Did you hear the one about the two-lane road running through a busy industrial zone that ends in single-lane bailey bridge?
It sounds like a joke with a bad punchline but it's one of the biggest bottlenecks in the region. Even though the bridge is narrow, and the route connecting New Westminster and Coquitlam has two railroad crossings running through it, cars and trucks still travel over the bridge, waiting patiently at the light for their turn to cross.
There are other avenues to United Boulevard - the freeway and Lougheed Highway via King Edward are two - but for some reason people like taking this crossing over a bucolic stretch of the Brunette River. It must remind them of little lode England - all that's missing is a family of ducks.
Of course, there's no end to the dispute over how to clear up the bottleneck and replace the bridge and no guarantee mediation will solve the problem either. It's just a little anachronism in an otherwise busy world where everyone wants to get somewhere fast.
