-in-a-lifetime project in Langley City, and it will have a profound impact on our community by connecting people to more opportunities. For the City’s part, we have been preparing for SkyTrain’s arrival for close to a decade; we will be ready for opening day.
1 comment:
Interesting to watch it all come together. I know many lament the changes that Langley is going through in remembrance of the past idyllic lifestyle of the quiet suburb, but, as Chaucer once wrote 'Time and tide wait for no man'.
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