paulhillsdon.com

Been emailing with Bryan Volger, one of the advocates behind what we now know as the West Coast Express. I was seeking the information to help in figuring out how to restore service to the Interurban. Here’s what he wrote:

The West Coast Express was started by myself at an all mayors rally in Port moody in 1989.  At the time the Socreds were loosing power and the N.D.P was building a winning party for the 1990 election.  At the same time the Progressive Conservatives in Ottawa were going down in the same year.  Both of those parties are no longer with us today.  The N.D.P got the majority of the seats in B.C. and pounced on my idea.  By 1990 I had formed a group of railway people from across Canada mixed with local intrest groups and called it The Lower Mainland Commuter Rail Consortium.  The Consortium dealt with national rail policy which had seen Via chopped in half and C.N. going up for sale. 

Via needed more passenger business to stay alive in Vancouver. The proposal was to run commuter rail down the BN-CN tracks and one leg would join up with B.C. Southern and the other leg would go to Mission. Both would split at Sapperton junction. When the merger plans of C.N. and B.N. fell through the commuter rail plan was moved onto C.P.R.track.  However we had reached a deal with Burlington Northern for full cooperation from B.C. Transit.

One of the members of the Consortium was Bombardier Transportation who had made bi- level cars for Toronto and Florida.  Los Angles Metrolink had ordered about 100 cars and Bombardier offered Glen Clark to order some while the line was up.  

Im 1990 I ran in Burnaby for council with the commuter rail plan. I failed to get in because with the C.P.R. I could reach the valley with C.N. access to B.C. Southern tracks at the Patullou rail bridge.  At the time in 1986 the Socreds had run light rail cars on the old interurban for Expo 86.  Most felt that would continue, but it did not. Proof that it can be done though.  

The West Coast Express was part of an international move that had Seattle next in line with the Sounder commuter rail system. The West coast of north America was doing the same thing.  These cars are all interchangeable and can be bought and sold if a track lease fails to be renewed. 

In 1992 the Cascadia Talgo trains were being built for Amtrack service between Seattle and Vancouver which would connect all commuter rail operations by train on the West Coast. 

In 1993 after a year of speeches at cities between Burnaby and Mission every riding was now N.D.P. 

The North East Transportation Plan was put together by community groups and B.C. Transit for a fifteen year transportation plan including highways and train infrastructure.  It got approval from the B.C. Government and the first objective was to get a deal with the C.P.R.  Through the B.C. Terms of Union between Ottawa and B.C. to bring the province into confederation linking Canada by rail and the recent law suit in 1989 by the Socreds to stop Ottawa from shutting down the E&N on Vancouver Island strengthened the B.C. hand.

The cars were ordered in 1992 from Bombardier at 2 million each and G.M. supplied the locomotives. 

In 1994 the commuter deal was done giving the commuter rail plan success and the Millennium line to run parallel to the BN-CN tracks.  By 1995 the schedule was fixed to have only the commuter rail running in time slots to avoid collisions with freight trains.  In 1995 the N.D.P had a name contest and the West Coast Express was chosen. 
 
In 1996 The Millennium Line was planned because the people of Burnaby did not want Skytrain running from Edmonds to Lougheed Mall across Burnaby.  With full cooperation from the B.N. and a huge rally the public told Burnaby to build the line from new Westminster over the B.N. yards to Lougheed Mall and follow the original proposal with Skytrain. 
 
Meanwhile the freight company on Vancouver Island Rail America was closing down and B.C. Southern took over.  Today theyshare the track with Via Rail and there is no reason why they cannot run in the Fraser Valley also. The President of B.C. Southern told me this year its a done deal if the governments have money. We will not go anywhere without the government.  Obviously the former government railway owner followed the same recipe as C.P.Rail. and Express.
 
So I have got permission to press ahead with railforthevalley.com and other groups.  I have submitted a plan to the President of B.C. Southern whom may not reply until the envelope arrives from Victoria. I have written Mr. falcon and he is not against the railway serving the people with passenger rail. He knows the freeway faults and the high gas prices that just started going up last year.  I believe he will announce it before the next election.   

The future expansion of the express was to go around Coquitlam on the C.P tracks from Braid to Coquitlam Station, however I believe that is the Evergreen line with Skytrain now. 

The other expansion was to Abbotsford to Mission over the C.P.R. bridge, however now Via does not use that route it is closed to all passenger trains. 

Via was awarded a multi-million dollar repair contract by The West coast Express to maintain the cars. Now Via could stay in Vancouver. 

The ground work has been done it needs money and I think you have it. Falcon needs pushed, but his political timing to keep the valley Liberal is important. 

We have suggest B.C. buy into Bombardier fast train technology being made for Sweden in Canada.  The factory goes into operation this year. 

This train would getr people from Chilliwack to Whistler in three hours using the B.N. track thru Burnaby to North Vancouver and switch onto C.N. track there. 

We have suggested Colorado Rail Car EMU self propelled diesel cars the Budd cars of today.

We have recommended Bus service between Kawatlen College in Langley and The University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford as a inter-city route run by school buses or contract buses. They will pick up at both airports on the Fraser Highway. 

If you didn’t know, Portland, Oregon, is *the* leader of sustainability in the US. A key part of their success has been in providing a variety of transportation options. Since the 80’s, they’ve built multiple LRT lines, expanded their bike boulevards and cycling network, built the Portland Streetcar, and built the Portland Aerial Tram. Portland’s public transportation agency, TriMet, is now set to add a new service to their long list of options: Commuter Rail. 

In 1996, a feasibility study for a commuter rail line was initiated by Washington County, the cities of Beaverton, Tigard, Tualatin, Wilsonville and Sherwood, TriMet, Metro, and the Oregon Department of Transportation.

The project to establish a new 14.7-mile passenger rail line between Beaverton and Wilsonville has received strong support from the public and business community. It is the first commuter rail line in Oregon and one of the few suburb-to-suburb commuter rail projects in the country.

Because the line uses existing freight tracks in a dedicated corridor, construction impacts are minimal.

Passengers will ride in self-propelled diesel train cars. TriMet is working with Colorado Railcar to design and build the vehicle.

Sound familiar? 

Maybe that’s because the former Interurban rail corridor in Surrey is also an existing freight line, it is also a suburb-to-suburb route, and it’s also about 14 miles (actually only 12.22 miles or 19.66 km) in distance from Scott Road Station to Cloverdale. 

Plus, WES’ corridor was formerly home to two passenger rail services. Oregon Electric Railway and Southern Pacific Railway used to run Interurban rail services quite similar to those that were ran in the past by British Columbia Electric Railway.

Portland’s WES commuter rail service is set to open this fall. What can we learn from their experience?

1. Get everyone on board

The first feasibility study for the line was bi-partisan, bringing together various agencies and levels of government.

This initial collaboration is something we have not had going in the South of Fraser, with TransLink, Surrey, Langley Township, and The Province all launching their own studies, for various reasons, all with different conclusions. 

2. Ensure there is political will

With WES, immediately after the first study, the project gained it’s first political ally in Tom Brian, at the time, a member of the Oregon Legislature. He secured funding for follow-up studies. For 10 years, various politicians, at various levels, worked hard to secure funding to build the project. This resulted in the cost of WES being paid for by the federal government, State of Oregon Lottery Bond Proceeds, TriMet and GARVEE Bonds, and contributions by local governments and Washington County.

While a number of organizations continue to call for “Rail for the Valley”, there is no consensus among citizens, let alone politicians about how or where expanded transit South of the Fraser should be. For this, among other reasons, bringing back rail on the Interurban route isn’t being unanimously championed.

3. It doesn’t take long to achieve 

The whole time span from the first study to the opening of the service is 12 years. Consider this though: 3 of those years was spent just doing the initial study! It took seven years for design, engineering, environmental assessments, and funding to be secured. Construction took a total of two years. 

Realistically, bringing back rail in the South of Fraser could be achieved even faster than WES’ experience. BC Hydro already owns the right-of-way to the route, something Portland didn’t have. Not to mention, Southern Railway has already stated it is keen on incorporating passenger rail service on the route. And considering how fast Kevin Falcon can push projects through, rail out here could be built quite quickly - in a matter of years. But we aren’t at this stage yet. 

We in Surrey are still at step 1 and until we set some of our initial problems straight, we will never be getting commuter, or community, rail service happening anytime soon. Always keep hope, and transform that hope into action - then maybe we can get this off the ground.

It’s been proven time and again in public transit that, if you build it, they will come. Just ask any of those Greater Vancouver commuters crammed like sardines in SkyTrain cars during the morning or evening rush hour.

This is happening now despite arguments made during the planning of the existing rapid-transit system that not enough folks would use such a service.

Now, we’re hearing similar criticisms from those who oppose using the old Inter-Urban route for light-rail service in the Fraser Valley. There’s not enough population density, they say.

The folks displaying this attitude clearly have a hard time seeing beyond their noses.

Transit must be planned in a long-term context. And all growth projections for south-of-Fraser communities, from Delta to Chilliwack, agree that this region alone will one day have a population larger than that of the whole of Metro Vancouver today.

Surrey already has the largest number of children enrolled in K-12 schools of any municipality in the province. And its population is expected to surpass that of Vancouver in the next 20 years.

Also, the 18-24 demographic in the Fraser Valley is growing at six times the provincial average.

The most efficient and “green” way to move large numbers of people is via light-rail transit.

Given the population growth in this region, this transit option should be a no-brainer.

So, build it and they will come. Just ask the sardines.

[The Province]

Once The Province hops on the bandwagon, you know something is going here.

It’s my understanding that there are two things holding back restored rail service on the Interurban route: TransLink and Kevin Falcon.

TransLink tends to operate in its own little bubble and isn’t nearly as progressive as one would hope. Not to mention they are continuously behind schedule in implementing their plans. You may attempt to blame that on lack of funding, but when they refuse to even try a cheap, innovative idea like rail for the valley, you know that the planners there are rather stuck up in their data analysis and can’t quite think outside the box. Not a personal attack here - just TransLink as a whole ;)

Their excuses include lack of density and population along the route. Of course, they don’t mention the big key that The Province’s editorial mentioned - build it and they will come. If you give us roads and highways, of course development will be car oriented. Open a railway and the shift won’t just immediately happen, it will happen over the course of years. But it will happen. Just look at the success the Millennium Line now is with all the new high rise developments around the stations - not that long ago it was called a major failure and waste of money. Which is exactly why we shouldn’t build an expensive fancy system that will take years to attract sufficient ridership. Restore Interurban service cheaply at the beginning and begin upgrading, adding new trains, and double tracking the route as ridership increases. Cheap, effective method to wean us off cars!

TransLink is giving the same crap to Vancouver with their Downtown Streetcar plan. Ironically enough, a new streetcar system in Vancouver and restored community rail in Surrey would both cost just over $100 million. Anyways, TransLink’s excuse is that the streetcar will take ridership away from bus routes and that they hadn’t incorporated a streetcar in their long term transit expansion plans for Vancouver. God, what a friggin’ stupid excuse. Buses can be diverted elsewhere in the region! And talk about a bureaucracy if they can’t even see what a smart idea it would be to have a sleek, modern streetcar linking many of the attractions in Downtown Vancouver.

The second reason rail for the Valley isn’t coming anytime soon is Kevin Falcon. Before Gateway came along, he gladly gave $75,000 provincial dollars to Fraser Valley Heritage Railway Society. Ever since though, there’s been no money, nor any provincial support for the restoration attempts. First, he decided highways are the best solution to traffic congestion for the Valley. Then, after some arm twisting by his boss, Mr. Campbell, he included a short SkyTrain extension into Surrey as part of the Provincial Transit Plan. Falcon has, however, also promised that the Province will launch a study into the possibility of restoring rail service on the Interurban route - although I haven’t heard of any progress on this initiative. So unless he suddenly changes his mind, I don’t see him supporting rail for the Valley. And expect the typical spin in the study.

Which is all quite unfortunate, because all we would need is one of these two to hop on the rail bandwagon and it would get done like *that*.

Time to enter politics, eh?

I was going through the South of Fraser Area Transit Plan today, and I was reminded that, given the choice of what rapid transit services they wanted, almost all residents South of the Fraser turned down SkyTrain.

According to the document, TransLink reps gave residents colour coded lengths of tapes to place over a regional map as part of a visioning process. The length of this tape was based on a reasonable estimate of the budget TransLink would have for expansion.

• 1 piece of SkyTrain = 5 pieces of BRT
• 1 piece of LRT = 3 pieces of BRT
• 1 piece of BRT = 1.5 pieces of Frequent Bus services

Now, let’s examine the outcome of this visioning process.

SkyTrain

There was very little agreement for this expenditure, primarily because of the cost and the limited penetration into the South of Fraser that results by spending all available capital on this type of rail. Most participants started out with SkyTrain but then began to understand the tradeoff between service single corridors versus creating a network of services.

LRT

There was more agreement on this investment with a number of corridors being highlighted. However, overall, the network remains thin because rail takes up the majority of the budget. Most participants picked out corridors shown in previous transit strategies such as King George highway and 104th Street in Surrey of Fraser Highway from Surrey to Langley. The Southern Rail (Interurban) corridor was highlighted in Workshop but it did not appear in the other 24 maps. Interestingly, there was limited support for the northern section of the line.

BRT

The network and the level of agreement for Bus Rapid Transit echoes the market research. It is interesting to note that as the budget is spread among les expensive alternatives, the network that can be created increases both in scale and popularity. Respondents seemed to understand the concept of the B-Line as Bus Rapid Transit and were interested in extending a similar network throughout the region, including to Abbotsford.

————————————————————————————-

Now, take the above into the context of almost a year or two ago, before the Provincial government decided to invest $4 billion into our transit system.

With this change, I think it’s safe to say that we have a slightly larger budget now. When taking this into account, I think choosing to develop at least one of the major transit corridors in the SoF region as LRT would be a smart move. There are numerous advantages to choosing rail over bus, despite what some would tell you.

Furthermore, TransLink has a terrible reputation for stalling upgrades or expansions years after they were necessary. Obviously, the B-Lines have been a success. However, if you don’t meet initial success with quick expansion, typically through providing more buses, the whole experience diminishes in quality and convenience quite rapidly. Just try riding either the 98 or 99 B-Line and you’ll quickly find out that they pale in comparison in terms of definition as “rapid transit” beside our SkyTrain system. The routes get stuck in traffic, the bus doesn’t have much of a premium interior, and you can never get over the simple fact of overcrowding.

I think the SoF area has a prime opportunity here to convince Mr. Falcon to redirect the money in place for SkyTrain expansion in Surrey to provide us with at least one LRT route - and heck, throw the rest of the millions into more buses for our future BRT routes - so we can avoid having to stand for 45 minutes on the Fraser Hwy.

There has been more than a few questions about the odd conceptual routing of the extension of SkyTrain in Surrey. Based on the image provided by the province, SkyTrain was to run along 96th Ave, then cut through a neighbourhood, finally reaching 88th Ave and Fraser. It was a terrible alignment, attempting a half assed connection to Guildford, and then leaving the new terminus smack dab at one of the busiest intersections on Fraser in the Fleetwood community.

According to both an article in the Now, and Kevin’s recent speech to the Langley Chamber of Commerce, the alignment shown in the image is not the actual one being proposed by the government. How much of this is Kevin personal opinion versus actual an government decision is not at all known (although what is the difference these days?).

He says the 6km extension will leave King George Station north to 104th Ave, turn south down 152nd St, and then run east down Fraser Hwy to 168th St.

Furthermore, and again I have no idea if this is just his vision, but he said that by 2030, we would see two more SkyTrain extensions:

• From the new terminus in Fleetwood, the Expo Line would continue along Fraser Hwy to Willowbrook in Langley
• From King George Station, a new branch would run south along King George Hwy to 64th Ave.

Click the image below to view the interactive Google Map.

All things considered, despite SkyTrain’s expensive cost, if the government is willing to pay for it, I’m happy. And with the “conceptual alignment” controversy being ironed out, the new proposed route will actually serve Surrey quite well.

Connections between Downtown Surrey and Guildford are quite popular and the route along 104th is currently quite busy. Guildford is still one of the largest malls in the region, and considering stations at malls are one of the mainstays of SkyTrain, it’s a good thing the route is going to hit it.

152nd St, between 104th and Fraser, is also a very busy route and will benefit from the SkyTrain. Furthermore, 152nd St is the other main road (King George is #1) that residents from South Surrey and White Rock take to get to North Surrey. Having a major hub at 152nd and Fraser will be great for these transit users, giving them an option between hopping SkyTrain from here, or taking a RapidBus to the Canada Line (assuming their destination is Vancouver).

Then of course, having the new terminus at 168th St, just before a major hill and dropoff into agricultural land, is a way better plan. This will allow for very fast connections from my community of Cloverdale as well as a very short route to Langley (basically through the agricultural land, a small community, then you’re there).

The unfortunate side of these new details is the current wait time for SkyTrain down King George. It’s always been the busiest route in Surrey, and I would personally say a SkyTrain connection to Newton would probably be a better short term improvement, despite all the newfound connections the other extension will provide to eastern and southernly communities. Also, the King George route has far more potential for transit oriented development.

Actually, Kevin, why not do both? Then, I’ll embrace your autocracy as something profoundly wonderful and will praise the road you walk on!

I haven’t ever done this, but with a recent increase in readership, I thought I may as well try.

You’ve seen the plan. You’ve viewed the news reports.

Now, what do you think?

There’s a poll below, and I’m leaving this posts comments wide open. It’s a free for all.

What are your concerns? Does the plan meet your needs? How will this effect you? What bumps in the road do you predict?

If you have anything to say, say it!

First off, an interview with Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon on the Christy Clark Show. He reveals a few more details about the plan, such as the funding mechanisms.

Click here to download or play the MP3 

Then we have the full Global news story on the plan, with a brief overview at the beginning, and then political correspondent Keith Baldrey giving some scope to the proposal. He also mentions that the public will likely see Expo Line stations upgrades and the RapidBus routes coming in the first phase of the plan.

Premier Gordon Campbell put our money where his mouth is and the proposal is quite satisfying. 9 new RapidBus lines, 3 new Rapid Transit lines, 1500 new clean buses across the province, a commitment to turnstiles and a smart card system. Overall, it is quite huge, comparable in fact to a 2020 transportation plan set out in Ontario by Dalton McGuinty’s government, which also included a vast expansion of transit services. We should all be commending the provincial government for taking this necessary step - certainly a far more balanced situation than just getting Gateway.

However, as always the devil is in the details, and it’s the details that are lacking in the plan.

Funding

For example, the provincial government is not spending $14 billion. Only $11.1 billion is actual new money, and of that, the province is only putting in $4.75 billion - over the next 12 years. One could argue they aren’t really pulling their fair share of a plan they have initiated.

How’s the rest going to be paid? Well, Campbell is relying on Harper putting in a share of $3.1 billion - something the federal government has yet to do with Ontario transportation plan that also required a 1/3 share from Ottawa.

Then, the estimates are that TransLink will have to put in almost $2.75 billion. The agency currently has a surplus fund of $400 million - something that used to sound like a lot; not so much anymore. TransLink’s only way of raising any money is through a combination of increased fares, property taxes, and gas taxes. Over the course of 12 years, that means TransLink needs to raise an additional $230 million. The recent fare increase raised an additional

Seems likely that the $5 three zone fare is going up some more soon. Or maybe they’ll move forward on pursuing possible money from transit oriented development near stations…

In other areas of the province, municipalities will be throwing in about $500 million as well.

But don’t forget the private corporations. As we’ve already seen with the Golden Ears Bridge and the Canada Line, the provincial government is keen on having private corporations foot part of the bill as well. Kevin Falcon has already stated that even smaller projects, like the estimate $100 million it will cost to install turnstiles, will be handled by a private corporation through a P3.

Timeline

Compared to the past, when the Lower Mainland received 1 rapid transit line per decade, we are now getting three in 10 years. A good increase for sure.

But, what you have to realize is that many of these routes should have already been built. So in fact, we are playing catch up - and with this plan, the lines will continue to be 5-10 years away. Is that fast enough to relieve the congestion we have already? How much transit demand will there be that far away in the future? What intermediate steps will be taken to fix the situation in the meantime?

The fact remains, we need these rapid transit expansions today. What lines will we be needing by 2020, when the current extensions are just finishing?

Furthermore, there has been no estimate at all for the RapidBus BC system. Obviously, the Highway 1 route won’t be possible until the Port Mann is expanded - potentially completed by 2013.

The whole point of using buses is that they are a low cost option that can be launched in under a year. Whether these advantages are adopted has yet to be seen. It would be a very big shame if the routes took a number of years to implement, especially since we could start right now and get many of them in place immediately.

Routing

One of the things I find most interesting about the Rapid Transit and RapidBus plans is their routes. Frankly, it’s not all that surprising to see the UBC Line where it is, and the same goes to a lesser degree with the Evergreen Line. However, having the Province decide something like a possible extension of the Expo Line in Surrey doesn’t seem like the best choice to be made.

The Province doesn’t have a full grasp on the area first of all. I mean, just looking at where they’ve proposed it makes no sense at all. It seems like it attempts to get a station close to Guildford, even though it’s obvious that it’s quite a few blocks away from the mall no matter what. Then, it goes southeast towards 88th and Fraser, cutting right through a neighbourhood. I personally think that the current terminus is the best situation, but if they are going to extend it into Surrey further, it should just continue directly down Fraser Highway, and should end in an area where a large transit exchange and park and ride could be built - potentially at Fraser and 168th St.

I also found it amusing that the Province promotes RapidBus on routes that already have or are soon getting a B-Line: i.e. the Hastings to SFU route and the Joyce to UBC route via 41st. TransLink has been planning these for a while, and put the money in this year to create these B-Lines. What’s going on? Where is there overlap? Is it going to be a B-Line or a RapidBus BC route?

Same thing goes with the planned King George Busway by TransLink that has been adopted by the Province.

You’d also notice the White Rock to Richmond route - which is already a semi premium express coach route by TransLink.

What’s going on? Why is there overlap? What’s with the lack of coordination?

Where’s TransLink in this?

With this plan, what is the new role of TransLink. It seems that not only has the Province literally chosen the routes, timelines, and technologies for future rapid transit - not just rail based, but road based as well! Why should TransLink pursue a new regional transportation strategy if the Province is just going to institute a plan from the higher ups? Is TransLink simply going to be the agency that draw up the feeder routes? Is TransLink just the scapegoat of the Province - the operator, per say, that gets all the rider’s complaints?

The Reality of Governments and Plans

First off, we must understand that this is not so much a plan as it is a vision. That’s because, well, the money, past the first phase, is not at all guaranteed, and the government that’s in office in 2012 or 2017 could easily just scrap this plan altogether.

Take a look at what the Campbell government did to the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Clark government for the Millennium Line. That was a government agreement that the province would provide the funding to complete the rapid transit line, following a detailed routing and technology analysis. Once the NDP got booted out in 2001, whatever happened to that Memorandum of Understanding? Gordon Campbell through it out with the outgoing government.

Plans change and evolve so much these days that it’s very difficult to look at the maps and routes as something concrete - that is until funding is secured and the real work begins. Until then, this is nothing more than a vision.

Thankfully, however, we will soon see what amount of money the province is truly committed to when they release the February budget. At that time, we will find out what is included and is actually going to happen in the short term.

Wishful thinking

The plan is great. But there are definite concerns and it’s unfortunate that they released this plan without much of any coordination with TransLink or the municipalities. We are taking a huge step forward with this initiative - I just wished it happened faster and it looked out farther into the future.

Maybe that’s for my generation to plan once Campbell retires. But with more visions like these, I don’t think he’s going to leave the Premier’s office anytime soon. And maybe that’s a good thing. Hey, it worked out alright for transit in Metro Vancouver…

These are all taken from the Provincial Transit Plan

Rapid Transit

• They are including the Canada Line under the Plan. Completion is set for 2009.
• $1.4 billion for the Evergreen Line by 2014.
• $2.8 billion for the UBC Line from Broadway to UBC by 2020
• $3.1 billion to double capacity on the Expo Line - major improvements at stations starting 2009, and 6km extension in Surrey by 2020. Station improvements include:
  • Lengthening platforms to handle 6 car trains
  • Vehicle storage depots
  • Maintenance facilities
  • Adjacent transit exchanges
• $1 billion for new rail cars

RapidBusBC

• Frequent, reliable service with regular intervals
• Express service with few or no stops
• Priority movement in traffic by dedicated/HOV lanes, signal priority, and queue jumping
• Contemporary, conveniently located bus stations with nearby amenities
• Seamless integration with other transit options and coordination with cycling and walking infrastructure
• Effective security measures
• 9 lines across BC
  • Westbank to UBC Okanagan in the central Okanagan
  • Douglas Street in downtown Victoria to Langford on the West Shore
  • Highway 1, connecting Lougheed Station to exchanges in Surrey and Langley across the Port Mann Bridge
  • Hastings Street from downtown Vancouver to SFU
  • 41st Ave from the Canada Line to UBC
  • Highway 99 from White Rock to the Canada Line in Richmond
  • King George Hwy from Surrey Centre south to White Rock
  • Fraser Hwy connecting Langley to the Expo Line in Surrey
  • Highway 7 from the Evergreen Line in Coquitlam across the new Golden Ears Bridge

Buses

• $1.6 billion in 1,500 new clean energy buses
• Clean technologies include
  • Hydrogen
  • Hybrid
  • Electric
  • Natural Gas
  • Low emissions diesel
• Customized sizes and types of buses
  • Community shuttles
  • Custom transit
  • Para transit
  • Articulated and double decker buses
  • Conventional buses

Cycling

• 1000 new bike lockers at key transit locations by 2020
• Comprehensive cycling strategy to be released in the next few months to complement the Provincial Transit Plan

Security

• Installing electronic gates and closed-circuit cameras at rapid transit stations
• Launching a smart card system for rapid transit and buses that users can reload at vending machines or on the Internet
• Taking action against people who do not pay fares with on-the-spot fines and other measures
• Increasing security personnel in and around rapid transit stations
• Improving safety for bus drivers

10:55A - That’s it! Stay tuned for more details and analysis later. Here’s the province’s site on the plan. Here’s a detailed PDF.

10:49A - $1.2 billion for the RapidBus BC systems. $1.6 billion for 1,500 new, clean energy buses and related infrastructure

10:48A - $10.3 billion for 4 new rapid transit lines in Metro Vancouver. Evergreen Line, UBC Line, upgraded Expo Line and Canada Line

10:46A - Province only committing $4.75 billion. Remainder to come from federal government, TransLink and local governments.

10:45A - Here’s the press release.

10:42A - New rapid bus system in BC. Talking about Gateway Transit. Separate lanes. Signal priority. Nice stations. Multi door entry. 1 in Kelowna, 1 in Victoria, 7 in Metro Vancouver.

10:41A - 600 buses for province. Double buses in Lower Mainland. 80% of transit riders take buses. Green buses.

10:40A - $14 billion!

10:39A - Going green. New technologies in transit every 7 years. 12 year plan to 2020.

10:38A - Global leader in transit. Require partnerships with other levels of government. Reaching 20% of usage.

10:37A - Here’s Gordon Campbell now.

10:36A - 90% of population in regional centres of the province.

10:35A - Kevin Falcon talking about climate change ghgs emission target reductions. Hybrid buses. Government fleets go green. Cycling program. Low speed vehicles.

10:33A - Langley Township, Richmond, Langley City, Port Moody, Surrey, Coquitlam, Pitt Meadows Mayors. Some MLAs too.

10:32A - Here it starts. Listen live on CKNW.

10:28A - The room is *full*! Many mayors here. Tons of press. Will start shortly.

10:18A - Here’s a leak on the Bill Good Show. $10 Billion. High capacity, low energy buses for Metro Vancouver. Improvements in security. Extra investments in Canada Line. Funding for Evergreen Line. Victoria and Kelowna also get money. Funded by P3s and taxes.

10:15A - Carole James is doing her best to play politics in a situation that is likely to push her completely out of view

10:10A - Expectations that Victoria and the Interior will be shortchanged at the announcement. The Island will not likely get the LRT or commuter rail it wants. More assumed to be a bus-only road.

10:07A - There are worries that the announcement won’t include money for bus expansion that is needed. Metro Vancouver is currently short hundreds of buses.

10:05A - Vaughn Palmer is estimating a $10 billion budget.

10:00A - Everyone is speculating an M-Line extension, Evergreen Line completion with reroute through Riverview, future SkyTrain extension to Langley, and extended HOV express buses. Could just be that everyone latched onto Keith Baldrey’s speculations though.

9:52A - They are discussing the external costs of driving a car on the Bill Good Show. A lot of seniors are against more taxes (surprise, surprise).

9:50A - CKNW’s Bill Good Show has a BEST spokesperson and Gord Price on to talk about the announcement. Also has call ins by the public.

9:45A - The announcement is being made at 10:30A at the Pan Pacific downtown with the Premier, Falcon, and the region’s Mayors.