Help on the way for congestion-clogged Metro Vancouver bridge

The province has announced measures to clear congestion on the busy Alex Fraser Bridge and Highway 91, a corridor that connects Surrey and Delta to New Westminster and Richmond.

Transportation Minister Todd Stone said the government will contribute $10 million to improve theinterchange at Highway 91 and 72 avenue. Right now, there is a traffic light at thatcorner, which causes traffic to back up.

The plan is to replace the lights there with with a different system such as a cloverleaf or roundabout that allows traffic to flow smoother.

Moretow trucks please

The ministry's plans also calls for more tow trucks to help clear stalled vehicles.

Stone said the government will also launch an engineering review to look at installing a new counter-flow system on the bridge during morning and afternoon traffic crunches.

"With traffic demand so high and growing every day it's important to make safety, capacity and efficiency upgrades to this corridor," Stone said.

The interchange construction will begin this fall and is expected to wrap up by 2018. It means that construction to replace the George Massey tunnelwill overlap with the roadwork on the Alex Fraser, meaning traffic headaches for drivers.

"Anytime you try to implement new traffic management strategies or indeed engage in construction, there's always delays as part of that, but a little bit of short term pain for long term gain."