Transit poll places Broadway spur line near top of wish list
Boosting SkyTrain and bus service also identified as key priorities for riders
Metro Vancouver residents believe adding to SkyTrain and bus service and building the Millennium Line Broadway extension are the most important projects in the second phase of a regional transit plan.
This is according to the results of a public consultation that took place earlier this month, which also found that development cost charges are seen as the most fair way to help pay for the improvements, while property tax increases are the least fair.
TransLink held public engagement from April 30 to May 11, posting a discussion guide and survey online, holding eight open houses and other stakeholder engagement events, and consulting with Metro Vancouver.
Staff received 2,738 completed online and paper surveys and 972 members of the public attended open houses. The largest number of survey respondents came from Vancouver (796) and Surrey (668).
The survey asked people to rate the importance of projects included in the second phase of the 10year regional transportation plan for Metro Vancouver and the fairness of regional funding sources.
The $7.3-billion plan projects include construction and operation of the Millennium Line Broadway Extension and the first stage of the South of Fraser rapid transit in Surrey, an increase in bus and HandyDart service, new cars and station upgrades for the existing SkyTrain system, improvements to the major road network, pedestrian and cycling networks and planning for a proposed gondola on Burnaby Mountain.
The funding sources include a two per cent transit fare hike, three per cent parking tax increase, a property tax increase of $5.50 for the average household and a development cost charge on new development.
Increasing SkyTrain and bus service and building the Broadway subway were regarded as the most important improvements, with 83, 80 and 67 per cent of respondents, respectively, saying they are extremely or very important.
More than 50 per cent said modernizing Expo and Millennium Line infrastructure and upgrading major roads is extremely or very important.
Upgrades to cycling and pedestrian infrastructure, HandyDart service increases and building the Surrey-Newton-Guildford light rail were more likely to be rated as only slightly important or not at all important. For instance, 30 per cent rated the Surrey-NewtonGuildford line as “not important at all,” while 40 per cent said it’s very or extremely important.
As the public was surveyed, TransLink also commissioned a poll of 2,000 of the region’s residents. The feedback was more or less consistent with the survey results.
Upgrades to major roads (65 per cent), as well as upgrades to bus service including the purchase of new buses (63 per cent) and upgrades to SkyTrain service (63 per cent) received the highest ratings of importance: extremely or very important. Respondents said upgrading cycling and pedestrian infrastructure was least important.
Fifty-eight per cent of those polled found the development cost charge on new development to be fair or very fair, and 50 per cent said the same of the transit fare increase.
People were split on the idea of paying more parking sales tax: 41 per cent said it was very or somewhat unfair, 37 per cent said it was very fair or fair and 18 per cent said it was neither. More than half of respondents found the property tax increase somewhat or very unfair, while 28 per cent said it was fair or very fair.
The board and mayors’ council are expected to approve the plan at a joint meeting scheduled for June 28.