Metro Vancouver Transit Discussion

[racc]

Originally Posted by hollywoodnorth

A neighbour who witnessed the aftermath of the crash said motorists haven’t adjusted to trains being back on the tracks.

Using that logic, given the number of vehicle-vehicle and vehicle-ped collisions between vehicles it seems that many drivers haven't yet adjusted to anyone else but them being on the road.

[NetMapel]

This Olympics so far has proved that Vancouverites will go all out and have fun in awesome events. So, to all performance groups in the world, come check us out in Vancouver

[SpongeG]

the c line platforms could be 20 m longer right now and there would still be line ups - its a 2 week event people aren't complaining

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by The_Henry_Man

I doubt it. By the time the Evergreen Line is built, in around 4-5 years, the passenger volume on the entire Skytrain system will be much higher. Plus, we'll probably need another Skytrain OMC, most likely somewhere in Port Moody/just east of Ioco.

I now officially declare Zweisystem an insane person. Nuff said.

With Scarboro abandoning their ICTS / SkyTrain system (converting it to conventional LRT), we could pick up the cars and LIMs and other parts dirt cheap. Since this changeover will happen by 2015, that meshes nicely with the time when we may need more cars &tc for Evergreen.

Nobody likes to buy used stuff, but if it's well maintained & cheap why not?

The Scarborough line was only 6 1/2 miles long (approx the same distance as Waterfront Station to Commercial Station) with 6 stations and ridership of around 40,000 daily. Although it was opened a few months earlier in 1985 than the Expo line, with it's lower ridership over the years I would think the cars (Mk I similar to the original Expo Line) would have a few more decades of life to them.

If it could be done at 1/3 or 1/4 the cost of new Mk IIs, the Scarborough cars could be sent back to Bombardier for tear-down, rebuild and be updated to Translink SkyTrain standards, and they may have another 30 years of life in them. Perhaps the old Bombardier assembly facility east of Edmonds OMC could be reopened and used as the refurbishing facility for the cars and other parts bought from Scarborough.

[SpongeG]

have u seen those cars? they are so ugly i remember riding on it and it was so hideous orange and dark brown fake wood - it was so gross haha

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by lightrail

From the buzzer blog

...

- And check out the picture of Robson Street from Friday night, now I understand why the trolley buses were routed completely off Robson (routing via Georgia now). Originally there was a bus only lane on Robson - but as you can see that would be impossible.


Source: Buzzer Blog

That looks more like Granville @ Robson, looking south with part of the Lennox pub sign on the left edge, and Granville Optical on the right.

I like the new Star Wars Light Sabres that were installed as part of the refurb of the street. They do a good job of lighting the street, sidewalk and buildings.

I'm hoping that pic was snapped from the traffic control cameras, not from someone shinnying on the traffic light pole (and standing/sitting over the trolley wires -- **ZZAAPPP** )

Or maybe that's the lineup for the C-Line at VCC ?
Rush-hour crush-loading indeed.

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

have u seen those cars? they are so ugly i remember riding on it and it was so hideous orange and dark brown fake wood - it was so gross haha

And after the rebuild .. not so hideous & gross.
They just need to be functional not stylish.

I had the misfortune of visiting Scarborough a few years ago & using the RT. It was quite a shock to see their MK Is after seeing the new Mk II cars on SkyTrain.

[SpongeG]

yeah - i don't know if they are the same colours now

It was 1993 when i rode it - i am sure they are better now but at the time it was such a gross sight coming from Vancouver

Vancouver's colour scheme on the MKI has held up well

[SpongeG]

i was thinking of this just as I had lunch - I wonder what it would have been like had SFU gotten the Olympic speed skating oval - the Canada line would probably not be as busy as it is M line would be nuts i guess eh? good decision I guess to put it in Ricmhond

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

the c line platforms could be 20 m longer right now and there would still be line ups - its a 2 week event people aren't complaining

So now that we know C-Line can handle over 240K passengers daily during the Olys, can we say that the existing stations and equipment can handle normal daily traffic volumes (and the naturally increasing volumes) for the next few decades?

Now that we've been spoiled with trains every 2-3 minutes from AM rush to PM rush and through the late evening, will we be able to tolerate service going back to trains every 20 minutes in the evening?

The Olys have raised our awareness of that transit can do - who thinks Translink will meet those expectations after the Olys?

[SpongeG]

i think they may have gained some extra commuters who see just how great it can be - I still hear people who live in richmond and commute by car downtown - why?? canada line is so easy

[CLC]

Here is an official press release from Translink

Moving the World record numbers ride transit in Olympic Week 1

More people than ever before – way more – have used Metro Vancouver’s public transportation system in the first week of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. An average of more than 1.6 million people a day have used bus, SkyTrain, SeaBus and West Coast Express.

“Week one ridership has been staggering and our system has been equal to the task,” says TransLink CEO Ian Jarvis. “This is a testament to a solid plan that built in the flexibility to respond and the great execution of our planners, transit operators, mechanics, customer service personnel and transit hosts.”

Exact figures may not be known for a week or so, but the preliminary daily averages are impressive:

Bus up 34% to 975,000
SeaBus up 200% to 48,000
SkyTrain
(Expo/Millennium) up 54% to 369,700, including a single-day record of 488,000 – on a Sunday (Feb. 14), when the normal average is around 150,000
Canada Line averaged over 207,000 per day (in the 28-day period ending Jan. 28, Canada Line ridership averaged just under 94,000)
West Coast Express 19,538 – up 78% from February 2009

http://www.translink.ca/en/About-TransLi...bers-ride-transit-in-Olympic-Week-1.aspx

[racc]

Originally Posted by jsbertram

With Scarboro abandoning their ICTS / SkyTrain system (converting it to conventional LRT), we could pick up the cars and LIMs and other parts dirt cheap. Since this changeover will happen by 2015, that meshes nicely with the time when we may need more cars &tc for Evergreen.

Nobody likes to buy used stuff, but if it's well maintained & cheap why not?

The Scarborough line was only 6 1/2 miles long (approx the same distance as Waterfront Station to Commercial Station) with 6 stations and ridership of around 40,000 daily. Although it was opened a few months earlier in 1985 than the Expo line, with it's lower ridership over the years I would think the cars (Mk I similar to the original Expo Line) would have a few more decades of life to them.

If it could be done at 1/3 or 1/4 the cost of new Mk IIs, the Scarborough cars could be sent back to Bombardier for tear-down, rebuild and be updated to Translink SkyTrain standards, and they may have another 30 years of life in them. Perhaps the old Bombardier assembly facility east of Edmonds OMC could be reopened and used as the refurbishing facility for the cars and other parts bought from Scarborough.

Might be a good idea. This would show that TL is being creative in ways to save money. There is not much of a market for used SkyTrain cars. I would expect TL could buy them for scrap prices or the usual nominal $1 per car and then pay transport costs. I expect TL is constantly maintaining and rebuilding the MK 1 cars so them might be able to do the refurbishing themselves. I would expect that they are just about the only experts at this.

[The_Henry_Man]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

i think they may have gained some extra commuters who see just how great it can be - I still hear people who live in richmond and commute by car downtown - why?? canada line is so easy

There is still a great number of Richmond residents who associate driving as attaining higher status symbols, and that buses and trains are loser cruisers. This is especially true for many of the Asians who are rich, live in newer mega houses, and have 2-3 cars that are each over $50,000 in value. Remember, Richmond has the highest proportion of cars that are newer than 2004 models, I think at 25%, in the entire country (I think this is from StatsCan 2006).

[cabotp]

Originally Posted by The_Henry_Man

There is still a great number of Richmond residents who associate driving as attaining higher status symbols, and that buses and trains are loser cruisers. This is especially true for many of the Asians who are rich, live in newer mega houses, and have 2-3 cars that are each over $50,000 in value. Remember, Richmond has the highest proportion of cars that are newer than 2004 models, I think at 25%, in the entire country (I think this is from StatsCan 2006).

Not that I want to sound racist

But Asians seem to have this obsession with making themselves look better by buying better things. Then their peers. If one guy buys a Mercedes. Next thing you know a neighbour of his will buy one. Even if neither one can afford the damn car

[mrjauk]

Originally Posted by cabotp

Not that I want to sound racist

But Asians seem to have this obsession with making themselves look better by buying better things. Then their peers. If one guy buys a Mercedes. Next thing you know a neighbour of his will buy one. Even if neither one can afford the damn car

You may not sound racist, but your comment is ignorant. This is a common phenomenon in all societies. After all, the phrase is "keeping up with the Joneses" not "keeping up with the Chans."

[racc]

Originally Posted by mrjauk

You may not sound racist, but your comment is ignorant. This is a common phenomenon in all societies. After all, the phrase is "keeping up with the Joneses" not "keeping up with the Chans."

I'll second and third that. Asians, I expect use use transit as much or more as anyone else. Just look at who is on the Canada Line and Expo Lines. A lot of Asian cities have excellent transit systems and many people using transit. In China, high speed rail is turning into the way to travel between cities.

[CLC]

Apparently C-Line failed to handle the load (300K+?) well today. Translink admitted over 1 hour wait at Waterfront, in reality I believe it means longer than that.

[twoNeurons]

Originally Posted by racc

I'll second and third that. Asians, I expect use use transit as much or more as anyone else. Just look at who is on the Canada Line and Expo Lines. A lot of Asian cities have excellent transit systems and many people using transit. In China, high speed rail is turning into the way to travel between cities.

One of the things that is a factor in 1st generation asians is that in many of the countries they came from owning a vehicle was a status symbol. Hong Kong's space is limited, China was poor for most of the 1900s.

Asians use transit because it's super convenient in their home countries, or they had no choice.

Richmond also only recently got a train line, which isn't considered "too poor to buy a car transportation"

Even in Japan, where people are affluent, owning something like a VW Passat can even be status symbol. It's European, it's big ( expensive ) and expensive to run ( fuel costs more there ).

Many, many people drive kei-cars, which have sub-700cc engines, cost about 12,000 and are perfect for running around the city.

Come to think of it, even British people own smaller cars than here, and wouldn't buy the massive cars we have here because of the petrol needed to run them.

I'm sure if there was a mass migration of Brits, they'd relish the freedom to buy bigger SUV-like cars because they could afford them ( they're cheaper here, and they cost less to run )

What I'm saying is that many come here and consider a luxury car a symbol of having "made it" in the world... so not striving to own one isn't an option. The new generation also tends to be more brand-conscious than your average born and bred Vancouverite, who may consider Roots or Lululemon "high fashion". World brands like LV, Gucci etc, which are well-known here and back home will obviously be more popular.

The same could be said about Mercedes and like. They're world-reknowned Luxury brands.

[SpongeG]

its the same reason why so many immigrants buy huge houses in the suburbs cause they couldn't do so in their previous country

my friend is a recent immigrant and he is always trying to keep with his family, if one buys an iphone they have to get the same or better even if they can't afford it