Canada Line | Completed

[officedweller]

Something similar to what jsbertram is contemplating is, I think, provided for in the Waterfront Station Transportation Hub plan -
BUT the extended corridor ends up in the great hall of the new transportation concourse (easier wayfinding),
not directly at the Expo Line platform - based on the profile, that's due to the elevation of the platforms and structures in the way
or maybe just to facilitate transfer between all modes.

Thread here:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=146079&page=6

City Report here:
http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/currentplanning/whitecaps/presentationboards2.htm

http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/currentplan...UB%20Draft%20Plan%20Low%20Resolution.pdf

Diagram with additional legends posted by Fever:




Also relevant - Granville St. Extension Reports by the City:

http://vancouver.ca/fs/bid/bidopp/RFP/documents/Appendix6-GranvilleExtensionREPORT.pdf

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

maybe translink assumes people aren't looking to transfer

Those people will ignore the signs, as will people in commuter auto-pilot who've done it so often they can fix their makeup, sip their latte and munch a muffin while walking between platforms.

[officedweller]

From the Richmond Review:

Richmond Review
Canada Line popular among air travellers

By Matthew Hoekstra - Richmond Review

Published: November 04, 2009 11:00 AM
Updated: November 04, 2009 11:22 AM

Almost one in six air travellers are taking the Canada Line to get to Vancouver International Airport.

Since the Canada Line opened over two months ago, 15 per cent of passengers have hopped aboard the rapid transit train to get to YVR, surpassing Vancouver Airport Authority's expectations of 10 per cent.

"We're happy with the ridership," said Larry Berg, airport president, at a city council committee meeting Monday.

In the airport authority's annual update to council, Berg told elected officials the only downside for the airport is that parking revenues are down by up to 15 per cent.

“That’s what it’s intended to do, to take cars off the road, and it has," he said.

More airport employees will soon be taking the Canada Line in the mornings—for at least the Sea Island leg. A 2,500-space employee-only park-and-ride facility is set to open soon at Templeton Station.

Commuters can also expect a jump in airport traffic on the Canada Line during the Olympics.

Berg told council the Winter Olympics will bring an extra 250,000 passengers to the airport. In all, the airport is expecting to handle 380,000 passengers during the Games, but business traffic is expected to shrink in the same period, accounting for the smaller figure.

TransLink is proposing to hike transit fares to the airport starting Jan. 1, 2010. Currently, travellers to any of the three stations on Sea Island can travel with a standard transit pass. Proposed is an "add fare" of $2.50 for passengers travelling from Bridgeport and Sea Island stations in either direction.

The TransLink Commission is accepting comments from the public on the surcharge until Nov. 30. E-mail [email protected].

EDITORIAL: Canada Line surcharge to YVR will be good for cabbies

Published: November 04, 2009 2:00 PM
Updated: November 04, 2009 2:53 PM

We’re glad to see the Canada Line has been popular with travellers heading to Vancouver International Airport.

So far, 15 per cent of passengers have hopped aboard the rapid transit train to get to YVR, surpassing Vancouver Airport Authority’s expectations of 10 per cent.

But that could change come January, when users will be dinged an extra $2.50 for travelling onto Sea Island, the island of the airport improvement fee.

For most travellers staying in hotels in downtown Vancouver, $2.50 isn’t going to make a difference.

But for a family of four, that’s an extra $10 (assuming there is no reduced charge for children or seniors). If said family of four lives in Richmond’s City Centre, the cab bill would likely be less than taking the Canada Line.

And if that four lives near Oakridge in Vancouver, where they would already pay extra during rush hour for travelling into a different transit zone, it would cost more than $20 for a rush hour trip to YVR. A cab ride would cost about the same.

The Canada Line is part of TransLink’s three-zone system, where adult users pay $2.50, $3.75 or $5 depending on the number of zones crossed. What’s so special about going to Sea Island that users will have to pay $2.50 more? This is just another gouge of airport users (though it’s of TransLink’s doing) and will set a bad precedent.

And if ridership expectations are already being surpassed, then why the need for a surcharge?

If you think this is a bad idea, the TransLink Commission is accepting comments from the public on the surcharge until Nov. 30. To comment, send an e-mail to [email protected].

[kylemacmac]

Just make it an extra zone in the zone system.

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Something similar to what jsbertram is contemplating is, I think, provided for in the Waterfront Station Transportation Hub plan -
BUT the extended corridor ends up in the great hall of the new transportation concourse (easier wayfinding),
not directly at the Expo Line platform - based on the profile, that's due to the elevation of the platforms and structures in the way
or maybe just to facilitate transfer between all modes.

Wow. WOW!

Much better than the simple extension of the C-Line corridor to the E-Line and WCE platforms that I was thinking of.

It's nice to see on the cut-away drawing that the future C-Line tubes north of the station can drop down quick enough to pass under all the E-Line, WCE and CPR tracks.

Will any of us be on the first train to hear "Next stop - Lonsdale Quay; Terminal Station - Queens Cross Pub"

[BCPhil]

Check this out for genius:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/travel/take-the-train/article1350026/

Patrick Dineen
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
Published on Tuesday, Nov. 03, 2009 4:32PM EST
Days Inn Vancouver Downtown is encouraging visitors to go green by skipping the rental car and enjoying a free ride on SkyTrain's new Canada Line rapid rail service into the city from Vancouver International Airport.

Your ticket is reimbursed on check-in and, because of the 85-room property's location, you won't need a car downtown either. It is two blocks from the Canada Line's waterfront stop and close to the cruise-ship terminal, shops and restaurants on Robson Street, Gastown and Stanley Park. The hotel also offers guests complimentary drop-off service anywhere in downtown Vancouver between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. every day.

The Go Green package, priced from $111.99 per room per night, also includes a breakfast voucher for up to $10 per person valid at the hotel's restaurant.

All guest rooms have complimentary high-speed Internet access.

[Zassk]

Originally Posted by jsbertram

It's nice to see on the cut-away drawing that the future C-Line tubes north of the station can drop down quick enough to pass under all the E-Line, WCE and CPR tracks.

I don't think those diagrams reflect what was actually built for the C-Line.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by jsbertram

It's nice to see on the cut-away drawing that the future C-Line tubes north of the station can drop down quick enough to pass under all the E-Line, WCE and CPR tracks.

Those coloured lines were added in by Fever and aren't part of the rendering (they were for part of the discussion in that thread, but his .jpg was clearer than a capture of the .pdf included in the City report).

[jsbertram]

Since the PDFs were for the 'Waterfront Transporation Hub' and the related 'Granville Street extension', and were drawn in 2006-9 while the C-Line was under construction, I treated them as proposal drawings.

I noticed the 'what if' markups done to them, which spurred my comment that it was nice to see that the C-Line tunnels could be continued north bypassing the CPR station, under the E-Line, WCE and CPR tracks, and non-stop to Longsdale Quay.

Wouldn't that be as FAST commute?

[officedweller]

Just confirming that you knew they were "what ifs".

[CLC]

Richmond Review
Letter: Long wait for Canada Line in the morning

Editor:

Is it possible to spend $2 billion on a transit system that fails to deliver? Unfortunately, yes. While the Canada Line is a great amenity for many people, especially those living near No. 3 Road and Vancouver’s Cambie Street, it is a source of frustration for others.

There is a clear lack of communication and co-ordination between TransLink, Coast Mountain Bus and Protrans BC, the company that runs the Canada Line.

TransLink’s website claims that train frequency is every six minutes until 7 a.m. Monday to Friday.

The site’s trip planner will tell you that the Canada Line departs Brighouse Station at 6:05, 6:17 and 6:29—that’s 12 minute intervals, not six.

Unfortunately many bus passengers can confirm that the train actually leaves at 6:14, not three minutes later. We know this because the 401 bus is scheduled to arrive at Saba Road at 6:14 and 6:28 a.m., just in time to miss the train. Whoever created this schedule did not allow the necessary two-plus minutes to transfer from the bus stop to the train platform.

There is absolutely nothing to be gained by waiting 15 minutes every day. We’ve already seen frustration erupt in anger over this unnecessary delay.

TransLink forced us all onto the Canada Line by cancelling the express buses. It needs to work with its transit partners to develop a truly efficient service on the new combined bus/Canada Line routes, one that serves the community with the efficiency and capacity of the express buses.

A good start would be to run the trains at the promised six-minute intervals, solving not only the issue of transfer times, but also vastly increasing the number of highly coveted seats.

Marion Smith

Richmond

A valid complaint, and Canada line really need real 6-minute interval servicing Richmond now from begin of day to until 10.
I know people who takes transit in early morning hour from Richmond West now needs up to 25 minutes more than previous direct bus

[geoff's two cents]

Would six-minute intervals even be possible for the single-track Richmond section?

Assuming this is a factor, frustrated Richmond Canada Line riders would do well to point the finger at their own civic leaders as well for opposing a double-tracked system through Richmond's downtown. It will likely be years (10+?) before the tracking is rectified.

[Zassk]

Originally Posted by geoff's two cents

Would six-minute intervals even be possible for the single-track Richmond section?

Assuming this is a factor, frustrated Richmond Canada Line riders would do well to point the finger at their own civic leaders as well for opposing a double-tracked system through Richmond's downtown. It will likely be years (10+?) before the tracking is rectified.

We have been over this before on this forum. I believe it was postulated that 2 minute headways are possible on the single track (because it's not a very long distance at all).

The single tracking doesn't need to be rectified; the insufficient number of trains in service is what needs to be rectified. They should have 2 out of every 3 trains going to Brighouse, rather than half of the trains.

[Zassk]

Originally Posted by Richmond Review

Since the Canada Line opened over two months ago, 15 per cent of passengers have hopped aboard the rapid transit train to get to YVR, surpassing Vancouver Airport Authority's expectations of 10 per cent.

This is surprisingly good news. A lot of us thought that the airport trains were tragically under-used, yet apparently the current usage exceeds the expected ridership by 50%!

I guess the usage is expected to rise a little more with the new employee parking lots.

[Waders]

I remembered there were some discussions about the 'North' direction of the navigational marker outside the City Centre Station. But according to the following news article http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local...091106/20091106/?hub=BritishColumbiaHome, some workers simply goofed up the work?

City admits it goofed up navigational marker
Updated: Fri Nov. 06 2009 19:14:41

ctvbc.ca

Two centuries ago, Captain George Vancouver laid anchor in Burrard Inlet.

But the captain might be sad to learn that modern Vancouver seems to have lost its way.

Directional markers embedded in the sidewalks outside Canada Line stations are designed to help tourists navigate the city.

The trouble is one of the markers - the one outside the Downtown Vancouver station - is a little off.

Matt Armstrong, who works for Mountain Equipment Co-op and has spent a lot of time navigating the outdoors, checked the marker against a compass and high-tech GPS device.

True north was off by about 25 degrees.

"Captain Vancouver would not be happy," he said. "He'd be lost."

Passersby regretted the city's lack of direction.

"There's going to be millions of visitors looking at this and they won't know which way north is," one man said.

"I think they should take that off, put it on right!" one woman laughed.

Vancouver city planner Chris Robertson admitted they goofed.

It'll cost a few hundred dollars to fix. The city hopes to get the money back from the contractor that did the work.

So, soon, the compass will point the way Captain Vancouver had intended - true north, strong and free.

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Jon Woodward

[deasine]

Originally Posted by Zassk

We have been over this before on this forum. I believe it was postulated that 2 minute headways are possible on the single track (because it's not a very long distance at all).

The single tracking doesn't need to be rectified; the insufficient number of trains in service is what needs to be rectified. They should have 2 out of every 3 trains going to Brighouse, rather than half of the trains.

To be exact, Richmond-Brighouse and YVR-Airport should be able to handle 2 minute and 30 second headways, but anything less than that wouldn't work out too well. If we have an additional 10 trains, your idea of having 2 of the 3 trains to Brighouse would work because I think YVR, involved in the contract process, insisted on a minimum frequency, which makes sense.

[David]

I am so glad they are fixing the compass, as a geographer. It drove me nuts

[Smooth]

So the worker basically just set it to magnetic north instead of true north? I could see how someone might make that mistake. I'm sure lots of people don't know that there's a difference.

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by Smooth

So the worker basically just set it to magnetic north instead of true north? I could see how someone might make that mistake. I'm sure lots of people don't know that there's a difference.

Hmmm.....
Open a map of downtown Vancouver. Lay it on the sidewalk. Rotate it until map Georgia St. lines up with real Georgia St. Double check that map Stanley Park points to the real Stanley Park. Note which direction the map says is North.

Someone needs send their orienteering badge back to their troop leader.


I was at a showing of a condo near Stanley Park, and the realtor insisted that Robson ran 'directly East & West' so there were beautiful sunset views. I knew the unit faced NE, so the only time I'd see a sunset would be if I was visiting the neighbours. No Sale.

[The_Henry_Man]

Originally Posted by deasine

To be exact, Richmond-Brighouse and YVR-Airport should be able to handle 2 minute and 30 second headways, but anything less than that wouldn't work out too well. If we have an additional 10 trains, your idea of having 2 of the 3 trains to Brighouse would work because I think YVR, involved in the contract process, insisted on a minimum frequency, which makes sense.

I think even 4-5 min frequency in the YVR/Richmond branch would not be too bad. But yeah, the current C-Line frequency is absolutely no better than the old 98 B-Line. Why they don't make the frequency patterns similar to the E/M-Lines (constant frequency throughout the day except at late night) really puzzles me. I think Translink/Pro-Trans planners have totally stuck their heads in the sand on this one (as usual everyone on those board TOTALLY underestimated the potential transit ridership in Richmond, as they have blindly believed in the LRSP like a religious ritual).

But the problem is, now that the Translink has voted to only increase the budget to $130mil, is it even possible to have the money to buy extra Rotem trains in the foreseeable future?