City of Vancouver

Published purpose

Three bridges span False Creek connecting Vancouver’s densely populated downtown peninsula with the rest of the city, however none of the three bridges have been upgraded to meet modern seismic performance criteria that would prevent full or partial collapses and allow them to resume operations shortly after an earthquake. Of the three bridges, the Cambie Bridge was identified as the most eligible to be seismically upgraded, as it is the newest and would achieve the highest level of seismic performance, making it likely to see minimal damage or service disruptions in the 475-year return period earthquake.Given the high-level of expected seismic performance following the retrofit, the Cambie Bridge could be made operable for emergency vehicles shortly after an earthquake, following a post-disaster inspection. Reopening the bridge quickly will be critical to public safety, as it would serve as the primary route connecting the downtown peninsula with the rest of Vancouver.