A Year in Five Minutes: Vancouver 1976
The 1000 block of Robson Street in February, 1976. Item # CVA 780-406.
In 1976, ICBC rates skyrocketed, the Museum of Anthropology got a new home and an earthquake rocked the area.
By Chuck Davis,
Laing Bridge
On May 15, 1976 the Arthur Laing Bridge officially opened, named after a native son of Richmond who became a cabinet minister under Pierre Trudeau, then later a Senator. The $23 million four-lane bridge, which crosses the north arm of the Fraser to Sea Island, vastly speeded up access to the Vancouver International Airport. It reduced the distance from downtown to the airport by more than three kilometres. Traffic had started using the bridge August 27, 1975, but the official opening was May 15, 1976. It’s 1,676 metres (one mile) in total length, and more than 90,000 vehicles use it daily.