We want to keep customers informed on the latest developments as they happen so they can plan ahead.

HandyDART

Transdev is currently in negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement with ATU 1724, the union that represents HandyDART employees.

What this means for you

ATU 1724, the union representing HandyDART employees, has announced job action that may impact HandyDART services starting August 26 unless a settlement is reached with their employer before then.

Service would remain for customers who depend on HandyDART for cancer, renal, and MS appointments. All other trips would be cancelled due to job action.

To find out information about your trip, please call the HandyDART call centre at 604-575-6600.

Bus, SkyTrain (Expo, Millennium and Canada Lines), and SeaBus, will continue to operate normally. West Coast Express service may be impacted by a separate railway labour dispute starting August 22nd.

Frequently asked questions

How is transit service going to be impacted?
Service would remain for customers who depend on HandyDART for cancer, renal, and MS appointments. All other trips would be cancelled due to job action. For further information about your trip, please contact the HandyDART call centre at 604-575-6600.

What trips count as essential medical trips?
Trips for cancer, renal, and MS appointments are essential and would continue to be delivered throughout job action.

Will the union’s strike impact other transit services?
Bus, SkyTrain (Expo, Millennium and Canada Lines), and SeaBus, will continue to operate normally. West Coast Express service may be impacted by a separate railway labour dispute starting August 22nd.

Will TransLink or CMBC provide shuttle services or supplemental taxis for stranded HandyDART customers?
TransLink and CMBC are unable to provide additional services to mitigate the impact of ATU’s job action, due to the BC Labour Relations Code which states that other organizations cannot perform replacement work of employees that are on strike.

How can customers learn about impacts to service?
You can find information about your specific HandyDART trip by calling 604-575-6600.

Why doesn’t TransLink put information about my HandyDART trip on their website?
TransLink does not have information about specific HandyDART trips. For that information, please reach out to the HandyDART call centre at 604-575-6600.

Why doesn’t TransLink operate HandyDART services by bringing the service in house?
Transdev is under contract to operate HandyDART until mid-2026. As announced last year, TransLink is undertaking a review of HandyDART operations to determine what the best way to operate HandyDART will be when that contract expires.

Who is Transdev?
Transdev Canada is the operator of HandyDART services in Metro Vancouver. HandyDART employees are employed by Transdev, not TransLink.

Who does ATU Local 1724 represent?
ATU Local 1724 represents approximately 600 HandyDART employees at Transdev, including operators, mechanics, call centre, and support staff.

West Coast Express

West Coast Express may not be able to operate starting on August 22 due to a labour dispute between Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) and their union.

What this means for you

As publicly announced by CPKC, if no deal is reached between CPKC and its union, CPKC will lock out employees starting on August 22.

If a lockout occurs, West Coast Express will not be able to run because it operates on rail owned by CPKC and cannot operate without CPKC’s dispatchers and rail workers.

The West Coast Express service outage would be indefinite until the CPKC lockout ends.

We will keep our customers informed of impacts to West Coast Express through this webpage. Customers can also sign up for personalized real-time text or email alerts at translink.ca/alerts and select West Coast Express as your service.

Other available travel options

To find other travel options, customers are encouraged to visit TransLink’s Trip Planner and select “exclude West Coast Express.”

Other available options are listed for each West Coast Express station:

• Port Moody and Coquitlam Central Station: Millennium Line is the best alternative
• Port Coquitlam Station: Routes 159, 160, 173, 174, 175 to connect to SkyTrain
• Pitt Meadows and Maple Meadows: Routes 701 and 791 to connect to SkyTrain
• Port Haney: R3 or Route 701 to connect to SkyTrain
• Mission: Customers would have to make alternate arrangements as Route 701 only runs to Mission during off-peak hours (outside of West Coast Express hours).

Frequently asked questions

Will West Coast Express be operating?
If the planned employee lockout announced by Canadian Pacific Kansas City starts on August 22, West Coast Express will not be operational.

Why would West Coast Express be impacted?
West Coast Express operates on rail owned by CPKC. West Coast Express cannot operate without CPKC’s dispatchers and rail workers.

What is the labour issue?
The labour dispute is between CPKC and their rail workers employee union. TransLink is not involved.

How many customers will be impacted?
Over 3,000 customers take the West Coast Express each day.

How long will the shutdown last?
We don’t know. We will continue updating our customers through our channels, and we ask customers to sign up for personalized real-time Transit Alerts at translink.ca/alerts and select West Coast Express for updates to be sent to your phone or email (msg & data rates may apply.)