A number of loose bolts have been discovered on the new stal̕əw̓asəm Bridge.
The bolts are holding the safety barriers in place in a pedestrian pull-out about mid-span on the east side of the bridge.
Global News found about a dozen of the nuts that could easily be unscrewed by hand.
A construction industry spokesperson says the discovery is a cause for concern and there is a requirement for rigorous final inspection to be made before a major structure like the bridge is opened to the public.
“We need to have confidence that other things weren’t missed,” Chris Gardner with the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association said.
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“So this is something the Ministry of Transportation needs to get on right away with the contractor, with the inspectors, to make sure this is resolved and there wasn’t anything else that was missed.”
Wendy Itagawa is the project manager on the bridge and she said the structure is entirely safe.
She told Global News that the bolts are like that because of ongoing work.
“There still are some temporary panels in place that need to be custom-fit for the final fencing,” she said.
“We know that there are about 30 panels of the 500 that need to be tightened, but we can’t do that until the final alignment and adjustments of the fencing is completed.”
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