Transportation in Vancouver
As the city is surrounded by water on three sides, it has several
Until 2020, Vancouver was one of only a few major cities in North America without ridesharing company services, due to a provincial law banning their operation. Legislation was amended to allow such services in 2018.[2][3] The first ridesharing companies, Uber and Lyft, were approved and began operating in the region in January 2020.[4][5]
Public transport
The
TransLink introduced a smart card based electronic payment system called
Bus service
Bus service operates throughout most of the region under a subsidiary of TransLink, known as Coast Mountain Bus Company. TransLink was established by the provincial government as a way to divorce itself from the responsibilities of roads, bridges and transit service. Ultimately the provincial government retains responsibility for funding of all projects under the aegis of TransLink.[11] Service in West Vancouver and Lions Bay is contracted through West Vancouver Blue Bus.
All buses are wheelchair-accessible and carry cycle racks; they can carry two wheelchairs and bicycles. Vancouver is actively maintaining and upgrading its
Certain diesel commuter buses which travel to the suburbs as RapidBus have bicycle racks, wheelchair lifts, reading lights and high back reclining seats. Frequency in Greater Vancouver ranges from every couple of minutes within downtown Vancouver to two to three trips a day in far-flung suburbs such as Maple Ridge, Langley, and Aldergrove.[13]
SkyTrain
The SkyTrain is an advanced rapid metro system operating fully automated trains on three lines. Built for the
A third rapid transit line connecting downtown Vancouver to central
Future expansion
Plans from the 2000s to expand the Expo Line to the southeast, increasing its capacity and extending its route further into the city of Surrey, were superseded in the mid-2010s by a
As of 2021[update], construction is underway for a $2-billion extension of the Millennium Line west towards Kitsilano and Point Grey. The phase 1 extension would start at the current VCC–Clark SkyTrain station terminus, then run under the Broadway corridor to terminate at a station at Arbutus Street; it is expected to be completed in 2025.[17] At a future date, a phase 2 extension would be built to the University of British Columbia.[18]
In 2022, funding for a 16-kilometre (9.9 mi) extension of the Expo Line southeast through Surrey into Langley was formally approved by the provincial and federal governments. Major construction is expected to proceed from 2024 until the line opens in 2028.[19]
In early 2022, TransLink and the Mayors' Council approved the 10-year priority projects of the Transport 2050 plan through to the early 2030s. These projects includes several rapid bus transit lines and the extension of the SkyTrain system.[20]
Downtown streetcar
The city was planning the first phase of a downtown
From January 21 to March 21, 2010, a free demonstration service called the
Plans were being developed that would have extended the streetcar network into Yaletown making a ring around the downtown peninsula as phase two. Longer range plans were being discussed that may have extended the streetcar from Granville Island west onto the Arbutus corridor, east along Hastings Street and/or south along Main Street. However, there are no current plans for a streetcar network in Vancouver, and the Olympic Line demonstration line was decommissioned.[22]
West Coast Express
The West Coast Express, a
SeaBus
The SeaBus is a passenger-only ferry connecting downtown Vancouver and the
Cycling
Canadian census data shows that cycling
Cycling infrastructure
Vancouver is served by a network of over 300 lane-km of on- and off-road bicycle routes.
Since 2004, with the implementation of the Downtown Transportation Plan
The
On May 7, 2009, Vancouver City Council approved a bicycle lane trial on the Burrard Bridge which began on July 13. It saw the southbound motor-vehicle curb lane and the northbound-side sidewalk allocated to bicycles, with the southbound-side sidewalk allocated to pedestrians. The reassigned lane was separated from motor vehicles by a physical barrier.[27] As part of the trial, traffic pattern changes to accommodate feeder bicycle traffic were also completed on Pacific St. next to the North bridgehead over complaints from local merchants that cited lack of consultation and a negative impact on their businesses.[28][29] Two weeks into the trial, the City of Vancouver released a data report showing daily bicycle travel across the bridge had increased by an average of 30 percent. The same report indicated little change in pedestrian trips, a slight drop in motor vehicle trips, but no change in motor vehicle travel times between 12th Avenue and Georgia Street along Burrard via the bridge.[30]
Proposed cycling infrastructure upgrades have often been met with concerns about impacts to the business community. Three days into the Burrard Bridge Bike Lane trial, a local merchant reported a 46 percent drop in sales compared to the same days the year before.[31] Six weeks into the trial another local merchant reported a 25 percent drop in sales, and a local restaurant reported a 30 percent drop in sales.[32] In July 2011 Stantec was commissioned by the city to survey businesses in areas around recently installed downtown bike lanes in order to prepare a report summarizing impacts to businesses of the bike lanes; 32 percent of business responded to the survey. The study concluded that there was a total loss of $2.4 million in sales for nearby businesses amounting to $480,000 in lost profits a year, which was categorized as "moderate economic impacts."[33] However, in 2017, the upgrades were welcomed by the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association as a "competitive edge" for local employers.[34]
TransLink, the regional transportation authority, permits two bicycles aboard each SkyTrain car at all times except in the peak direction at morning and afternoon rush periods. The Canada Line Skytrain permits one bicycle per car with no limitations on time of day or direction. All buses are equipped with bicycle racks.[35] The Seabus, which connects Vancouver to North Vancouver, allows up to six bicycles per sailing during all hours of operation.
On July 20, 2016, a
Bicycle theft
On August 24, 2009, the Vancouver Police Department announced a sharp increase in bicycle theft, with the first 3 weeks of August experiencing a 53 percent increase in thefts over 2008.[37] Constable Jana McGuinness, Vancouver Police spokeswoman was quoted as saying, "there is no link between the increase in bike thefts and the recent dedicated bike lanes on Burrard Bridge."[38]
Freeways
Municipal bylaws and geography have protected Vancouver from the spread of urban
The lack of freeways in the City of Vancouver is primarily due to
Car sharing
There are two
Modo and Evo are Canadian car sharing services that operate different models. Modo is a cooperative and its cars have dedicated parking spots, whether on street or in parking lots. Their vehicles must be returned to the dedicated parking spot they were originally picked up from.[42] Evo was created by the British Columbia Automobile Association, and its cars can be parked nearly anywhere and can be booked for one-way travel and left in a legal parking spot within the vehicle's zone's geographic boundary.[43]
Airport
Vancouver is served by
Rail
Rail service is operated from the following stations:
- .
- Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon.
- Rocky Mountaineer Station – Tour passenger train services operated by the Rocky Mountaineer to the interior, Rocky Mountains en route to Banff and Jasper.
- North Vancouver Station – used for Rocky Mountaineer services to Jasper via Whistler
Ferries
Two
Several passenger-only ferries have operated from Vancouver to destinations on Vancouver Island, mainly by private companies. V2V Vacations launched a service from Vancouver to Victoria in 2017 and operated it until shutting down in 2020.[44] A service connecting Vancouver to Nanaimo, named Hullo, is scheduled to begin operating in August 2023.[45]
Mini-ferry
Taxicabs
Several private
Major streets
- Boundary Road
- Broadway
- Burrard Street
- Cambie Street
- Commercial Drive
- Davie Street
- Hastings Street
- Howe Street
- King Edward Avenue
- Kingsway
- Knight Street
- Georgia Street
- Main Street
- McGill Street
- Granville Street
- Oak Street
- Robson Street
See also
References
- ^ "Vancouver SkyTrain Map and Guide". TourByTransit.
- ^ De Vynck, Gerrit (July 8, 2016). "Vancouver Is Silicon Valley North. So Why Doesn't It Have Uber?". Bloomberg. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
- ^ Lindsay, Bethany (November 19, 2018). "Ride-hailing legislation introduced by B.C. government". CBC News. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
- ^ Kotyk, Alyse (January 23, 2020). "Uber, Lyft approved to operate in B.C.'s Lower Mainland". CTV News. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
- ^ Larsen, Karin (January 24, 2020). "Lyft, Uber waste little time launching in Vancouver". CBC News. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
- ^ "TransLink to crack down on fare evaders using collection agencies". Vancouver Sun. October 25, 2012.
- ^ Reynolds, Christopher (October 25, 2012). "The electronic Compass Card will replace existing monthly and daily passes, tickets and cash". Vancouver Sun.
- ^ "Compass Timeline". TransLink. Archived from the original on July 20, 2015.
- ^ "How can I obtain a refund for my deposit for the Compass Card?". Ask Compass.
- ^ NXP (January 28, 2013). "NXP´s MIFARE DESFire Selected to Support Vancouver's Green City Plan" (Press release). Archived from the original on June 30, 2015.
- ^ "Liberals announce new Port Mann Bridge and new bridge to replace Massey Tunnel".[full citation needed]
- ISSN 0266-7452.
- ^ "Vancouver Public Transit System: SkyTrain, Bus, and 6 More". ccccollege.com. March 2, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- Surrey Now. January 16, 2008. Archived from the originalon August 31, 2009.
- ^ "The Project: Surrey LRT". City of Surrey. Archived from the original on May 8, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
- ^ McElroy, Justin (November 15, 2018). "Metro Vancouver mayors agree to suspend Surrey LRT, start process for SkyTrain to Langley". CBC News. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
- ^ Chan, Kenneth (May 13, 2021). "Major construction now officially underway on $2.8-billion Broadway Subway". DailyHive.com. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
- ^ "TransLink reveals plans for Broadway SkyTrain, Surrey LRT". CBC News. January 17, 2017. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
- ^ Chan, Kenneth (July 14, 2022). "16-km-long Surrey-Langley SkyTrain extension receives full provincial and federal approval". Daily Hive. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
- ^ "BC government and Japan create key partnership on transportation infrastructure". DailyHive. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
- ^ "Vancouver's 2010 Streetcar". Bombardier. Archived from the original on June 13, 2009. Retrieved June 10, 2009.
Connecting Granville Island, a key entertainment centre for the 2010 Winter Games, and the Olympic and Paralympic Village Vancouver, the Olympic Line streetcar service will extend Vancouver's regional transit network along False Creek during 60 days of celebration before and during the 2010 Winter Games.
- ^ digitalmonkblog (October 17, 2014). "No desire for Streetcar in Vancouver? Capital Plan budget to decommission line to Granville Island". CityHallWatch: Tools to engage in Vancouver city decisions. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
- ^ "New Burrard Otter makes a splash in Burrard Inlet". TransLink. December 1, 2014. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
- ^ Greenways and Neighbourhood Transportation Branch (February 3, 2009). "2008/2009 Cycling Statistics Update" (PDF). City of Vancouver.
- ^ "Cycling routes, maps, and trip planner". City of Vancouver.
- ^ "Transportation 2040 Plan: A transportation vision for the City of Vancouver". City of Vancouver.
- ^ City of Vancouver (2009). "Burrard Bridge Lane Reallocation Trial – What has been approved". Archived from the original on May 23, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
- ^ "Burrard Bridge bike lanes make Hornby Street merchants anxious". Vancouver Sun. July 3, 2009.
- ^ "Plant store owner calls Burrard Bridge bike-lane trial 'nail in the coffin'". Georgia Straight. July 16, 2009.
- ^ "Burrard Bridge Lane Reallocation Trial – Statistics". City of Vancouver. Archived from the original on June 24, 2011.
- ^ "Shop's business plunging due to Burrard Bridge bike lane, owner says". Vancouver Sun. July 15, 2009.
- ^ "Bike trial still a bust for business". Vancouver Courier. August 28, 2009. Archived from the original on September 2, 2015.
- ^ "Vancouver bike lanes have 'moderate economic impacts'". CBC News. July 21, 2011.
- ^ "'Part of an evolution': Downtown business partners with cycling group". CBC News. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
- ^ "Cycling On Transit". Translink. Archived from the original on April 22, 2009.
- ^ Shankar, Bradly (September 18, 2018). "Uber planning to launch bike-sharing service in Vancouver". MobileSyrup. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
- ^ "Vancouver seeing spike in bike thefts: police". CBC. August 24, 2009.
- ^ "Bike theft in Vancouver rides high cycle". Globe and Mail. August 25, 2009.
- ^ "Chinatown Revitalization Program: History of Chinatown". City of Vancouver. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012.
- ^ "Car2go will be car2gone, but other car-sharing services here to stay … and growing". vancouversun. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ^ "Car-share company Zipcar ceasing operations in B.C." British Columbia. April 21, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ^ "Modo | FAQ and Pro Tips". modo.coop. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ^ "Car Sharing Vancouver - How It Works | Evo Car Share". evo.ca. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ^ Watts, Richard (January 6, 2020). "V2V Vacations shutting down its Victoria-Vancouver ferry service". Times Colonist. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
- ^ "New Vancouver-Nanaimo ferry service cancels inaugural sailings due to wind, power outage". CBC News. August 14, 2023. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
- ^ "New ferry service to serve North Shore/Vancouver". CKNW. October 19, 2009.
- ^ "(untitled)". City of Vancouver. Archived from the original on May 23, 2019.
- ^ "Taxis". Vancouver Airport Authority. Archived from the original on March 5, 2009.