[Vancouver] Canada Line | Completed [In Service]

[mr.x]

Here you will find the most indepth information resource of the construction of a rapid transit rail line at Skyscraperpage









INTRODUCTION

The Canada Line, formerly known as the Richmond-Airport-Vancouver Rapid Transit Rail Line ("RAV Line"), is a new 19-km automated rapid transit line of the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority (TransLink) currently under construction. The line is being built and will be operated by a private sector engineering firm, SNC-Lavalin (InTransitBC), for 35 years.

The line will be the third for Vancouver, Canada and will be added to the existing rapid transit system but will not use linear induction motor technology, rather standard third rail technology. Despite the fact the line will use different technology, it is unclear whether or not it will be branded "SkyTrain" as the other two existing lines.

The Canada Line will connect downtown Vancouver to the Vancouver International Airport and Richmond City Centre in time for the 2010 Winter Olympics. The line is expected to carry 100,000 passengers per day at launch on November 29, 2009 and 142,000 passengers by 2021.

CONSTRUCTION BEGAN IN SEPTEMBER 2005 AND WILL BE COMPLETED ON NOVEMBER 29, 2009.






ROUTE

The Vancouver section of the line will run underground from Waterfront Station, with a cut-and-cover tunnel under Granville Street between Hastings and Dunsmuir and a bored tunnel under Granville and Davie Street and False Creek to the 2nd Avenue station on Cambie Street, where it will run as a cut-and-cover tunnel as far as 64th Avenue with the two directions either side-by-side or stacked on separate decks.

From there, the line will be elevated, crossing the North Arm of the Fraser River via a new cable-stayed bridge. At the proposed Bridgeport Station, the line would split, with the main line heading south on an elevated track along Number 3 Road to Richmond City Centre. A branch line will cross the Middle Arm of the Fraser River, connecting Bridgeport Station to stations on Sea Island and terminating at Vancouver International Airport. Portions of the airport branch will be at-grade in order to accommodate a future elevated taxiway for aircraft over the line. In addition, 400 metres of the final segments of the Richmond and Airport branches are single-tracked instead of double tracked to cut project costs and to appease Richmond City Council, which considered the overhead line an eyesore and had been fighting for an at-grade line.

- Elevated: ~7 kms
- At-grade: ~1.7 kms
- Bored tunnel: ~ 2.5 kms
- Cut & cover tunel: ~8 kms
TOTAL: 19 kms

Travel times southbound from downtown Vancouver will be 25 minutes to Richmond Centre and 26 minutes to the airport terminus. Northbound, trains will leave Richmond City Centre and YVR every six minutes heading to Vancouver. The departures will be coordinated to allow for a train every three minutes on the main line in Vancouver.

- Richmond frequency: ~6 minutes
- Airport frequency: ~6 minutes
- Combined Vancouver frequency: ~3 minutes

Bridges
- North Arm Fraser River Bridge
- Middle Arm Fraser River Bridge

Canada Line tunnel boring machine, "Sweet Leilani"






FREQUENCY


INTIAL SERVICE PLAN in 2009/2010
7-day frequency (32 vehicles/16 trains required)

Early Morning
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 6 minutes
- Bridgeport to YVR: 12 minutes
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 12 minutes

Morning Peak Period
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 3 mins 45 secs
- Bridgeport to YVR: 7 mins 30 secs
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 7 mins 30 secs

Mid-Day
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 3 mins 45 secs
- Bridgeport to YVR: 7 mins 30 secs
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 7 mins 30 secs

Afternoon Peak Period
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 3 mins 45 secs
- Bridgeport to YVR: 7 mins 30 secs
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 7 mins 30 secs

Evening
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 6 minutes
- Bridgeport to YVR: 12 minutes
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 12 minutes

Late Night
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 10 minutes
- Bridgeport to YVR: 20 minutes
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 20 minutes

SERVICE PLAN (will kick in when line gets busier)
7-day frequency (36 vehicles/18 trains required)

Early Morning
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 6 minutes
- Bridgeport to YVR: 12 minutes
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 12 minutes

Morning Peak Period
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 3 minutes 10 secs
- Bridgeport to YVR: 6 minutes 20 secs
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 6 minutes 20 secs

Mid-Day
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 3 minutes 10 secs
- Bridgeport to YVR: 6 minutes 20 secs
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 6 minutes 20 secs

Afternoon Peak Period
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 3 minutes 10 secs
- Bridgeport to YVR: 6 minutes 20 secs
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 6 minutes 20 secs

Late Night
- Waterfront to Bridgeport: 10 minutes
- Bridgeport to YVR: 20 minutes
- Bridgeport to Richmond Centre: 20 minutes




STATIONS

Stations are proposed to be built in two stages: 16 stations will be built for the line's projected opening prior to the 2010 Winter Olympics, with up to three additional stations being added after the line opens. Stations platforms will range from 40 and 50 metres in length. Stations that are 40 metres are expandable to 50 metres. The proposed stations are listed below.

Vancouver
- Waterfront (connection to Expo and Millennium Lines, West Coast Express and SeaBus) - 50 metres
- Vancouver City Centre (Granville Street at Robson Street) - 50 metres
- Yaletown-Roundhouse (Davie Street near Mainland Street) - 40 metres
- Olympic Village (Vancouver 2010 Olympic Village, SouthEast False Creek, Granville Island) - 40 metres
- Broadway-City Hall (Cambie Street at West Broadway) - 50 metres
- King Edward (Cambie Street at King Edward Avenue) - 40 metres
- Oakridge-41st Avenue (Cambie Street at West 41st Avenue, next to Oakridge Centre) - 50 metres
- Langara-49th Avenue (Cambie Street at West 49th Avenue) - 40 metres
- Marine Drive (Cambie Street at Southwest Marine Drive) - 40 metres

Richmond
- Bridgeport (north of Bridgeport Road in Richmond; major transit exchange for suburban buses; new 1,000 car park and ride; link to Airport branch) - 40 metres
- Aberdeen (No. 3 Road at Cambie Road) - 40 metres
- Lansdowne (No. 3 Road at Lansdowne Road; 2-3 blocks away from the Richmond Olympic Oval speed skating venue) - 40 metres
- Richmond-Brighouse (No. 3 Road at Cook Road, adjacent to the Richmond Centre shopping mall) - 50 metres

Vancouver International Airport
- Templeton (to be located north of Grant McConachie Way, near Templeton Street) - 40 metres
- Sea Island Centre (to be located on Grant McConachie Way, near the Air Canada service centre) - 40 metres
- YVR-Airport Terminal (adjacent to the main terminal of Vancouver International Airport) - 50 metres

Future stations post-2010
- 33rd Avenue (Cambie Street at West 33rd Avenue, next to Queen Elizabeth Park in Vancouver)
- 57th Avenue (Cambie Street at West 57th Avenue in Vancouver)
- Capstan Way (No. 3 Road at Capstan Way in Vancouver)
- YVR-3 (Vancouver International Airport future terminal expansion)

Station architects
- Segment One: Downtown (Waterfront, Vancouver City Centre and Yaletown-Roundhouse Stations) – VIA Architecture & PBK;
- Segment Two: North Cambie (Olympic Village and Broadway-City Hall Stations) – Stantec;
- Segment Three: Central Cambie (King Edward, Oakridge-41st Avenue and Langara-49th Avenue Stations) – Hotson Bakker Boniface Haden;
- Segment Four: Fraser River (Marine Drive and Bridgeport Stations) – VIA Architecture & PBK;
- Segment Five: No 3 Road (Aberdeen, Lansdowne and Richmond-Brighouse Stations) – Busby Perkins Will;
- Segment Six: Sea Island (Templeton Station, Sea Island Centre Stations) – Walter Francl;
- Segment Seven: Sea Island/Terminal (YVR-Airport Station) – Kasian Architects.




TECHNOLOGY

The Canada Line will not use the proprietary Bombardier Advanced Rapid Transit linear induction technology, but rather another fully automated transit vehicle using more conventional motors than the linear induction motor used in trains on the Expo and Millennium lines. The Request For Proposals also required that the system have an ultimate capacity of 15,000 pphpd (leaving the choice of technology and platform length to the proponent) and required a maximum travel time between YVR and downtown Vancouver of 24 minutes. The new line will also be automated like the other two existing lines.




VEHICLES

The trains (ROTEM EMU) will be designed and built in South Korea by Rotem Company, a division of Hyundai Motor Group.

In total twenty fully-automated articulated trains are on order. Capacity of the new trains is estimated at 334 people, with a top speed of 80 km/h. Married pairs of gangway connected cars will be 41 metres long and 3 metres wide, both longer and wider than the ART fleet used by the current SkyTrain lines, and will have electronic ‘Next Destination’ signs on each train. These trains are currently used by Hong Kong's MTR and KCR.

Technical Summary
- Train Configuration: 2-car trains
- Maximum speed: 80 km/h
- End to End Journey time: 25-26 mins
- Passenger capacity: 400 per train
- Seating configuration: Side-by-side transverse seats, flip-up seats at wheelchair and bicycle positions
- Bicycle accommodation: 2 per train
- Wheelchair accomodation: 4 per train
- Length: 41 metres
- Width: 3 metres
- Height: 3.6 metres
- Weight: 76 tonnes empty

Features
- Air conditioned interior
- Wide aisles between seats for smooth passenger flow
- Walkway between vehicles
- Accessible for wheelchairs, strollers and bicycles
- Passenger silent alarm
- Emergency passenger-operated intercom panels
- Electronic “Next Station” signs in each train
- Electronic “Destination” signs on the outside of each train
- Public Address System announcing next stations
- Modern vandal-resistant finishes
- Silver stainless steel exterior
- Fully automated and driverless operations

I have to say that i really love new logo, very sleek......maybe a different brand from SkyTrain is a great thing, but i still think it should still be NAMED SkyTrain.












Incomplete Canada Line train from the factory in South Korea



Update - September 2007


































COST

CAN$2 BILLION
- Government of Canada: $300 million
- Government of British Columbia: $400 million
- Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority (Translink): $400 million
- Vancouver International Airport: $250 million
- InTransitBC (SNC-Lavalin; private sector): $650+ million

[mr.x]

WATERFRONT STATION

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VANCOUVER CITY CENTRE STATION

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YALETOWN-ROUNDHOUSE STATION

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OLYMPIC VILLAGE STATION

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BROADWAY/CITY HALL STATION

[mr.x]

KING EDWARD STATION

[mr.x]

OAKRIDGE-41ST AVENUE STATION

[mr.x]

LANGARA-49TH AVENUE STATION









Station entrance and general platform design for King Edward, Oakridge-41st, and Langara-49th Avenue Stations:

[mr.x]

MARINE DRIVE STATION













TUNNEL PORTAL JUST NORTH OF MARINE DRIVE STATION

[mr.x]

CANADA LINE NORTH ARM FRASER RIVER BRIDGE




Illustration of the bridge over the North Arm of the Fraser River.


Illustration of bicycle and pedestrian path, North Arm Fraser Bridge.

The Canada Line consists of an extradosed precast segmental box girder bridge with continuous deck of 562 m (1844 ft.). The 180 m (590 ft.) main span provides comfortable clearance to the 150 m (492 ft.) wide main navigation channel. The 139 m (456 ft.) wide side span easily clears the 57 m (187 ft.) wide north navigation channel. The locations of the substructures for these spans avoid direct encroachment upon the environmentally sensitive shoreline areas of the Fraser River.

The Crossing includes two main pylons (45 m/143 ft. high) and two approach piers on each side of the North Arm. The pylons above deck at the main piers are designed in steel and provide anchorage for the extradosed main span tendons. The bridge is also designed to carry a pedestrian/bikeway over the North Arm.

[mr.x]

BRIDGEPORT STATION







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BRIDGEPORT OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE CENTRE

[mr.x]

TEMPLETON STATION

[mr.x]

SEA ISLAND CENTRE STATION

[mr.x]

YVR-AIRPORT STATION

[mr.x]

ABERDEEN STATION

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LANSDOWNE STATION

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RICHMOND-BRIGHOUSE STATION

[mr.x]

Recent construction pictures:



Looking west at the completed Middle Arm Bridge Structure. In late April or early May 2007 launching Gantry LG1 will complete the erection of the beams on the east side of the bridge and then walk over the bridge to complete the erection of the beams on the west side of the bridge.





Looking north towards the completed Middle Arm Bridge




Excavation of Vancouver City Centre Station looking North - February 2007





Cut & cover roll over structure on Cambie Street between 20th Ave and King Edward. The two guideway tunnels transition from being side by side to one above the other. This photo was taken near King Edward and the tunnels are almost on above the other.





The transition from cut and cover tunnel to elevated guideway at 63rd Ave on Cambie Street.





The elevated guideway structure being constructed under the Oak Street Bridge, looking towards the Bridgeport Operations & Maintenance Centre.






Launching Grantry L2 has been relocated from the airport to the north end of No. 3 Road and is erecting beems heading south to Richmond Centre.






Launching Gantry LG1 just south of Bridgeport Station being positioned to erect the Airport single track guideway up and over the guideway the goes to Richmond Centre.





The completed cut & cover tunnel near 33rd Avenue.






The elevated guideway moving south towards Richmond City Centre.







Completed guideway at Vancouver International Airport at Sea Island.






Looking west towards the Templeton Station site from the last elevated span between the bridge and Templeton Station. Templeton Station is located on an At-Grade section of guideway.





Bridgeport guideway







Special precast box beam structure over Railway Tracks and Bridgeport Guideway & Station Structure. Below, cleared land, is the future Operations & Maintenance Centre.









Yaletown-Roundhouse Station Excavation - February 2007

[mr.x]

Tunnel Boring Machine at Olympic Village Station Entrance pit - June 10, 2006.

The dark circles are tunnels that have been mined to the south to provide room to manoeuvre the work trains that service the TBM.





Commemorative Starting of the Tunnel Boring Machine





Close up shot - Tunnel Boring Machine cutting face.




The Head Unit of the Tunnel Boring Machine is now fully into the Ground.






Bored Tunnel Entrance. The 83 metre long Tunnel Boring Machine is now completely underground.




Concrete segment being put in place at the bored tunnel.




Tunnel under False Creek - The large black duct at the top carries fresh air into the tunnel. The pipes and cables carry services to the Tunnel Boring Machine.





The Bored Tunnel Under Davie Street






March 1, 2007 - The Tunnel Boring Machine breaking through at the Vancouver City Centre Station Site (Granville Street between Robson and Georgia (VIDEO OF BREAKTHROUGH: http://canadaline.ca/videos.asp)