Surrey neighbours see light rail in tax

Scott Anderson and Curtis Kreklau are on opposite sides of a parking problem in the Surrey neighbourhood of Clayton Heights.

But the two residents agree that the long-term solution to the shortage of parking in their neighbourhood, which was designed to be pedestrian-friendly and transit-oriented, is straightforward — getting some transit.

That’s why both Anderson and Kreklau will be voting Yes in the upcoming mail-in transit referendum March 16 to May 29 to increase provincial sales tax in Metro Vancouver by 0.5 per cent.

Such an increase would give TransLink another $250 million annually and possibly put regular bus service into areas like Clayton Heights, which gets only limited community shuttle service.

“I guess I’m going to have to be on the Yes side because we need the bloody transit,” said Anderson, who has five vehicles attached to his property but only three parking spots.

Kreklau, who bought his townhouse two years ago because of the plan for the area, was disappointed the city acceded to the wishes for more parking.

“Do you keep adding more parking every time someone complains?” he said. “Now you’re adding more parking, all you’re doing is encouraging people to add more suites and buy more cars,” he said.

“My plan was to vote Yes (on the referendum) regardless of this issue anyway, just because of the benefits of light rail.”

If there’s a Yes vote, Surrey has asked for light rail rapid transit and more B-Line express bus service, with a rail station planned for a short walk from Clayton Heights.

Anderson was part of a group called ParkingForClayton.com that was formed when Surrey proposed removing parking on 72 Avenue to widen it from two lanes to four.

But after hearing from residents who threatened to blockade a street, the city will temporarily allow parking on 72 Avenue.