Rapid transit plans stalled
TRANSLINK: Studies for Surrey light rail, Vancouver subway delayed until summer
TransLink has yet to produce its final plans for light rail in Surrey and a subway for Vancouver, blaming the slumping Canadian dollar and rising land costs for putting a crimp in its work.
Studies on the two projects were expected to be completed have been extended for three months to June 30 to get a better idea of what they will cost, TransLink chief financial officer Cathy McLay told the transit board Wednesday.
The projects, along with a new Pattullo Bridge and more buses, are among Metro Vancouver’s top priorities for transportation funding from the federal and provincial governments. Surrey’s light rail project was initially pegged at $2.1 billion, with the subway line along Broadway to Arbutus in Vancouver estimated at $2.3 billion, but McLay said TransLink is still “refining” those costs.
“We haven’t finalized the numbers,” she said. “When we first did the studies, the dollar was at parity and we have to acquire land, which is nothing close to what it was back then. We have to make sure we have accurate numbers going forward.”
McLay wouldn’t say how much higher the costs of the projects are expected to rise, saying it was too premature to speculate at this time.
TransLink is also warning Metro Vancouver bus passengers to prepare for additional delays and congestion this summer, with a massive boost in construction projects, including major repairs on the Burrard and Pattullo bridges, expected to produce traffic snarls on main routes and side streets as drivers attempt to avoid the chaos.
Construction permits are up 30 per cent over past years, which is expected to put a huge strain on rerouting and rescheduling buses to ensure they arrive at their destinations on time, said Haydn Acheson, general manager of Coast Mountain Bus Co., a subsidiary of TransLink.
Acheson maintains there are 15 long-term construction projects underway or slated to start, which will affect 75 of Coast Mountain’s 193 routes as traffic is funnelled onto neighbouring streets to avoid cranes and other equipment. Construction on Pender Street, for example, has affected 12 routes, he said, while drivers are facing significant delays on the Burrard Street corridor.
“Even if the construction is on a road three or four blocks down, it causes problems,” he said. “Burrard Street resulted in a significant amount of congestion on that route.”
The warning comes as Trans Link is slated to begin a $25-million repair on the deck of its aging four-lane Pattullo Bridge, which is expected to start at the end of April. The project, slated to take five months, will keep one lane open in each direction, but the bridge will be closed to traffic two nights a week and one weekend a month while the work is being done.
The project will allow the Pattullo Bridge to remain operational until a new crossing can be built in late 2022 or early 2023, said Sany Zein, TransLink’s director of roads.
TransLink expects to face its biggest challenge with the Compass Card rollout next week when it prepares to put most of its fare gates into operation at SkyTrain and SeaBus stations.
Lloyd Bauer, TransLink’s vicepresident in charge of the Compass card rollout, said most gates will be closed at SkyTrain and SeaBus stations on April 4, except those where an attendant is not available to open a gate for a disabled passenger.
TransLink said it has issued 700,000 Compass cards, with one million taps being recorded daily. However, TransLink said it’s still refining the program, including how it will accommodate Handy-Dart passengers.