The B.C. Trucking Association is calling for tolls on all major water crossings in Metro Vancouver while a permanent pricing scheme is worked out. It says that would be fairer to drivers south of the Fraser River while reducing congestion on untolled routes like the Pattullo and Alex Fraser bridges.

A letter sent to local governments by association president Louise Yako suggests the interim measure would give drivers more choice and reduce congestion on some routes, especially as governments prepare to replace the Massey Tunnel and Pattullo Bridge with new bridges. Both bridges are expected to be tolled, which would leave the Alex Fraser Bridge as the only untolled crossing of the Fraser.

Metro Vancouver mayors have long been pushing for a road-pricing scheme that would toll all the major crossings or charge people a fee based on the distance they drive, as a means to generate more money for transportation and reduce traffic congestion by giving people an incentive to take transit. Legally, however, the provincial government must approve a tolling policy.

A policy paper by the trucking association calls on municipal, regional and provincial governments to work together to develop a regional transportation plan that would make better use of existing roads, while investing in roads and public transit.

Yako could not be reached but said in her letter that a toll on all crossings would lead drivers to use the most direct route to their destination because there would be no incentive for them to detour to avoid tolls.

“The Pattullo Bridge has clearly borne the brunt of toll avoidance by drivers choosing not to cross the Port Mann or Golden Ears bridges,” Yako wrote. “In the future, without a change in policy, the only non-tolled structure crossing the south arm of the Fraser River will be the Alex Fraser Bridge, which will become the bridge of choice for toll avoiders.”

TransLink figures suggest more drivers have been using the 79-year-old Pattullo since the new, tolled Port Mann opened, up from 65,000 vehicles a day to 85,000, and the numbers continue to rise. The Transportation Investment Corp., which operates the Port Mann Bridge and the widened stretch of Hwy. 1 for the B.C. government, said it is starting to see the traffic numbers rebound, yet the corporation is still losing money. Provincial budget numbers show the bridge lost $86 million last year, while projecting operating losses of $100 million in each of the next three years, pushing its total debt to $3.68 billion by 2018. TI Corp. relies on the Port Mann tolls to pay off the debt.

ksinoski@postmedia.com