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2mo ago

B.C. Sets Massey Tunnel Replacement Budget at $8.5 Billion

The province has restarted procurement under a three-contract model with Ottawa offering up to $3 billion as the project waits for a delayed provincial environmental approval.

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The estimated completion time for the Massey Tunnel replacement project has now been delayed almost a year, from December 2030 to September 2031, despite previous reports the timeline would remain the same.
In 2021, a rendering of a new eight-lane immersed-tube tunnel to replace the George Massey Tunnel was released. The Massey Tunnel replacement project will cost $8.5 billion, more than double the original estimate of $4.15 billion from 2021, Transportation and Transit Minister Mike Farnworth announced Monday.
B.C. Minister of Transportation and Transit Mike Farnworth listens while standing in a tunnel at the future Great Northern Way-Emily Carr station during a tour of construction taking place for the Broadway Subway Project, in Vancouver, on Monday, June 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Overview

  • Transport Minister Mike Farnworth said Monday the project budget is $8.5 billion, more than double the 2021 estimate of $4.15 billion, with major construction moved to 2027 and an opening target of September 2031.
  • The government fired the originally chosen European-led consortium in mid-June and is restarting the bidding process by splitting work into three separate contracts to limit risk and invite new bidders.
  • A Canada–British Columbia agreement announced July 2 commits up to $3 billion in federal support covering no more than one-third of capital costs and could include low-cost loans in addition to direct funding.
  • Site preparation that began in early 2026 is underway, including a Deas Island casting basin for pre-cast tunnel segments, but full construction depends on a provincial environmental assessment now expected to finish in late 2026.
  • Critics warn of further cost growth and delays while the government points to third-party validation, inflation and global supply-chain pressures as drivers of the higher price and says the tunnel will improve goods movement to regional ports.