The Grandview Viaduct is closing for weeks for repairs. Here's what to expect
Weeks-long closure set to begin Wednesday as City of Vancouver expedites deck repairs
The City of Vancouver is closing a major arterial road between East Vancouver and the downtown core while crews work on repairs.
The Grandview Viaduct linking Terminal Avenue with East First Avenue and Clark Drive will be closed for up to four weeks starting Sept. 2, according to a city statement.
It says the scope of work includes full removal and replacement of the aging asphalt pavement and concrete repairs of the viaduct deck.
"It was in our plan to do our work a few years from now, but we noticed, with some routine maintenance problems on the asphalt, that we really needed to get this work ahead of the Broadway Subway line," said Taryn Scollard, director of streets and engineering with the City of Vancouver.
"We didn't have as long a notice period as we would have normally liked, so some groups were taken a little off guard," she said.
A spokesperson at Moe's Home Collection, a store near the viaduct, said city staff only alerted them of the closure Aug. 27.
"From our interaction with the city, they said it was an emergency situation," said Sara Samieian, president of retail at Moe's.
Samieian said signs she saw at Main Street and Terminal Avenue, seemed to indicate Terminal was closed — which would make her store impossible to reach — but in fact the closure at Main only affects through traffic.
"You can still access all of the businesses on Terminal. You just can't access it, if you're coming from the east," she said.
Road users can expect the following:
- 1st Avenue will be closed to traffic in both directions from Clark Drive to Cottrell Street starting Sept. 2.
- The No. 22 bus will be rerouted to ensure uninterrupted bus service.
- Pedestrian access will be maintained on one sidewalk during construction.
- Access to businesses and parking along Terminal Avenue can be accessed via Main Street.
The city is asking motorists to plan ahead and use an alternative route.
Scollard said a detour wouldn't be suggested by officials, because they don't want to overload specific streets or presume motorists' destinations.
"We are interested in getting out of there, so we are hoping to get it all buttoned up in the two-week time period, but it really does depend on what we see once the asphalt is up," she said.
