Metro Vancouver transit strike: carsharing and carpooling options

We’re beyond pleased to share that Coast Mountain Bus Company, and Unifor Locals 111 and 2200 have reached a tentative agreement! We’re working towards providing regular schedules for all transit modes.

The reserved parking stalls for Evo cars at Braid Station.

While the SkyTrain, West Coast Express and HandyDART will continue to operate during the anticipated three-day strike, we recognize it will be a challenge for the our 350,000 customers who rely on bus and SeaBus services each weekday to get around.

That’s why TransLink’s doing what we can by facilitating options so commuters can reach their destination or connect to transit that’s operating regular schedules. It’s our job to keep the region moving. We’ve reached out to our partners to help give some relief. Read more »

The 160 bus: perfect for seniors

The 160 Port Coquitlam Station / Kootenay Loop bus is one of the most versatile routes in TransLink’s entire network. It connects communities and municipalities from Burnaby all the way to Port Coquitlam, allowing riders to cross three zones with a single tap.

One group that finds the 160 particularly helpful in their day-to-day lives is seniors, so we decided to take a group out on an expedition along the bus route, so they could show us how they use the route and tell us a little bit about what transit means to them. Read more »

More reasons to take the 160 bus: weekday, daytime offers!

If you’re here, you probably already know that TransLink provides one of the fastest, most convenient and affordable ways to zip around Metro Vancouver. We connect you to everything. Your errands, like grocery shopping and going to the pharmacy. Transit connects your social life, like restaurants and coffee shops. And your me-time, like exercise studios, parks and beaches. You can take transit to get anywhere and do anything – and one of our most versatile routes is the 160 Kootenay Loop / Port Coquitlam Station bus.

The 160 bus can take you from East Hastings Street in Vancouver all the way to downtown Port Coquitlam. Zoom through up to three zones with a single tap! Even if your destination is just a little further away, the 160 Bus connects you directly to the 95 B-Line into downtown Vancouver, as well as SkyTrain’s Millennium Line at Moody Centre, Inlet Centre, Lafarge Lake–Douglas, Lincoln and Coquitlam Central stations.

Along the route you’ll find everything you need for a productive day. The bus comes every 15 minutes during the daytime to ensure you’re never waiting too long to get moving. And since the 160 stops every few blocks, you’re never too far from your destination. It’s the next best thing to having a private driver to take you directly to where you’re headed. Once you’re on board, you’ll notice there’s plenty of space and plenty of seats, so you can settle in for a more comfortable ride.

If that’s not enough, there are five more great reasons to take the 160 bus. In partnership with some of the great cafés and restaurants along the route, we’re offering special deals when you show your Compass Card, Compass Ticket or bus transfer. Take advantage of these great offers with the 160 on weekdays, between 9:30 a.m. and 3 p.m., until December 31, 2019.

So, stop thinking about traffic, parking, and all the hassles that come with it. Take the 160 bus to your destination – it’s your ticket to the neighbourhood!

SkyTrain Assistance Counter opens at Commercial–Broadway Station

The SkyTrain Assistance Counter at Commercial–Broadway Station will help customers with directions, system maps, brochures, and in-person service.

Customers travelling through Commercial-Broadway Station will have easier access to transit advice and services, with a new SkyTrain Assistance Counter opening today.  This is the first SkyTrain Assistance Counter on TransLink’s network and will be staffed by SkyTrain Attendants during all station operating hours.  Customers will be able to use the counter for directions, system maps, brochures, and in-person service.

“Commercial-Broadway serves as a key transfer point for our customers, connecting the Expo Line, Millennium Line, and 99 B-Line,” says TransLink CEO Kevin Desmond. “The central location of our new counter will ensure customers have easy access to the most up-to-date transit information. Today’s opening is another important step toward improving customer service and comes as we wrap up I Love Transit Week.”

Commercial-Broadway Station facts:

• More than 8 million boardings on SkyTrain last year.
• 30,000 transfers between Expo and Millennium Line on an average weekday.
• 20,000 transfers between SkyTrain and bus on an average weekday.
• Terminus of the 99 B-Line, the busiest bus route in Canada and the U.S.
• 17,000 average weekday bus boardings.

The Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain Assistance Counter is in addition to the Stadium-Chinatown Compass Customer Service Centre, which remains the primary location for Compass enquiries.

I Love Transit 2019: 3 Reasons Why

It’s I Love Transit week, October 7–11, and we’re bringing you stories about our customers, staff, transit enthusiasts and all things we love about transit. 

TransLink’s a team of nearly 8,000 employees. We’re all united in support of our customers — all 500,000 of you — who depend on us to get to and from work, visit an old friend and everything else in between. We asked another employee, Mariee Devereux, to share why she loves transit. 

Mariee on the left!

By Mariee Devereux, Transportation Demand Management Officer at TransLink

When I first heard about, I Love Transit week, I thought it was a joke. I didn’t think anyone could LOVE taking transit. I was mistaken! In the past eight years, I’ve fallen in love with transit too (and it’s not just because I work for TransLink). Here are the top three reasons that I love transit:

Secret Exercise

Every transit trip starts with a walk or a bike ride. In a world where sitting has become the new smoking, taking transit helps me get 10,000 steps in a day and I always feel better for it.

More ‘Me’ Time

Taking transit means that I’ve got more time to read, to text my friends, or to just relax and get things sorted without having to worry about the ‘car-stipation’ situation’ on congested roadways.

Climate Champion

You don’t need to own an electric car to enjoy a zero-emissions trip. My commute is already zero-emission in that it combines a trolley bus trip with SkyTrain. It feels good to get where I need to go in a climate friendly way. Did you know that over half of TransLink’s fleet are already powered by clean and renewable energy sources? By 2050, the entire fleet is set to be zero-carbon.

Those are three reasons that I love transit, what are some of yours? Share your stories with us via email at thebuzzer@translink.ca with the subject “I Love Transit Stories” or share using the hashtag #ILoveTransit for a chance to have your story featured in the Buzzer blog!

I Love Transit 2019: Mapping it all out for the customer

It’s I Love Transit week, October 7–11, and we’re bringing you stories about our customers, staff, transit enthusiasts and all things we love about transit. 

TransLink’s a team of nearly 8,000 employees. We’re all united in support of our customers — all 500,000 of you — who depend on us to get to and from work, visit an old friend and everything else in between.

We asked one of our employees, Jada Stevens from our wayfinding department, to share why she loves transit and what she loves most about serving you, our customers. Wayfinding designs the maps and directional signage you find at transit stations. 

Jada Stevens, Wayfinding Planner at TransLink

By Jada Stevens, Wayfinding Planner at TransLink

What I find fascinating about working in wayfinding is that this field encompasses three of my personal interests: graphic design, urban design and using transit to get around the city.

I am a lifelong transit user who has made the decision to use transit as my primary form of transportation. As a child, taking transit was my first introduction to independence in the city, and as an adult I see transit as being an affordable and environmentally sustainable alternative to car use.

From a young age, I have been curious about cities and how people use shared spaces and public amenities like parks, streets, and transit. I like to observe changes happening in the city and I try to understand how urban planners, elected officials, and community groups are transforming our cities to better serve the people who live in it.

This same curiosity extends into my profession. I’m fascinated in learning how our customers use and experience the transit network – where are they going, what transit services are they connecting to and what information they need to make that connection. Read more »

I Love Transit 2019: Enter to win a Monthly Pass!

These students from SFU’s School of Contemporary Arts love transit because it gets them to dance.

I Love Transit is here and we love that you love transit! That’s why we want to give you the chance to enter to win a Monthly Pass on your Compass Card. Read more »

This is how teachers can win a TransLink field trip for their class

I Love Transit Week is back this year, October 7-11, and our theme is A Greater Vancouver — the future of transportation in Metro Vancouver. Teachers, unleash your inner explorer and take learning beyond the classroom! We have two exciting contests for you and free bus travel for your students:

Win a Field Trip (Grades 3–12)

We call it I Love Transit Camp! It’s a unique opportunity for kids (along with their teacher and chaperones!), grades 3 through 12, to get a behind-the-scenes field trip to TransLink where they’ll learn how transit works and have some fun at the same time.

One winning class will get the opportunity to attend I Love Transit Camp in early November (exact date will be determined with the winning teacher). Watch the video above, and check out all the fun that was had in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018.

We’ll pick up the winning class from their school in a transit bus, equipped with snacks to fuel your day, around 9 a.m. We’ll visit a bus depot — the place where our buses sleep at night — and SkyTrain Control, which is the heart of our automated SkyTrain network, before returning you back to your school by 4 p.m.

The day will include snacks, a pizza lunch, prizes, t-shirts and a chance meet some of the key people (and the Transit Police dog!) that help TransLink move close to a half-a-million people a day and plan for the future. Read more »

Take it slooooooow, says the sloth!

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We got places to go and people to see. Whether that’s to and from work, a visit with an old friend, or a hockey game at Rogers Arena, TransLink will get you there!

While you’re riding with us, we want you to have a safe and pleasant journey. That means following transit etiquette and holding on because safety is fundamental — and it starts with you. Scroll through the slideshow above to see what the tips are.

We’re also excited to launch a new experiential marketing campaign on transit — featuring octopuses, monkeys and sloths — reminding everyone to be safe! You’ll see wrapped buses, as well as decals in interesting places such as the ceilings, poles and straps of buses, on windows, and staircases at SkyTrain stations.

Here’s a sneak peak! Want to spot ’em? The fleet numbers are #2510, 2511, 2110, 8150 and 16001.

Data enthusiasts! Check out the 2017 Trip Diary results

The results are in for Trip Diary!

What’s that? Think of it as the census, but for transportation!

It’s a study we do every five years to understand the travel habits of Metro Vancouver residents. Where people go? How do they get there? Is it through walking, cycling, driving, carpooling, taking transit, or a combination of these modes?

We randomly invited households across the region to participate in the Regional Trip Diary in 2017 to ensure that we obtain an unbiased and statistically representative sample. We heard from 28,000 households, equating to approximately 56,000 people and 230,000 trips!

The numbers have been crunched and — for the first time ever — the data is available to the public online via the data visualization tool Tableau! Check it out.

Trip Diary is conducted approximately every five years and is the most comprehensive source of information on overall travel patterns in the Metro Vancouver region. It’s used by all public and private sector planning organizations, and it informs the many decisions involved in delivering a better transportation system. It’s especially important and relevant now as we develop a new shared regional transportation strategy, Transport 2050.

Charging ahead into transit’s next frontier: battery-electric buses

Our new battery-electric bus on the left and an OG electric bus on the right.

We’ve set an ambitious goal: a bus fleet that’s powered with 100 per cent renewable energy by 2050.

And we’re well on our way to our goal with more than half of TransLink’s fleet now operating on clean energy, including compressed natural gas and hybrid diesel-electric buses, as well as zero-emission trolleybuses.

Starting today, we’re charging full speed ahead with our battery-electric bus pilot! The buses, which are smoother and quieter than the rest of our fleet, are rolling into service on route 100 Marpole Loop/22nd Street Station. Read more »

#Transport2050: Modo CEO Patrick Nangle sees shared, autonomous and electric vehicles on the horizon

Patrick Nangle, Modo CEO

We’ve asked thought leaders to share their vision for the future of transportation. What do you see? Shape the future of how we move and live. Visit transport2050.ca.

By Patrick Nangle, CEO, Modo

Decongested! That’s my vision for the future of transportation in our region: great public transit complemented by the availability of tens of thousands of shared vehicles that are electric and autonomous. It’s the path to affordable, convenient, inclusive and sustainable transportation.

We live in one of the best places in the world. So attractive in fact that we expect to welcome up to a million new residents over the next two decades. That could add more than 600,000 cars to the 1.6 million already in the region. Metro Vancouver could be overwhelmed by that surge in the vehicle population. If we think traffic congestion, parking availability and pollution is already bad, we haven’t seen anything yet. Read more »

Fall Service Changes set to take your commute to the next level

Our busiest week of the year for commuters is the first week of September. That’s why we’re having one of our largest service increases to date! It’s the first time we’ve ever increased all three of our modes at once!

We do quarterly service changes to accommodate the needs of our customers. This time around, we’re rolling out more bus, more SkyTrain and more SeaBus service starting September 3.

By the numbers:

• 24 new SkyTrain cars (six trains)
• 40,000 more annual bus hours
• 50 per cent more SeaBus capacity

Read more »

PNE Fair: Tour the new RapidBus and learn about the routes

RapidBus is the evolution of our B-Line service.

It’s delivering faster travel times (up to 20 per cent faster than local bus service!), more reliable service and new customer amenities, starting in January 2020 to five corridors in Metro Vancouver — Marine Drive, Hastings Street, Lougheed Highway, 41st Avenue and King George Boulevard.

See this evolution in-person at the PNE Fair as part of our Transport 2050 Expo that’s showcasing the past, present and future of transportation in Metro Vancouver!

Tour the new RapidBus, which will be used exclusively on these five routes and see new bus stop posts with real-time transit information. Learn about the five new RapidBus routes launching soon and the seven additional RapidBus routes planned as part of the 10-Year Vision. Read more »

PNE Fair: More transit service to get you there!

Trolleybuses line up along Hastings Street, near Empire Stadium, ready to carry spectators home after the Grey Cup in 1966. (Photo: Angus McIntyre)

Whether it’s sports games, concerts or a night out — no matter the event — we’re here to get you where you need to be and back home again.

Throughout the year we boost transit service to events such as the Celebration of Light, Canada Day celebrations, Vancouver Marathon, and even the Jay-Z and Beyonce concert at BC Place.

Read more »