Metro Vancouver announced in February of 2017 that the water supply tunnel went into service – now delivering clean, safe drinking water to residents south of the Fraser River. The Port Mann connection is one of the key links between Metro Vancouver’s watersheds and the communities south of the Fraser. Replacing this crossing was the first in a series of major water transmission system upgrades throughout the region.
Located more than 30 metres under the Fraser River bed, the new tunnel more than doubles the capacity of the old water main and provides enhanced earthquake and river erosion resiliency to help ensure the continued delivery of drinking water to Metro Vancouver residents.
The water supply tunnel consists of two 60-metre deep shafts – one in Coquitlam and another in Surrey – connected by a one-kilometre-long, 3.5-meter-diametre tunnel housing a 2.1-meter-diametre steel water main. A new valve chamber was built at the top of each shaft to allow the new tunnel to connect with the existing land-based water mains on either side of the river.