Today is a great day because it marks the beginning of more transit for our region!

More transit means expanded region-wide bus and HandyDART services, improvements to major roads to reduce congestion and address bottlenecks plus more SkyTrain and SeaBus to reduce wait times and overcrowding.

These services will be rolled out this year as part of Phase One of the 10-Year Vision for Metro Vancouver Transportation.

“Metro Vancouver’s public transportation system is finally turning a corner after nearly a decade without significant region-wide investment in transit services,” said TransLink CEO Kevin Desmond. “With completion of the Evergreen Extension in December, and this week’s launch of the first transit enhancements included in the 10-Year Vision, Metro Vancouver is starting to see the long-overdue transportation improvements that will get our region moving again.”

What’s new

• SkyTrain
  • On weekdays – peak service will end 15 minutes later in the morning and last one hour longer in the afternoon and evening rush.
  • On weekends – trains will increase to match weekday off-peak frequency meaning trains will run every 3 to 6 minutes.
• Canada Line
  • More frequent service during weekday peak hours.
  • 11 per cent increase in passenger capacity during the busiest periods – that means an extra 3,700 passengers in each direction every weekday.
• Bus and HandyDART
  • 10 per cent increase in bus service.
  • 15 per cent increase for HandyDART meaning 85,000 more available trips annually.
• SeaBus
  • Doubling SeaBus Service on Sundays and holidays to sailings every 15 minutes from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

What’s next

In the coming weeks and months, more improvements of Phase One will be rolled out, including:

• New or expanded transit services for neighbourhoods that currently have few – or no – transit options today;
• Safer walking and cycling routes; and
• Improvements to the Major Road Network.

Keep reading the Buzzer blog for how you can get involved in public consultation for some upcoming Phase Two projects including Surrey-Newton-Guilford LRT and Broadway Subway.

Make sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Periscope, and Instagram to be notified and watch our live stream broadcasts of future events.

A complete list of all the changes taking place this week and the full 10-year Vision is available at tenyearvision.translink.ca.

Author: Adrienne Coling