WCN

Fall 2008
www.on-sitemag.com

W E STE R N C O N STR U CTI O N N EWS

Rail’s
Light rail transit gathers steam

In this issue:
Growth in Edmonton LRT
Canada Line meets Olympian
challenge in Vancouver
Calgary’s C-Train set for growth

PM #40070230  eturn undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Subscription Department

R
published by On-Site
PO Box 820, Markham Station Main, Markham, ON. L3P 8A3
CONTENTS
Canada’s magazine for construction contractors in Alberta & B.C.
WCN
W E STE R N C O N STR U CTI O N N EWS

VOLUME 2, NO. 3 Fall 2008

5 Comment
Make nice: If you think keeping good relations
with the public is optional, think again.

7 News
Calgary cuts construction fees
17
Safety tools for construction
Streu named VP at LMS
Northern Crane acquires Parkland Crane
Lefaivre is new Stantec CFO
Non-residential building costs climb in Calgary
Drug testing mandatory for union workers in B.C.
Temporary foreign workers a focus in Alberta
Finning acquires two Alberta rental stores
Code green for B.C.
Thomas names Kasha as dealer

12 Letter to the Editor

“Shoot first, ask questions later” 18
14 Statistics
Employment, Housing starts, Building permits

17 The Next Spike

So why does it take three years to extend a
light rail transit line (LRT) but only four years
to build a railway from Ontario to B.C.?

18 Canada Line an Olympian triumph

Vancouver’s new LRT covers the gamut of construction,
from North America’s first extradosed bridge to the
city’s first bored tunnels

25 LRT is Edmonton’s largest

infrastructure project
30
Edmonton’s LRT extension is taking place within a
tight deadline and through crowded, urban geography

30 Technology accelerates LRT project

Innovations on this cut-and-cover tunnel in
Edmonton include self-compacting concrete, a
monolithic pour and sophisticated formwork

33 Calgary’s West LRT is picking up steam

Ambitious plans to extend Calgary’s C-Train have
been announced

37 Economic overview: Alberta solid

38 Point of View by Tonia Jurbin

Changed conditions: what’s up at Seymour-Cap? 37 Advertising Index of Advertisers
 WCN
W E STE R N C O N STR U CTI O N N EWS

www.on-sitemag.com
Fax: (416) 764-1733
COMMENT
By Jim Barnes

EDITORIAL
Editor: James A. Barnes
(416) 764-1612
jim.barnes@on-sitemag.rogers.com
Art Director: Melissa Crook
(416) 764-1545
Making nice
M
mel.crook@rci.rogers.com
ore than two thirds of respondents to a recent survey in
BUSINESS WCN’s sister publication, Backfill (our electronic newsletter),
Publisher: Peter Leonard said that the public is getting more hostile. They said that
(416) 764-1510 incidents of confrontation, complaint, vandalism and so on have
peter.leonard@on-sitemag.rogers.com
been on the rise over the past five years.
Account Manager: Tracy Ryan
416-764-1557 How many respondents thought the public’s attitudes toward
tracy.ryan@on-sitemag.rogers.com construction had improved? Zero.
Account Manager: David Skene When people complain, they usually do it to the municipality. Earlier
416-764-1590 in the year, Calgary decided it had had enough. Calgary sometimes
david.skene@on-sitemag.rogers.com
seems like one big, 24-hour construction site, and in 2007 it got some
Sales & Marketing Coordinator: Kim Rossiter
(416) 764-1787 3,000 noise complaints, a 15 per cent increase from the year before.
kim.rossiter@rci.rogers.com In response to these issues, it introduced a new, voluntary code
Circulation: Bibi Khan of conduct that it is asking contractors to sign. The Construction and
(416) 764-1450 Demolition Site Management Code of Practice involves tasks like
bibi.khan@rci.rogers.com
keeping the neighbourhood informed about your work, logging your
Publications mail agreement no. 40070230 response to complaints and controlling noise, lighting and cleanliness.
REGISTRATION NO. 10811
Return undeliverable address BLOCKS to: I am sure some of you have virtually collapsed in laughter by this
ON-SITE
CIRCULATION DEPT. P.O. BOX 720, STN K point. The city itself euphemistically notes that “Industry associations
Toronto, Ontario M4P 3J6
On-Site, established 1957, is published 7 times a year by Rogers continued to indicate general non-support for the code.” Nobody
Publishing Limited, a division of Rogers Media Inc.
Rogers Publishing Limited wants the additional costs and red tape, especially for something as
One Mount Pleasant Road
Toronto, Ontario, M4Y 2Y5.
Subscription inquiries Toronto only: (416) 932-5071 9 a.m. to
fickle as public goodwill.
6 p.m. EST weekdays. Outside Toronto subscription inquiries: But think about it for a moment. When municipal governments
1-866-236-0608 Fax: 416-932-1620
Mail: On-Site, Circulation Dept. P.O. Box 720 STN K,
Toronto, Ontario M4P 3J6 look at the public, they see voters. If they see a way to make hay with
E-mail: customerservice@cstonecanada.com
Subscription price per year: $79.00 CDN; Outside Canada per year voters without too much expenditure on their part, they are quite
$135.00 US; Single copy price: $13.00 Single copy & Directory
Sales: Bebe Jardine 416-764-3858 tempted do it. There may not be such a code of conduct in your city yet,
E-mail: bebe.jardine@rci.rogers.com 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST
weekdays Fax: 416-764-3938 and the Calgary code may be voluntary today, but that might change.
Mail: On-Site, Circulation Dept. One Mount Pleasant Road, 7th
Floor, Toronto, ON M4Y 2Y5 Printed in Canada. Contractors’ relations with the public are on a downward trend.
This publication is for informational purposes only. The content It’s in your interest to keep the public happy (or at least, not unhappy).
and “expert” advice presented are not intended as a substitute for
informed professional engineering advice. You should not act on You may or may not sign a formal code of conduct, but ignoring public
information contained in this publication without seeking specific
advice from qualified engineering professionals.
We acknowledge the financial support of the
hostility to your work won’t take you very far.
Government of Canada, through the In fact, ignore it long enough and you may eventually face onerous,
Publications Assistance Program (PAP) towards our mailing costs.
Want to purchase multiple copies of articles that have appeared in mandatory municipal regulations about noise and site maintenance.
On-Site? Contact Peter Leonard, Publisher.
Rogers Media Inc. President and CEO, Anthony P. Viner
Rogers Publishing Limited President and CEO, Brian Segal
Senior Vice Presidents Marc Blondeau, Michael J. Fox, John Milne
Vice Presidents: Immee Chee Wah, Patrick Renard
Vice President, Consumer Marketing Tracey McKinley
Contents © 2007 by Rogers Publishing Limited, may not be reprinted
without permission.
On-Site receives unsolicited materials (including letters to the
editor, press releases, promotional items and images) from time to
time. On-Site, its affiliates and assignees may use, reproduce, publish,
re-publish, distribute, store and archive such unsolicited submis-
sions in whole or in part in any form or medium whatsoever, without
compensation of any sort.

MEMBERS OF

Canadian Canadian
Association Construction
of Equipment Association
Distributors

Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 

WCN News
Calgary cuts construction fees
Pushback from the Calgary construc-
tion community is resulting in decreases
to the fees contractors will have to pay
for such activities as closing roads.
The fees, which were slated to climb
by more than 400 per cent to become
the highest in Canada, will grow by a
more sedate 15 per cent, City Council
announced.
Perceived long road closures were
behind the dramatic increases.
Alderman Ric McIver noted that
the increases were intended to get the
sector’s attention and appeared to have
succeeded. He added that the intention
never had been to make the city un-
competitive from a construction
point of view.
Safety tools for construction
In a hyperactive construction climate
where workers are at a premium, em-
ployers often must promote younger,
less-experienced workers as supervisors.
Unfortunately, novice supervisors often
are not fully aware of the challenges or
the variety of tasks they will face.
Kit gives new supervisors safety tools.
In recognition of this challenge to
the industry, the Construction Safety
Network named 2008 the Year of the
Supervisor.
The organization has developed a
series of tools to help new supervisors
with their responsibilities. The Safe
Supervisor Took Kit is the first of three
packages to be distributed this year.
The kit includes:
Road closures were becomming a concern in Calgary.
WorkSafeBC’s Managing Safety from
the Supervisor’s Perspective InfoFlip,
containing vital information in a
compact package;
• Anatomy of a Supervisor, a
handout for jobsite workers
• Hazard Identification & Risk
Assessment Checklist, a form that
facilitates addressing and document-
ing jobsite hazards
• And other tools.
Initial distribution of the Safe
Supervisor Took Kit will be to participants
in the Foundation for Health and Safety
Excellence course, which is part of
the Certificate of Recognition (COR)
program.
Streu named VP at LMS
Norm Streu has joined LMS Rein-
forcing Steel Group, North Vancouver, B.C.
as executive vice president and general
counsel, announces Ron McNeil, presi-
dent. Streu is known in the construction
industry through numerous speaking
engagements and publications.
Until recently, he led his legal firm’s
construction and engineering law practice.
He has served as chair of the board of
the Vancouver Regional Construction
Association, director of the British Co-
lumbia Construction Association and
chair of the Construction Law Subsection
of the B.C. branch of the Canadian
Bar Association.
Northern Crane acquires
Parkland Crane
Northern Crane Services Inc.,
Edmonton, has purchased Parkland
Crane Service Ltd.
Parkland was established more than
27 years ago by Jim and Barb Robinson.
It will be fully integrated with NCS,
enhancing access to equipment and
services for its customers.
“We are excited to have a well
established company, such as Parkland,
come into the NCS fold,” said Leo Davis,
NCS C.E.O. and co-founder. “Parkland
Crane is very much a family business,
and we are excited to welcome all of the
Parkland employees into the Northern
Crane family.”
“The merger is exciting for us and
our customers, as additional equipment
and resources provided by NCS will al-
low us to continue to provide an outstand-
ing level of service to our customers,” says
Jim Robison.
NCS is a subsidiary of NC Services
Group, a Northwest Capital Appreciation
company.
Lefaivre is new Stantec CFO
Don Wilson, senior vice president
and chief financial officer at Stantec,
will retire at the end of the year to be
replaced by Dan Lefaivre, currently vice
president, finance and treasury. Wilson,
who has been with Stantec since 1990,
Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 
WCN NEWS
will continue to be associated with the
firm in a consulting role.
Lefaivre joined Stantec in 1990 as an
accounting manager.
Lefaivre “helped navigate our
company through a number of complex
projects including the successful rollout
of our enterprise system,” noted Tony
Franceschini, president and C.E.O.
Stantec provides professional
consulting services in planning, engi-
neering, architecture, interior design,
landscape architecture, surveying,
environmental sciences, project man-
agement, and project economics for
infrastructure and facilities projects.
Non-res costs climb in Calgary
Despite a softening in inflation,
Calgary continue to have the highest
non-residential cost increases in the
The Bow is one of Calgary’s exciting projects.
country, according to information from
Statistics Canada. Alberta occupies the
same position among the provinces.
An 8.7 per cent increase was re-
corded in Calgary in non-residential
construction costs in the second quarter,
according to the report. Edmonton was
in second place nationally, with a cost
increase of 6.5 per cent. The national
figure was a more modest three per cent.
 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
“The quarterly increase was mostly
the result of higher labour and fuel
costs, as well as material price increases,
in particular steel,” according to
StatsCan.
Drug testing
In what was officially described
as a “Joint News Release,” two major
players in the B.C. construction labour
sector announced agreement on a non-
invasive drug and alcohol policy
for jobsites—believed to be the first
in Canada.
Following years of debate in the
industry, the Construction Labour
Relations Association (CLRA) and the
Bargaining Council of British Columbia
Building Trades Unions (BCBCBTU)
announced that the Drug and Alcohol A clear head is essential for jobsite safety.
Policy will boost worker safety and
provide treatment and rehabilitation
to workers who have drug or alcohol detecting, eliminating and treating
problems. substance abuse which stands to impair
The policy, developed by unions and performance on the job,” said Clyde
employers during the negotiations for Scollan, president of the CLRA. “Any
the current standard agreement, applies worker who tests positive for drugs is
to all union construction workers in B.C. immediately taken off the job.”
Testing may be performed on workers Under the terms of the policy,
who are involved in accidents or “near workers who test positive can’t return
misses,” or are otherwise suspected of to work until a doctor who specializes
impairment on the job. in substance abuse issues is satisfied
Testing may also be carried out on the employee can return to the job
employees before starting work on a site safely.
new project; however, these tests are Workplace drug testing has proved
voluntary under the policy. to be contentious legal issue in the past
The two organizations emphasized and has been a particular concern of
that the policy does not address what various human-rights organizations.
workers do on their own time. “We opted
for a non-invasive testing policy, which is TFWs a focus in Alberta
designed to measure possible current im- There were nearly 22,400 temporary
pairment on the job, not what you did last foreign workers (TFWs) in Alberta in
week,” said Mark Olsen, president of the 2006, more than double the 11,000 total
BCBCBTU. The test covers alcohol, as well from 2003. As TFWs come to occupy
as nine other drugs including marijuana. a more important position in the
“Construction work is dangerous Alberta economy, increasing attention
enough without the added perils of is being given to their smooth entry
having impaired workers on the jobsite,” to the industry.
noted Olsen. Many TFW-related issues are not
“Our plan provides consistent, currently being addressed, notes the
fair and manageable procedures for Alberta government. The list includes
WCN NEWS

Finning acquires two Alberta

rental stores
Finning (Canada) of Edmonton an-
nounced that it has acquired the assets
of Fort Saskatchewan Rentals, Inc. The
two Fort Saskatchewan Rentals Inc. stores,
in Fort Saskatchewan and Redwater,
Alta., have been reopened under the
name of The Cat Rental Store.
“I think very highly of Finning,” said
former owner Dave Dickson. “I’ve spent
17 years growing this business, and I
think Finning will move it forward.”
“We look forward to working within
these communities and to giving them
the best,” said The Cat Rental Store
president and general manager Harry
Hoyer. This acquisition brings the total
number of The Cat Rental Stores in
Western Canada to 37.
TFWs are a growing part of the Canadian labour scene.

Code green for B.C.

employment standards, health and construction. Intended for TFWs them- Effective Sept. 5, the B.C. Building
safety issues, housing, education, ac- selves, it will help with such topics as Code got a lot greener. According to
cess to legal services and other needs. an overview of Canada’s construction a summary released by the Office of
The provincial government has industry, careers in construction, Construction and Housing Standards,
launched a $1.4-million pilot project coming to Canada and rights and new emphasis is being put on water and
to provide support to nine agencies responsibilities. energy efficiency.
serving TFWs in Fort McMurray, Grand
Prairie, Edmonton, Red Deer, Calgary
and Brooks.
TFWs are also a focus for the
Construction Sector Council (CSC),
which recently launched a website
(www.TempForeignWork.ca) intended
to provide information on three
major topics.
• Industry Guide helps the prospective
employer navigate the Temporary Foreign
Workers Program.
• Top Source Countries identifies
the main sources for TFWs. According
to the data in this section, more than
half of the TFWs working in Canada’s
construction industry in 2004/05 came
from four countries: the U.S.A. (1,366),
the Philippines (439), the United Kingdom
(439) and Germany (309). Thomas Equipment Inc. of Centreville, N.B. has a long history as a
• The third section, Temporary Canadian supplier of skid steers. It recently named Kasha Farm Supplies
Foreign Worker Guide, is still under Ltd., a heavy-equipment dealer in Eckville, as a new dealer in Alberta.

10 Western Construction News | Fall 2008

WCN NEWS

Among the changes:
• A new Part 10 has been added to
the code that reflects the two, added ob-
jectives of water and energy efficiency.
• The Part 9 thermal insulation
table has been relocated to Part 10
and its scope expanded to include
four-storey residential buildings. As
well, the allowance to use R14 instead
of R20 insulation for natural gas-heated
buildings in the Lower Mainland has
been eliminated, and the attic-space
insulation increased from RSI 7.7 to RSI
9.0 in the colder parts of the province.
• Achievement of an EnerGuide Rat-
ing System rating of 77 is an acceptable
solution that provides an alternative to
compliance with the insulation table for
residential buildings.
• Non-residential, Part 9 buildings
must now provide thermal insulation in
wall, roof and suspended-floor
assemblies. The amount of insulation
is derived from ASHRAE 90.1-2004.
• All other buildings (primarily
Part 3) must comply with the ASHRAE
90.1-2004 standard.
• The requirements of the existing
Water Conservation Plumbing Regulation
have been relocated to Part 10 of the
Building Code and are now applicable
province-wide.

Letter to the editor

I’m an architect doing the construction coordination for
a small condo project in Kerrisdale, Vancouver. I was retired
in 2005 (university/college instructor) but had to go back to
work because of what is happening to my home.
I was discussing the proposed restoration of Creek Village,
the condo project in False Creek that I live in, with the con-
struction manager. He had read your editorial (WCN Summer
2008 issue, page 5) and faxed me a copy.
Your third-to-last paragraph hits the nail on the head:
“The results tend to be government purchasers (read strata
council and property manager in our case) trying to expedite
their workloads (the council members keep saying they’re
volunteers and the property manger is too busy) through
sole sourcing (they have gotten a quote from one design-
build firm), “relationships” (the property manager is a long-
term friend—he says—with the design-build firm) and the
fast-tracking of projects (the design-build firm wants us to
sign a contract and then let the building envelope consultant
do design, documentation and specifications) that really
deserve more review and planning.”
This may be the “fast” and “easy” way to go, but I’m con-
cerned when the owners (all 56 of them) are faced with a $6.7
million “rough estimate” from the design-build firm and are be-
ing asked to sign first and sort out the details afterwards. Sounds
like the old western adage, “Shoot first and ask questions later.”   By the way, you can check our archive of issues for
When you are restoring a 31-year old building with
known wood siding and wood structural rot, there are too
many unknowns to use this method, I think. It could be a
recipe for cost overruns.
Any other good articles that I could pass on to my fellow
strata members? They agree with me: “It’s a case of spending
money to save money” (do the work first—as in full construction
documentation—then go out for competitive bidding (you
may get a lower price) and then sign a contract.
We are being asked (by the strata council and property
manager) to vote yes for this method of restoration. Many
strata members seem to be more inclined to vote yes to get
the ball rolling then to ask the big question (and I think more
important point), “What is it really going to cost me when
the project is finished?”
Terrance Harrison
Vancouver
Thanks for your note. I like the “shoot first, ask questions
later,” analogy. Another good one I hear is “Ready, fire, aim.”
When you consider the magnitude of the dollars being tossed
around, these short cuts are real cause for concern.
both Western Construction News and On-Site any time at
www.on-sitemag.com. If you would like to subscribe to the
print publications or Backfill, our e-newsletter, you can do
that from the site, as well.
Good luck with your upcoming vote... It sounds like
everyone should take a deep breath before signing anything.
— Editor

12 Western Construction News | Fall 2008

 WCN CONSTRUCTION STATS
Construction drives employment and Ontario was a major contributor.
A selection of data reflecting trends in Saskatchewan and Ontario recorded
Following a decline in July, employ- employment gains that were partially
the Canadian construction industry
ment grew by 15,000 nationally in August, offset by losses in Nova Scotia and Mani-
while the unemployment rate remained toba, according to Statistics Canada. Em-
unchanged at 6.1 per cent. Growth in ployment was virtually unchanged in the
construction employment in Alberta, B.C. other provinces.
Labour force characteristics by province For the first eight months of
Jul-08 Aug-08 Jul to Aug 07 to Jul to Aug 07 2008, most employment gains have
Aug 08 Aug 08 Aug 2008 Aug 08 been in Ontario and the western
Seasonally adjusted provinces.
1000s change in 1000s % change August saw employment gains
Alberta in construction, as well as education-
Population 2,800.00 2,803.70 3.7 49.2 0.1 1.8 al services, utilities and accommoda-
Labour force 2,086.00 2,080.00 -6 39.4 -0.3 1.9 tion and food services. Declines in
Employment 2,010.90 2,006.70 -4.2 38.7 -0.2 2 health care and social assistance, ag-
Full-time 1,688.30 1,689.00 0.7 28.3 0 1.7 riculture and public administration
Part-time 322.6 317.7 -4.9 10.4 -1.5 3.4 partially offset this growth.
Unemployment 75.1 73.3 -1.8 0.7 -2.4 1 Employment in construction
Participation rate 74.5 74.2 -0.3 0.1 NA NA was up by 19,000 in August, con-
Unemployment rate 3.6 3.5 -0.1 -0.1 NA NA tinuing the strength seen over the
Employment rate 71.8 71.6 -0.2 0.2 NA NA past few years. August’s gains bring
British Columbia construction employment up 7.4
Population 3,645.30 3,651.50 6.2 73.1 0.2 2 per cent or 86,000 over the first eight
Labour force 2,432.10 2,429.30 -2.8 67.9 -0.1 2.9 months of the year, making it the
Employment 2,324.60 2,325.10 0.5 58 0 2.6 fastest-growing industry. Most of
Full-time 1,874.20 1,854.60 -19.6 38.2 -1 2.1 the increases were in British Co-
Part-time 450.3 470.5 20.2 19.8 4.5 4.4 lumbia, Alberta and Ontario.
Unemployment 107.5 104.2 -3.3 9.9 -3.1 10.5
Even though employment in
Participation rate 66.7 66.5 -0.2 0.5 NA NA
health care and social assistance
Unemployment rate 4.4 4.3 -0.1 0.3 NA NA
declined by 22,000 in August (mostly
Employment rate 63.8 63.7 -0.1 0.3 NA NA
in Alberta and Ontario) employment
Construction (Cda) 1231.3 1249.8 18.5 98.7 1.5 8.6
remains at a level similar to that at
Source: Statistics Canada the start of 2008.

Western building permits soften increase in value of building permits to Of the 34 census metropolitan ar-
$2.7 billion came as stronger industrial eas tracked in the research, 18 recorded
While Canada as a whole eked out a construction intentions offset declines in growth in the value of building permits.
1.8-per cent rebound in July building per- commercial and institutional permits. The step into negative territory did
mit values after a decline of 5.3 per cent in Weakness in commercial buildings not seem to earn much reaction from
June, Alberta and B.C. didn’t make it to the was recorded in B.C. and Ontario, while industry leaders, who both expected
party—recording declines of 3.9 per cent declines in the value of institutional some softening and felt that the con-
and 19 per cent respectively. permits were recorded in Alberta, Ontario struction economies in Alberta and B.C.
A report on construction intentions and Quebec. still continue at a torrid pace.
from Statistics Canada showed that growth
to $6.4 billion in permits nationally in July
was largely attributable to multi-family
dwelling permits in Central Canada and
strong industrial construction intentions
in Saskatchewan.
In the residential sector, the value of
building permits rose 2.7 per cent to $3.7
billion, mainly due to an increase in the
value of multi-family dwelling permits in
Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba.
In the industrial/commercial/institu-
tional (ICI) sector, the slight 0.6 per cent

Source: Statistics Canada

14 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
 Housing Starts, Actual and SAAR

Actual SAAR
Aug-07 Aug-08 Jul-07 Jul-08
Final Prelim. % change Final Prelim. % change
Canada, all areas 20,868 18,396 -11.8% 186,500 211,000 13.1%
Canada, rural areas 3,667 2,525 -31.1% 25,100 25,100 -0.0%
Canada, urban centres* 17,201 15,871 -7.7% 161,400 185,900 15.2%
Canada, singles, urban centres 8,526 6,406 -24.9% 69,800 71,200 2.0%
Canada, multiples, urban centres 8,675 9,465 9.1% 91,600 114,700 25.2%
Atlantic region, urban centres 1,071 783 -26.9% 8,700 7,700 -11.5%
Quebec, urban centres 3,221 2,869 -10.9% 41,200 37,600 -8.7%
Ontario, urban centres 5,721 7,768 35.8% 47,800 86,500 81.0%
Prairie region, urban centres 4,447 2,034 -54.3% 30,600 23,700 -22.5%
British Columbia, urban centres 2,741 2,417 -11.8% 33,100 30,400 -8.2%

SAAR=seasonally adjusted annual rates

*Urban centres with a population of 10,000 and over.
Source: CMHC

Housing starts decline, buck national trend

National housing starts showed healthy growth in August, were 16.8 per cent lower than they were a year earlier, while
rising to 211,000 units from a July total of 186,500 on a season- urban multiple starts were up by 17.6 per cent over the
ally adjusted basis, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing same period.
Corp. (CMHC) of Ottawa.
Starts in the Prairie and B.C. regions were not as
healthy, though, data released by CMHC indicated.
Actual starts in Prairie region (which includes Alberta)
urban centres declined from the August 2007 figure of
4,447 to August 2008’s 2,034, a 54.3 per cent drop. In season-
ally adjusted figures, a 22.5 per cent decline was registered
from 30,600 to 23,700.
The numbers for British Columbia urban centres were
a little better. Actual starts in August 2007 were 2,741,
dropping to 2,417 in August 2008 for an 11.8 per cent
decline. When seasonally adjusted, the numbers reflected
an 8.2 per cent decrease, from 33,100 to 30,400.
“Most of the volatility in housing starts over the last
three months reflected swings in multiple starts in Ontario,”
said Bob Dugan, chief economist at CMHC’s Market Analy-
sis Centre. “After a brief pause in July, the volatile multiple
segment bounced back to a level of activity that is more
consistent with our forecast for this year,”
The seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts
was down in every region except Ontario, where housing
starts jumped 81.0 per cent to 86,500. Urban starts sagged
22.5 per cent to 23,700 units in the Prairies and dropped
11.5 in Atlantic Canada. A smaller decline of 8.2 per cent
was recorded in British Columbia (30,400 units).
For the first eight months of 2008, actual starts in rural
and urban areas combined were down an estimated 4.3
per cent compared to the same period last year. Year-to-date
actual starts in urban areas have increased by an estimated
1.0 per cent over the same period in 2007. Actual urban
single starts for the January to August period of this year

Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 15

Photo: Jim Barnes
The
A
s populations boom in Western Canadian
cities and sustainability becomes the order
of the day, Alberta and B.C. are hard at work
on light-rail transit—with major system expansions underway
or planned in Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary. These are
spectacular projects.
A challenging question about LRT construction recently
came from Naomi Lakritz, a columnist in a Calgary newspaper.
She asked why it was taking three years to extend the C-Train
line in Calgary four km. when the Canadian Pacific Railway
was built from Ontario to B.C. in just four years. Ian Norris,
Calgary’s director of transportation infrastructure, made a
valiant effort to respond, but somehow his point of view failed
to impress Lakritz.
We can’t say whether LRT expansion in Calgary is happening
as fast as it should, but the answer to Lakritz’s broader question
touches both on modern concerns in construction and the
unique place in Canadian history held by the CPR.
• First of all, the objectives of the projects were totally
different. For the Canada of the late 1800s, the CPR railway was
like the Apollo program. It was an urgent national priority that
transcended politics and cost. B.C.’s entry to Confederation was
contingent on quick completion of this rail line, and Canada’s
future was literally at stake. LRT expansion, of course, is a
much more sedate and fiscally responsible kind of project—
and that’s a different kind of vision.
• No construction project today could
be run like the CPR of the early days, which con-
stantly teetered on the edge of bankruptcy and plunged
the Canadian government deeply into debt.
• LRT projects go through an unending suite of consultations
and approvals, not to mention detailed design. The CPR faced
no such delays. The rail line was built at maximum speed in a
straight line no matter what was in the way… including Black-
foot territory and the Rocky Mountains (through which there
was no known pass when construction started).
• Traffic management was not an issue for the CPR, but
contractors working on the LRTs must cope with tens of thou-
sands of cars a day, often in urban areas.
• Labour was an issue, too. LRT workers are well-trained,
reasonably paid and in much shorter supply than the 12,000
CPR workers—some of whom were virtually slaves. Safety was
a non-issue; the death toll in building the CPR was horrifying.
Safety is stringent on the LRT projects and accidents of any
kind are rare.
• Finally, the construction quality is completely dissimilar.
Some parts of the CPR had to be repaired practically immediately
after the line was opened, whereas no such surprises are expected
from the LRTs.
The answer to the question has to be that the LRTs are care-
fully planned, budgeted, designed and built business projects.
The CPR was the “National Dream” of the 19th century. They
both run on rails, but that’s where the similarity ends.
You have to wonder what a modern contractor would do
with a job like “Just lay track west as fast as you can, whatever
it costs, and don’t stop for anything.”
We take a look at the status of current LRT projects in Alberta
and B.C.—models of careful and professional construction—over
the next few pages.
Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 17
 Canada Line
an Olympian triumph
by Margaret Boyes
V
ancouver has a two-decade-plus history of light-rail
transit (LRT) construction, dating back to completion
of the Expo Line in time for the Expo 86 World’s Fair.
Its current total of nearly 50 km. of track makes SkyTrain the
world’s longest automated LRT system.
Another global event is driving the deadlines for the current
LRT project. The Canada Line will be operational well before
the 2010 Winter Olympics. Originally called the Richmond-
Airport-Vancouver (RAV) Line, the 19-km. long system will be
an automated, rail-based system operated by the South Coast
British Columbia Transportation Authority (Translink). As the
original name suggests, it will connect Vancouver with central
Richmond and the Vancouver Airport, massively increasing
the city’s transit capacity. Construction began in November,
2005 and the line is scheduled to open November 30, 2009.
RAV Project Management (RAVCO), a subsidiary of TransLink,
provides governance of the Canada Line. The line is being built
by SNC-Lavalin, which will operate it for 35 years. In 2009 the line
should carry 100,000 passengers a day and 142,000 by 2021.
“InTransitBC has a contract to design, build and operate
the Canada Line and to partially finance it,” explains Steve
Crombie, vice-president of public affairs. “Technically, IntransitBC
Photo: SNC-Lavalin
Bored tunnels were a first for Vancouver.
18 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
was created to manage the Canada Line overall. There is a
35-year concession agreement between InTransitBC and the
Canada Line Rapid Transit Co., which represents the public
side of the P3. They represent all government funding agencies
and the greater Vancouver transit authority. So InTransitBC
has a very large presence on this project.”
Heavy traffic
The project has offered many major challenges, says Crombie,
some of them centred around building elevated guideways
through parts of Vancouver and Richmond. “We’re building 19
km. of transit system, including tunnels and elevated guideways,
through busy urban areas. Stations in downtown Vancouver
require opening at least a block of downtown Vancouver in
three different locations,” he says. “We have a cut-and-cover
tunnel along the Cambie corridor and an elevated guideway
down Number Three Road in Richmond.”
“At the peak of the project, about 1,800 people were work-
ing—which doesn’t necessarily include all the suppliers and
people peripherally associated with it,” he notes.
One of the real challenges is traffic management. “One
goal we and the cities of Vancouver and Richmond had was

Broadway Station construction
shows urban challenge.
to keep traffic flowing. We built a tunnel along Cambie Street
while maintaining north/south traffic and cross streets.”
Construction methods were pretty standard, says Crombie,
apart from tunnelling. “The company that did the bored tunnel
brought their own crew and trained local people. Otherwise,
construction methods were standard.”
Crombie credits flexible project management with helping
to accelerate the project. For example, dramatic success with
a cut-and-cover tunnel near Queen Elizabeth Park was used
in the Cambie business area, where another approach had
been contemplated. “We were going to do the tunnel down the
middle of Cambie, using a very large gantry crane, and have
traffic flowing in two lanes on either side of the excavation. But
we recognized that the method for the cut-and cover we used
near Queen Elizabeth Park was so efficient that we knew we
could speed things up by changing the construction method.”
It meant more intensive traffic disruption for a shorter period
of time. “We finished that area four months early by making a
judgment and changing methodology. The project manage-
ment system is astute at finding new ways of doing things and
adapting,” says Crombie.
People issues
According to Crombie, there hasn’t been a problem attract-
ing labour, partly because this is the biggest transportation
infrastructure project in Canada. “I think people take pride in
working on a project like this. Also, a multi-year project means
fairly steady employment.”
Most of the trades are from B.C. but many of the rebar
workers came from Quebec, notes Crombie. “We had foreign
bored-tunnelers from an Italian company called Seli, which
specializes in tunnel boring. They had people who had run
20 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
Photo: SNC-Lavalin
this kind of machine before, and it had never been used in B.C.
There were about 40 people on that crew.”
As a P3, the Canada Line project requires relationship
building, “because we deal with not only the private sector and
contractors but also various levels of government and public
bodies. Cooperation and trust among parties is vital. They
don’t necessarily exist on a typical project. Managing relationships
has gone well on this project.”
“Flexibility, innovation and creativity have allowed us to
work well within a tight schedule. We’re contractually required
to have trains in revenue service by November 30, 2008. We
hope to have the line up and running earlier, which would be
a major feat.”
“We’re building 19 km. of transit system,
including tunnels and elevated guideways,
through busy urban areas.”
Roger Woodhead is technical director of SNC Lavalin,
which has the contract to design and build the Canada Line.
They are a one-third partner with InTransitBC.
Some problems stemmed from managing such a large group
of people, he says. “There are many layers in the organization—
with innumerable chances for miscommunication. We’re man-
aging a group that includes stakeholders and contractors and
engineers with diverse skills.”
“You need a skilled management team who communicate
well with each other and get along. One advantage is that SNC
Lavalin plays a big role; we don’t have partners and can make
quick decisions.”

Coping with utilities
Woodhead, too, says that keeping traffic moving had to be a
priority. “This tunnel had to cross the east/west street. We built
temporary bridges across the east/west street to carry traffic
above the tunnel. When you’re building bridges, you have to
dig up half the street to put half the bridge in. Then, when you
get the street down to only two lanes and take the bridges out,
we have the same problem.”
“Utilities cross over the tunnel, so we made sure the tunnel
alignment was such that we missed them or we had to replace
them. We spent a lot of time on that in the planning stage. Where
we avoided utilities, we put temporary supports across the top
of the excavation to hang utilities above that tunnel. There are
many places where that tunnel skims underneath utilities.”
Woodhead cites the intitiative as a success. We had two in-
cidents that are very minor, compared to the number of utilities
diverted or temporarily supported.”
“It’s the first extradosed bridge built in North
America,” says Woodhead.
Small innovations helped speed up the work. “One was
special formwork for the cut-and-cover tunnels. We could
pour the walls and the roofs in one pour. It’s been done before,
but maybe not in Vancouver.”
As well, he notes, “This is the first bored tunnel in Vancouver.
The bridge over the North Arm of the Fraser River also reflected
innovation. The river is an active marine way that is under the
flight path of the Vancouver National Airport. “It’s the first extra-
dosed bridge built in North America,” says Woodhead.
“The cables are attached low because of the flight path. That
means the slope of the cables is quite shallow. Where in a nor-
mal, cable-stayed bridge, the cables tend to slope at about 45
deg. so they help lift the bridge up. In this case, the cables are
much flatter—they post-tension the bridge, more than lift it.”
Woodhead credits local experience with helping advance
the project quickly. “There’s an experienced Vancouver workforce
that has built rapid-transit systems before. On the elevated guide-
Extradosed bridge design took
airport flight path into account.
22 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
Photo: In Transit BC.
Cut-and-cover operation
on Cambie St.
way, we used the segmental precast construction method, similar
to that used on the Millenium Line… People who had worked
on the Millenium Line worked on this project. The electrical
and mechanical systems and the track work were similar… We
have experienced contractors in Vancouver who can install
track work and electrical systems.”
“There have been many changes during construction,”
notes Woodhead. People would often make suggestions that
led to innovation.
One example he cites was a conflict between completing
a station on time and servicing the tunnel-boring machine.
“The station couldn’t be started until the tunnel was finished,
and this would have caused schedule problems—there are
some critical rooms in that station that we need to operate
the system. We actually moved those rooms out of the station
into the cut-and-cover tunnel, so we could build those rooms
while the tunnel-boring machine was still working. That’s one
change we made during construction, and there are many others,
because our management system is so flexible.”
Experience counts
Ron Fettback, general superintendent of Western Pacific
Enterprises (WPE), is in charge of building projects and oversees
labour and work contracts. He says the firm’s experience on
systems like the Expo Line and the Millennium Line gave them
the expertise needed for the Canada Line. “We haven’t had any
challenges that were unexpected,” he says.
Most of WPE’s work is on communiciation cabling, but
Fettback says they also built the Richmond maintenance and
operations facility and installed the electrical alarm. Training is
an ongoing focus at WPE. “All of our crane operators and such Photo: SNC-Lavalin
 Photo: SNC–Lavalin
have special training. We sent most crane operators to
special weekend courses. But our company is diversi-
fied, so it might be called special training that we do
regularly. We got all our trades locally.
Fettback knew that the project management
would be challenging based on the tight schedule,
so he approached it from four different fronts.
“One team works on the Richmond section and
another on the Marine Drive-to-Vancouver section.
Construction at Vancouver City Centre.
A cleanup crew comes in behind to do testing, com-
missioning and station work. And a fourth crew
goes down toward Vancouver, to finish the last two some challenges through a partnership with engineering and
kilometres of the system,” he says. “In the past, we would have construction. We worked with engineers to find practical
used one team over a longer time span. Because the durations buildable solutions, and the engineers helped create designs
are shorter on this, we have a different perspective.” to facilitate those solutions.”
“The stack section of the tunnel was about five and a half
Trench warfare metres wide and about 12 metres deep. We put public traffic
Chad Tenney is construction manager of Tyam Construction, on one side of the work zone. We kept space for construction
responsible for the cut-and-cover portion of the Canada Line. traffic on the other and modified equipment so we could be
One big challenge was digging a huge trench down Cambie St., productive in a small working area. If we hadn’t, the process
which meant accomodating traffic. “The road had to be kept would have been slower.”
open and maintained for north/south traffic as well as east/west We also designed sophisticated utility supports where the
traffic, through six or seven designated intersections,” he notes. tunnels go beneath utilities, so if we didn’t impact them, we’d
Utilities are also a concern. “Vancouver has an aging infra- hold them in place.”
structure,” says Tenney. Some of the records on where the utilities
are located are incomplete or non-existent. “We couldn’t find Communications
everything,” he says. Tyam had a sophisticated scheduling system and tracked
During construction, Tyam changed the tunnel to accom- the quantities of material used or excavated daily. “That was
modate existing utilities. “The construction of the tunnel, the a key in project management and finishing our section about
excavation and concrete work was easier than we thought. four months early.”
Most ground conditions were good.” No special training, beyond safety training, was required,
Shotcrete and soil anchors were used to shore up the exca- explains Tenney. “Many iron workers were from Quebec and
vation. “The excavation was in place and very deep and very skilled trades came from northern B.C. and Alberta. Many
narrow. In order to excavate in those areas, we had to modify of them were tired of living in camps and wanted to live in
the excavators and drills to install the soil anchors. Because it’s Vancouver,” says Tenney. He even had two workers on day pa-
a repetitive process, once we found the best way to excavate role. “We paid very competitively with the market.”
material and shore the excavation, it went smoothly,” he says. The Canada Line is looking like a winner, and other LRT
Tenney worked closely with the city to develop traffic- projects are on the horizon. Another system, the Evergreen
management plans and communicate what was happening, Line (from Lougheed Town Centre to Coquitlam Town Centre),
“So the public knew when roads would be closed and which is in the planning stage and has a tentative completion target
areas would have construction. Lots of signage helped notify of 2014. Planning is also underway for a Broadway Line from
people and diverted traffic away from Cambie Street.” VCC-Clark station to the University of British Columbia and
Time, effort and money was spent on digging holes to locate expansion of the Expo Line into Surrey.
utilities. “We worked with agencies in the City of Vancouver and Mass transit will be a major contributor to B.C.’s economy
the Greater Vancouver Regional District, B.C. Hydro and Ter- well beyond the Olympics, as Canada’s Pacific gateway grows
asen Gas. We and their staff planned and engineered solutions in scope, and it will have long-term environmental benefits.
around utilities or relocated them.” Vancouver is becoming an international showplace of the
“To relocate fibre optic lines, you can’t just cut them and benefits of mass transit, thanks in part to innovation from con-
move them, because customers rely on telephone and internet struction contractors. u
service. They need lots of notification. We didn’t relocate any
Telus work but worked around it,” he says. B.C. Hydro was called Margaret Boyes is WCN’s B.C. correspondent. She resides in
in to deal with high-voltage transmission lines. “We overcame Victoria. Contact: editor@on-sitemag.com.

24 Western Construction News | Fall 2008

 LRT is Edmonton’s largest
infrastructure project
by Don Buchanan
I
n Edmonton, during the “construction season” of 2008—
otherwise known as summer—the spotlight shone brightly
on a wide range of construction contractors, who jointly
withstood the heat and generally made significant and timely
progress on many aspects of the $673-million South LRT Ex-
tension project.
“This project is the largest infrastructure project ever led
by the city of Edmonton and is a major step forward in increasing
ridership and the practicality of the city’s LRT system,” said Brad
Griffith, design and construction director for the city’s Transit
Projects Branch. “The fact that most parts of this southern line
have to be built by going around or through existing road-
ways and infrastructure makes it inherently more costly and
complicated, especially compared to the existing northbound
leg, which was built on an existing railway right-of-way in
advance of the 1978 Commonwealth Games.”
“To ensure we received a sufficient
number of competitive bids on some of the
tendered work, we had to break out the
work into smaller bid packages.”
“Doing the work over the last few years in Alberta’s boom
economy has also been a huge challenge,” stated Griffith. “As
the project owner, we’ve been faced with labour shortages,
inflationary pressures and, at times, a shortage of contractors.
To ensure we received a sufficient number of competitive bids
on some of the tendered work, we had to break out the work
into smaller bid packages.”
Effective risk management practices
have kept project running smoothly.
The City of Edmonton hired Edmonton-based Stantec as
managing consultant to oversee the contractors engaged by
the City and to lead the planning and design of the South LRT
Extension. “As the managing consultant we have overseen the
work of more than 50 design firms, engineering consultants
and construction contractors on different aspects of this
project,” said Rob Fewings, Stantec’s South LRT Extension
project manager.
Risk management
Fewings noted that effective risk management has been a
top priority on the project. “We hold regular risk management
sessions and categorize risks on a priority basis. In general,
the biggest hurdle for most of the contracted firms and con-
struction companies has been the chronic labour shortage—
but other issues are in the mix, such as inflation, scheduling
issues, rerouting of traffic, and dealing with citizen concerns
before and during construction.”
The South LRT Extension project runs approximately 7.5
km. southward from the existing Health Sciences station on the
main University of Alberta campus to 23rd Ave. near the high-
density Century Park development. The South LRT Extension
includes four new LRT stations and is expected to trigger a dou-
bling in daily ridership on the system.
The first two stations to open will be the McKernan/Belgravia
station, located about one km. south of the main University of
Alberta campus, and the South Campus station, located an-
other two km. further south near some important university
athletic facilities and several provincial government office
complexes. These stations are on track to open in the spring
Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 25
of 2009, followed by the Southgate and Century Park stations
which will open in mid-2010, effectively completing the South
LRT Extension project.
Costs grow
Griffith noted that the original budget for the South LRT
Extension allowed for eight per cent inflation per annum, but
given the major boom in 2006 and 2007, costs on the project
were higher than budgeted. “Cost increases were relatively
minimal for some components of the work, such as signalling,
while costs for roadwork and excavation rose by up to 40 per
cent, so our cost increases averaged out at about 20 per cent
per year for 2006 and 2007.”
As one means of managing overall project costs, Griffith
said that the construction of two LRT stations on the southern
line was tendered as construction-management contracts,
instead of design-bid-build contracts. “This process was fol-
lowed for the Southgate and Century Park stations and we
engaged PCL Construction Management Inc. as the construction
manager for this work. They have done a great job in tendering
and overseeing the subcontracted work on those two stations,”
says Griffith.
PCL Construction Management Inc. was also engaged
as the construction manager for expansion work on the D.L.
MacDonald light rail vehicle (LRV) maintenance facility, located
in the City’s north end. The expanded facility will be used to
maintain the city’s growing fleet of LRVs, including 37 new cars
South LRT: Construction Features
• Four LRT stations: McKernan/Belgravia, South
Campus, Southgate and Century Park. Transit centres
(for buses) will be associated with South Campus,
Southgate and Century Park Stations.
• The McKernan/Belgravia station features a pe-
destrian underpass, under 114 St. at 76 Ave. This facilitates
pedestrian safety for local residents and children attend-
ing a nearby elementary-junior high school.
• Two LRT underpasses—a 114-m. tunnel under
Belgravia Road, and a 90-m. underpass beneath the
southbound lanes of 111 St. to bring the LRT into the
median, south of 61 Ave.
• A one-way bridge (“busway”) connecting buses from
the South Campus Transit Centre to Fox Dr., facilitating
commuter access to Edmonton’s west end.
• A bridge over Whitemud Dr. for the LRT, just south
of the Southgate station.
• 37 new LRVs (Light Rail Vehicles) have been ordered.
The first car arrived in May 2008.
• A fully landscaped multi-use recreation trail follows
the entire length of track.
26 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
Roadwork and excavation
costs grew by 20 per cent.
that were ordered to ensure sufficient carrying capacity on the
expanded LRT system. Each car can hold up to 160 people and
LRT trains will run with up to five cars at a time.
Cooperation
Roger Dootson, vice-president of PCL Construction Man-
agement Inc., noted that in addition to the three construction-
management contracts, PCL also won five other contracts on
different portions of the LRT South Extension project. “The
total value of work being done by PCL is about $230 million.
For each part of the work that we are doing, we have had great
cooperation from the city and the various departments, par-
ticularly the traffic-operations group and the transit depart-
ment. Given all of the transit and traffic issues, such as revised
bus stops, traffic detours and lane closures, we couldn’t have
kept things on schedule this summer without this proactive
approach from the city’s departments.”
Dootson also noted that the PCL team has had to work
closely with utility companies, the city and design personnel
to deal with challenges relating to existing utility installations.
“In some cases, we had to adapt as we went and redesigned
around existing utility installations to ensure they were functional
within the new LRT system.”
Public safety issues and workplace safety have also been
prominent concerns on this project, added Dootson. “For ex-
ample, when building a pedway over a major roadway at the
Southgate station site, we ensured that all of the critical lifts
of the steel structure components took place at night, under
carefully supervised conditions. We have stringent policies
and procedures for these special events and we want to ensure
that workers and the public are safe at all times.”
 Another tricky angle has been the limited amount of lay-
down space at various sites, explained Dootson. “At the Century
Park station site, space is really at a premium. This requires
good organization of materials and a strong focus on effective
progression of the work.”
Fewings suggested that “Nothing has been a walk in the
park” on this project. Considering that this project pushes
right through an urban centre—a first for the city—all of our
contractors and subcontractors have done an amazing job.”

Deep trench The chronic labour shortage

Much of the excavation and underground utilities work
on the South LRT Extension has been contracted by PCL Con-
struction Management to Edmonton-based Sprague-Rosser
Contracting. Jeff Jessamine, vice-president and general manager
at Sprague-Rosser, confirmed that some aspects of the project
have been “extremely challenging.”
“The deeper you dig, the bigger the challenge, especially
working within existing infrastructure with minimal working
room. We have now completed all of the deep trenching related
to the underground utilities, trenching at variable depths ranging
from two to ten metres,” he says.
was a major project risk.
“Beyond the basic excavation work, we have been chal-
lenged most recently with our work on a sewer-line drop shaft
at a major southside intersection. This involves work within
multiple shoring systems as we build the drop shaft at the
sewer outlet that connects to the existing storm-water tunnel. We
needed to have extensive shoring in place to maintain sur-
rounding roadways and pedestrian accesses, and for safety
reasons. You have to proceed cautiously and diligently, ensuring
the sides of the excavations remain stable.”

28 Western Construction News | Fall 2008

 Jessamine acknowledged that the project is high-profile of consultants and contractors involved in this project, it has
work and that he and his firm have had to work very closely been a very cooperative effort.” u
with PCL, the city, consultants, engineers and residents to deal
with such public concerns as traffic issues and keeping dust
levels down. “You have to be mindful that everything you do Don Buchanan is WCN's Alberta correspondent. He is based in
may affect the local community, including commuters that Edmonton. Contact: editor@on-sitemag.com
use the roadways affected by the work.”
He added, “Each geographical area
or portion of the work has its own set
of hazards. Whether it’s dealing with
power lines or keeping pedestrians out
of the work area, it takes a lot of pre-
planning to coordinate the work and
manage all the possible hazards while
maintaining construction schedules.”
Among the other challenges on
the project was the grade-separa-
tion work relating to a cut-and-cover
tunnel going under Belgravia Road
between the McKernan/Belgravia sta-
tion and the South Campus station.
Fewings explained, “For this work,
coordination was critical, as there
was one contractor doing work on
the north side of Belgravia Road,
another contractor responsible for
the south side, and one in the middle
responsible for the tunnel work.
This was a big challenge, but the end
result was great and it’s a nice feature
of the system.”
Fewings also suggested that
“stakeholder involvement” has been
huge throughout this project and
that the city’s approach during plan-
ning and design phases allowed for
citizen inputs and promoted buy-in,
helping to keep the project moving
forward in relative peace, despite the
disruptions to traffic patterns and
roadways on the city’s south side.
Fewings confirmed that Stan-
tec and the city have had to deal
with many stresses on a project of
this scope, but offered that a strong
“partnering” and collaborative ap-
proach has been helpful. “We manage
the stress and day-to-day issues by
keeping discussions open, friendly
and professional. Given the number

Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 29

Technology accelerates LRT project
Staff report
One example of the kind of innovation taking place in the
South LRT expansion is a two-cell, cut-and-cover tunnel being
built by Aecon Construction and Materials Ltd. The 111th St.
underpass—about 500 m. long, 20 m. wide and eight m. below
ground level at its deepest point—includes a 90-m. long, five-
m. high, 11-m. wide tunnel for LRT tracks.
The tunnel project involved an array of unconventional
technologies—the use of self-compacting concrete (SCC), a
massive, monolithic pour of the sides and roof and sophisti-
cated steel formwork.
When the job was first being planned, a more conventional
approach was on the table, according to Dustin Dolynchuk,
project coordinator, Aecon Infrastructure Group, Western Div.
in Edmonton. The original concept was to do the wall and roof
separately and to build the tunnel in six-m. sections.
The potential for accelerating the work turned Aecon toward
the idea of a monolithic pour of SCC in 48- and 42-m. sections.

30 Western Construction News | Fall 2008

 Photo: Doka Canada
The 600-mm. thick tunnel floor would be poured first. Then,
the 600-mm. thick walls and the 450-mm. thick roof would be
poured simultaneously. The result would be a stronger structure,
a shorter schedule and lower formwork rental costs.
SCC was a major time-saver, since it eliminated the need
for vibration. Agilia SCC from LaFarge North America was
used. It required about a quarter the time to pour as regular
concrete and left a good finish.
The SCC required some planning. “There is a limit to how
much you can pour at the same time, because of the concrete’s
tendency to crack if it’s poured all at once. This was one of the
larger sizes that we have done,” notes Dolynchuk. To control
cracking, all of the construction joints were retained in the
wall by means of plastic crack initiator strips. The monolithic
pour virtually eliminated the use of any water stops in the
underpass; no cold joists were produced between the walls
and the slab. The panels required minimum tie-holes, which
helped reduce post-pour filling.
CSC standards require the forms for SCC to be designed
Frank Atwood (L) and for a full, liquid head. “With normal concrete compositions,
Dustin Dolynchuk on-site.
equations are used to predict the lateral pressure that develops
as you pour,” explains Greg Pereira, Doka Canada Ltd. in Calgary,

Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 31


Monolithic pour accelerated progress.
the formwork designer. “For a pour rate of, say, one metre an
hour, you would know the maximum pressure reached and
can design the formwork accordingly.”
SCC is a different story. “You have to design as if it’s go-
ing to be full liquid head—as if you’ve got, say, five metres of
hydrostatic pressure. The only way to work around that and
see how the preassure developes is to monitor it as you pour,”
explains Pereira. “SCC can have somewhat of an unpredictable
pressure envolope.”
Forms were simple to relocate.
Pressure sensors were installed to monitor the pour to keep
from overloading the formwork. The pressures that developed
were quite manageable, notes Dolynchuk. In fact, he says, “We
could have doubled our pour rate.”
The use of specially designed formwork also helped acceler-
ate the project. “We had used the forms before on small sumps,”
Dolynchuk says, because they were “quicker than wood forms
32 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
Photo: Aecon/Dolynchuk
and more precise.” However, Aecon had not used this technology
on a project of this size before.
Doka’s Framax S Xlife panels were combined with Dokaflex
tables and supported by Staxo 100 towers. The towers, designed
in a table configuration, could readily be transported, set up
and reused. When the towers are stripped, they are wheeled
out of the tunnel and picked up the same way tables are lifted,
with lifting straps. The towers are then set to the new position
for the next pour and the walls are stripped and set up in the
new location.
The tunnel project involved an array of unconventional
technologies—the use of self-compacting concrete,
a massive, monolithic pour of the sides and roof and
sophisticated steel formwork.
It took about three weeks from the standing of the first
panel to the completion of the first 48.8-m. pour of the underpass.
Work on this part of the tunnel was completed in eight weeks.
Using conventional technology might have taken a year or
more, according to Dolynchuk.
Some 50 employees were involved on the $26-million project
at its peak. Aecon personnel included Oliver Pederson, senior
superintendent; Frank Atwood, site superintendent; Dustin
Dolynchuk, project coordinator; Leta Keating, project admin-
istrator; and Clayton Tucker, senior contracts manager.
The second half of the tunnel has been poured and work is
underway on the retaining walls and portal face for the tunnel
entrance. Project completion is scheduled for March 2009u
Calgary’s West LRT picking up steam
by Don Buchanan

C
algary’s C-Train LRT system has the highest volume
of any such system in North America, estimated at
271,100 boardings per weekday in the fourth quarter of
2007. Expansion would seem to be in the cards, and the city
has announced a design-build project called the West LRT to
all interested parties.
The West LRT line will expand the City’s Light Rail Transit
(LRT) service into southwest Calgary. Construction is slated
to begin in early 2010 and the new C-Train line is expected to
open in December 2012.
In November 2007, Calgary city council approved $700
million to fund the project. Preliminary design-engineering
work is being carried out by Calgary-based Hatch Mott Mac-
Donald (HMM). Early design work took place between February
and May 2008 and the proposed alignment for the new line
was approved by Council in June 2008. Contracts for C-Train expansion
“The next step is to issue a Request for Qualifications,” will be awarded in 2009.
explained Ryan Murray, communications advisor for the West

Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 33

LRT. “The RFQ will occur in November 2008, followed by a
Request for Proposals in February 2009. By September 2009,
we will announce the preferred proponent and subsequently
award the contract.”
Project scope
• Eight km. of new LRT track including at-grade,
elevated, tunnelled and trenched sections
• LRT ballast and track work
• Six new LRT stations, including at-grade, elevated,
tunnelled and trenched
• Traction power, signals and communications
systems
• Integration, testing and commissioning the
LRT system
• Additional infrastructure: roads, bridges, utilities,
park and rides, pedestrian access structures, bus
terminals, roadway signage and lighting
• Traffic management and detours
34 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
West LRT Project Director Jon Halford, explained that the
design-build method was chosen because it can better accom-
modate the project’s aggressive schedule when compared to
other standard means of project construction. “As the project
owner, the key is to set clear and firm parameters for the design-
build team.”
Halford noted that using traditional design-bid-build or
construction-management methods for completion of a single
new LRT station can typically take up to a year for the design
phase alone, and up to two or three years overall.
“Using the design-build method, we anticipate that the
work will proceed faster, including being able to complete six
new stations on the West LRT over the duration of the contract.”
The West LRT project office will issue more details on the
project scope in an information package that will be available
in September 2008. A further bulletin will be issued in October
to update industry on the project status. u
For more information on the West LRT, visit www.westlrt.ca.
Alberta still solid, says report
I
f the Albertan economy has problems, they are problems
that the rest of North America wishes it had. After a truly
blistering pace of growth in the mid years of the decade,
Alberta’s economy has slowed down to—solid growth, says a
summary released in summer.
According to the document, Still Strong: Alberta Economic
Profile and Forecast, published by the Canada West Foundation
(CWF), Alberta’s economy blew the doors off the national
numbers in 2004 and 2005, recording five per cent growth.
But that was nothing. The report’s author, Brett Garner, senior prices, high costs, a strong Canadian dollar and the uncertainty
economist at CWF, noted that growth hit 6.6 per cent in 2006, caused by the provincial government’s royalty review.
roughly three times higher than the rest of Canada. CWF expects Alberta to outperform the national economy
Growth did slow in 2007. Real GDP expanded by 3.3 per this year and next. The report cites a considerable amount of
cent, comparable to Alberta’s average since the early 1980s and downside risk, including economic tough times in the U.S.—
above last year’s national average. Alberta’s biggest customer. Other issues include negative pres-
Driving the decline were weaker growth in retail sales, sure on the price of oil from slowing global growth, volatile
weakness in housing starts and prices and slower employment natural gas prices, climbing costs and the perennial shortage
growth. But none of these translated to a down economy— of labour.
Alberta still led the country in job creation. The Alberta economy is still solid, notes the report. It is
The all-important oil-and-gas sector has slowed down forecasting real GDP growth of 3.1 per cent for 2008 and 3.2
appreciably. Garner attributes this to declines in natural gas per cent for 2009. u

Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 35

 WCN
October 2008

DON’T MISS OUT!

Your FREE copies of Western Construction News are included with your On-Site subscription.
Please fill in the following and mail today!

www.on-sitemag.com > Go to: Magazine Subscription

NO.

Please answer the following questions to renew your free subscription.

Incomplete forms cannot be processed.
1. What best describes your primary business? (Choose only one)
0160 Contractor engaged in Highway & Heavy Construction
0150 Contractor engaged in Building Construction
890A Civil Engineering & Specifiers
0320 Producer of Stone & Concrete Products
870H Distributors & Rental Houses
0970 Government & Public Works
0990 Other (please specify)
2. Do you rent equipment? Yes No
3. Do you wish to receive our monthly E-Newsletter? Yes No
4. What is the approximate number
of employees at this location?_______________
5. Are you a contractor who works with concrete related
Simply fill out this form today!

products and services? Yes No

6. Do you specify, purchase and/or approve the purchase of
construction products or services? Yes No
If Yes, please indicate those products and services that you
intend to specify/purchase within the next 12 months
25 Earth moving equipment
26 Compact Equipment
38 Safety Equipment
27 Paving Equipment
28 Dump Trucks
37 Used Equipment
07 Pick-Up Trucks
29 Trailers
30 Generators
31 Attachments
34 Hand Tools
32 Compressors
33 Lifting Equipment
35 Power Tools
39 Welding Tools

On-Site MAGAZINE
One Mount Pleasant Road 7th Floor, Toronto ON, M4Y 2Y5 Fax: 416.764.1748
Publisher reserves the right to determine qualification & limit distribution.
WCN ADVERTISERS’ INDEX & WEBSITES

Ambex Concrete Technologies.... www.ambexcorp.com ...................31 Miniveyor......................................... www.miniveyor.net.........................31

Breaker Technology Inc................ www.rockbreaker.com...................23 Multiquip.......................................... www.multiquip.com........................30

Butler Survey Supplies.................. www.butlersurvey.com..................16 Petro-Canada Lubricants.....................http://lubricants.petro-canada.ca ... 21

CAT Rental....................................... www.catrents.ca...............................4 SMS Equipment.............................. www.smsequip.com.......................40

Construction Safety Network....... www.safetynetwork.bc.ca............35 Spatial Technologies..................... www.spatialtechnologies.ca..........2

Doka Canada Ltd............................. www.doka.com................................19 TD Bank............................................ www.tdcanadatrust.com.................9

Etobicoke Iron Works.................... www.eiw-ca.com............................35 Towmaster....................................... www.towmastertrailers.com........28

Finning.............................................. www.finning.ca...............................11 Tramac.............................................. www.tramac.com............................37

Huber Reversible Fans.................. www.huberfan.com........................37 Western Surety Company.............. www.westernsurety.ca..................15

IPEX................................................... www.ipexinc.com...........................29 World of Asphalt............................. www.worldofasphalt.com.............39

Land Measurement Systems........ www.lmssurvey.com......................33 World of Concrete.......................... www.worldofconcrete.com..........27

Lower Mainland Steel................... www.lmsgroup.ca.......................6, 34 The WCN Advertisers’ Index is provided as a free service
Mack................................................. www.macktrucks.com...................13 to our advertisers.

Fall 2008 | Western Construction News 37

Point of view
by Tonia Jurbin
Changed conditions
W hat’s going on at the Seymour-Capilano Filtration Project
(SCFP)?
I’ve been following the Seymour-Cap epic and most of the
associated projects for seven years. I’ve published some half-
dozen articles, attended two moving St. Barbara celebrations
and have a genuine fondness for the project.
St. Barbara—the patron saint of those who work under-
ground or with explosives—is commonly celebrated in Europe.
Bilfinger Berger (BB), a European contractor, built a modest
shrine in her honour at the bottom of the shaft and celebrated
her day annually.
It’s an interesting project. Explosive compaction was used
downstream of an operating dam, the capacity of the Seymour
UV disinfection plant is the largest in the world, the filtration
capacity the largest in Canada, green-roof technology is planned
for the filtration plant and clear wells and the twin tunnels are
the largest civil tunneling project in B.C. in decades.
The $600-million undertaking includes a pumping station
(one of Canada’s largest) and energy-recovery plant at Capilano
with twin, 7.1-km., 3.8-m. dia. tunnels that will eventually carry
untreated water from the Capilano reservoir to be treated at
Seymour and then returned. Over and above the $600 million,
three dams that hold back Metro Vancouver’s (MV) water supply
have undergone major upgrades.
So why has Seymour-Cap been shut down?
In a nutshell, the wheels that pushed this project started
turning in 1984 when the City of Vancouver determined that
the Canadian drinking-water standards were not consistently
being met in its water supply. The pH level was often low, non-
pathogenic bacteria were present and the turbidity was often
higher than the standards.
In 2003, three of eight pre-qualified contractors bid on
the tunnels. BB was the winning bid at $99 million, the next-
higher bid was $186 million and the highest was $237 million.
BB wanted to enter the North American market, it liked the
terms of the contract, and—I remember this well—it liked the
dispute-resolution mechanism, so they bid aggressively. The
engineer’s estimate wasn’t divulged.
The tunnels were to be bored over four years, starting and
finishing in the fall of 2004 and 2008 respectively. Difficulties
with sinking the 640-m. entry shaft put BB behind schedule
from the get-go, but during my visit in late 2006, they were still
confident they’d make the deadline.
Fast-forward to January 2008, 4.1 km. into the raw-water
tunnel and 3.8 km. into the treated tunnel—and it’s over!
38 Western Construction News | Fall 2008
BB claimed that rock conditions were causing safety issues.
MV’s consultants issued a plan to address these concerns, but
BB rejected it, countering with a “pay as you go” option. In re-
sponse, MV terminated their right to work.
Today some $38-million worth of equipment is sitting idle;
MV has seized one of the tunnel-boring machines under the
terms of the contract (the other is leased); and BB is suing MV
for $22 million.
How will the work proceed? Submissions for “Expressions
of Interest and Statement of Qualifications” closed in August.
MV hopes to pre-qualify three contractors. Déjà vu. Since the
job is about half done and the original duration was four years,
I suppose it would be fair to allow two more years—but I doubt
the bids to complete the work will be anywhere near $99 million
in this market.
Meanwhile an interim contractor has 30 workers maintaining
the pumps so that the tunnel doesn’t flood and destroy the
electrical components of all the gear that may not see the light
of day for years to come. It will be many more years before MV
or BB is vindicated.
Ironically, MV has started a campaign to get people off bottled
water and the City of Vancouver is talking about an outright
ban. In fairness, the filtration plant is on schedule and filtered
water from the Seymour reservoir will be available for wider
distribution during periods of high turbidity.
With a dispute-resolution that was attractive to the contractor,
you have to ask how this could have been avoided.
Two years ago, someone involved in the project noted that
“changed geology is normal; the difficulty is who pays for it.”
I would counter that with the most profound pearl of wisdom
I’ve ever heard in my years of business writing: “there’s no such
thing as changed conditions—only what we choose to find out
about the existing conditions.”
Sadly, the most valuable lesson to come out of this won’t be
about tunneling and it might even be something we already
know—you get what you pay for.u
Tonia Jurbin is a regular contributor to WCN. She is based in
Greater Vancouver. Contact editor@on-sitemag.