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Hi all. I haven’t been ignoring you over the past week! I’ve actually been doing some research to find out more about the issues you guys have raised.

To all of you:
Really, thanks for taking the time to put your comments together for us. I know it doesn’t seem like it if you’re being passed up by the #501, but we are listening and working on the issues you’ve raised. The South of Fraser is and will continue to be a big priority for us, and it’s why we have consistently been adding service to your region for the last couple of years. (That’s 106,000 of 268,000 service hours in 2008 alone — about 40% of the expansion resources region wide.)

I also want to highlight that we face some challenges in providing transit to the South of Fraser, but we are still working hard to make transit viable for you despite those challenges.

A key issue is the region’s large geographical area and low residential and commercial densities. For transportation improvements to reach their full effectiveness and productivity, transit and land use must be linked. So, one of the things we’re currently working on with Metro Vancouver is a plan to focus high frequency transit corridors with intensive and mixed land uses along those corridors.

All this isn’t to gloss over the fact that you have concerns and issues and want more service, though. I just wanted to highlight that we *are* doing something and we are paying attention to residents from your region. We care just as much as you do about getting the best service possible to the South of Fraser!

@C.Cassidy:
Thanks for your notes. I contacted our manager out at the Surrey Transit Centre, and he wasn’t aware of any problem with bus shortages at their depot. In fact, he says that in 2008 to date Surrey Transit Center has provided its planned/scheduled services 99.63% of the time—so for every 1000 times we want to have a bus on the road we get it right 963 times. This is very very reliable compared to any large North American transit system. (Also, I’m told that it is generally it is a lack of operators, not buses, that results in cancellations.)

With regard to Surrey Central: CMBC’s headquarters are located in Surrey, and the planners are able to keep a close eye on the Surrey Central loop. I don’t want to discount your observation that Surrey Central is busy, because it’s accurate–Surrey Central is a central hub of activity. But I’m just told that it actually doing okay with regard to handling its traffic. Loops like Metrotown are far busier, which is a chief reason behind the new #125 BCIT service.

@Stephen:
We’re very curious about the transit experience you’ve described in your comment. Could you tell me what routes you take? Send an e-mail if you don’t want to put it on the blog – the planners would like to know more about that situation and why the trip time has doubled.

And everyone again: thanks for weighing in. It is good to hear from you and we really do want to bring you good transit service!

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Hope Coast Mountain Bus will consider this model to replace aging vehicles after 141 Nova HEV Hybrid buses have come into Lower Mainland

For more details, please look at:
http://www.newflyer.com/index/xcelsior-highlights

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During rush hour you will be lucky to get home from Surrey Central in under 45 minutes because the bus is either late, crammed full or traffic is terrible. The removal of the 395 through downtown Cloverdale has given people who live in the area less options then we had before. All these improvements and nothing other then the silly C70 has happened for Cloverdale residents. Translink planners keep saying to me that it is because there isn’t enough demand in the area. There isn’t demand because the service quality is so poor. Why would a lot of people park their cars when the price of gas is coming down for service that is unreliable? It’s time Translink made the 320 into an FTN and had service that was never worse then every 30 minutes.

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And is there any consideration on publicizing the fact that route x is part of the FTN? Portland identifies a frequent-running route right on the stop marker.

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Herewith I present the 2009 FTN map and the 2040 conceptual FTN map, both in PDF format. (Watch out, they’re enormous.)

- 2009 FTN map (2.5MB)
- 2040 FTN map (8.8MB)

You can actually see the 2040 map in our Transport 2040 30-year plan document (5MB PDF). As I’ve said, though, don’t take the 2040 map as written in stone: the specific corridors will be developed in the future in conjunction with communities. So, it’s just a tentative sketch, nothing solid.

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