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New West mayor says toll-free Port Mann already helping congestion

WATCH: Tolls on the Port Mann Bridge and the Golden Ears Bridge officially end today. Motorists are being told to settle up their final bills. Jay Durant reports – Sep 6, 2017

Tolls on the Port Mann Bridge have only been gone for almost a week and New Westminister’s mayor says congestion on the Pattullo Bridge has already improved.

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Jonathan Cote said there are no official numbers yet, but he’s already noticed a shift in traffic.

“I think that definitely reinforces what the city of New Westminster has been saying for a long time: that the previous tolling system was kind of done haphazardly,” he said.

“[Tolls were] kind of redistributing traffic in the region in a way that wasn’t overly equitable and was actually creating congestion points in different parts.”
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WATCH: Possible taxation models to replace Metro Vancouver bridge tolls

Cote said he’ll be anxious to hear from the mobility pricing commission as it undertakes research on a “fairer” approach to pricing transportation.

Meanwhile, TransLink has announced new bus services for Metro Vancouver suburbs.

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Changes to fall service include more than 100,000 hours of new bus services, including new routes in Maple Ridge, Morgan Creek, and Clayton Heights.

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WATCH: TransLink expands suburban service

By 2019, TransLink will also be introducing four new “B” line routes, including one on Marine Drive in North Vancouver.

LISTEN: Reporter Janet Brown joins Simi Sara to discuss bridge tolls
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The company will also be testing double-decker buses later this year.

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