Metro Vancouver Transit Discussion

[nname]

Originally Posted by aberdeen5698

Sure, it sucks to miss the bus - I totally understand because I've been there more times than I'd like. But the simple fact is that when trains come every few minutes (and even more frequently when you consider that they're coming from both directions) there are always going to be people who just miss the bus. It's just a fact of life. Whining and complaining isn't going to change that.

The bus departure time from station is published. If someone know they are connect to an infrequent bus, they should always look it up first. With SkyTrain, you know EXACTLY how many minutes it take to get you there, and it WILL get you there on time 99.5% of the time.

Plus the fact that SkyTrain also runs on a schedule, so if you're a frequent traveler, you can plan your trip down to the seconds. I remember I used to take the then-M-Line at 6:13:15 from Metrotown, and get to Braid at 6:29:45 to transfer to the 169 that scheduled to depart at 6:31. Except the days I missed that particular train due to my own fault, out of the entire year I only missed this connection 3 times. My second connection is more tricky... If the 169 depart on time, then there's about 80% chance of making my second connection at 6:51 (the bus scheduled to arrive at 6:50). If the bus driver is being "nice" and decide to wait for the people running downstairs from the 6:30:45 SkyTrain arrival from Lougheed, then most likely me and everyone else who are on the bus will miss their connection and stranded at Coquitlam Station.

Of course I can choose to take the earlier bus for guaranteed connection, but 20min late arrival on some days beats 15min earlier departure everyday, right?

And as someone who used to take 4-6 transfers everyday, this missing connection happened to me way too many times.... It's so intense, checking my time every 30 seconds on bus, and at every intersection hoping it will beat the red light so I can make my next connection....

[cganuelas1995]

Originally Posted by nname

The bus departure time from station is published. If someone know they are connect to an infrequent bus, they should always look it up first. With SkyTrain, you know EXACTLY how many minutes it take to get you there, and it WILL get you there on time 99.5% of the time.

Plus the fact that SkyTrain also runs on a schedule, so if you're a frequent traveler, you can plan your trip down to the seconds. I remember I used to take the then-M-Line at 6:13:15 from Metrotown, and get to Braid at 6:29:45 to transfer to the 169 that scheduled to depart at 6:31. Except the days I missed that particular train due to my own fault, out of the entire year I only missed this connection 3 times. My second connection is more tricky... If the 169 depart on time, then there's about 80% chance of making my second connection at 6:51 (the bus scheduled to arrive at 6:50). If the bus driver is being "nice" and decide to wait for the people running downstairs from the 6:30:45 SkyTrain arrival from Lougheed, then most likely me and everyone else who are on the bus will miss their connection and stranded at Coquitlam Station.

Of course I can choose to take the earlier bus for guaranteed connection, but 20min late arrival on some days beats 15min earlier departure everyday, right?

And as someone who used to take 4-6 transfers everyday, this missing connection happened to me way too many times.... It's so intense, checking my time every 30 seconds on bus, and at every intersection hoping it will beat the red light so I can make my next connection....

TransLink seriously needs to make an official app that allows us to bookmark specific routes, stations, lines, and stops and give us real time alerts regarding delays or detours or if the next bus is full and arrival times at those stops/stations, as well as a Compass card, instead of having to rely on the multitude of third-party apps. They have a goddamn store with TransLink-branded merchandise and a mobile site when they should've given us an app instead.

[nname]

Originally Posted by cganuelas1995

TransLink seriously needs to make an official app that allows us to bookmark specific routes, stations, lines, and stops and give us real time alerts regarding delays or detours or if the next bus is full and arrival times at those stops/stations, as well as a Compass card, instead of having to rely on the multitude of third-party apps. They have a goddamn store with TransLink-branded merchandise and a mobile site when they should've given us an app instead.

What's wrong with the mobile site though? You can just bookmark these pages with your browser...

https://nb.translink.ca/Text/Stop/54321
https://nb.translink.ca/Map/Route/049
https://nb.translink.ca/Map/Stop/59890

[cganuelas1995]

Originally Posted by nname

What's wrong with the mobile site though? You can just bookmark these pages with your browser...

https://nb.translink.ca/Text/Stop/54321
https://nb.translink.ca/Map/Route/049
https://nb.translink.ca/Map/Stop/59890

Inconvenient. Also, apps can give you notifications.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Yeah, by the time you've found which schedule at which stop, and read it all the way through, the bus has already come and gone.

I know TransLink's busy right now, but Singapore's official transit app, for example, tells you when the next bus/train is coming, where it'll end up, how long it'll take, and how crowded it is (same with the connecting routes). It even gives taxi booking options!

[xd_1771]

Originally Posted by nname

Plus the fact that SkyTrain also runs on a schedule, so if you're a frequent traveler, you can plan your trip down to the seconds....

What, so I'm not the only one who does this

The ordeal started in 2013 when I began to really heavily use the Expo Line and has continued since. In my head I've managed to remember the specific intervals at which the trains would depart my home station... i.e. :06, :12, :18, etc. and often timed bus connections based on those. Even now I'm able to do this, like, the fastest way I know from King George to Richmond-KPU gets me there in 45 minutes almost consistently, and involves catching a specific train that gives me exactly 1min30 to transfer to the 410, which in turn gives me around 3-8 mins to transfer to the 301 at 91/Westminster. I remember when TL dropped Expo Line frequencies down to every 7 mins on weekends, it threw me off because I could no longer count on the trains arriving at the same interval every hour. I found my productivity dropping on weekends since I had to allocate extra time to almost every trip. It really counts on those occasions when I need to make various trips within a single day. Really glad they're back to 6 mins (and with 6-car trains, with the huge surge in ridership in the last year we need the capacity).

I don't imagine most people time down to the second like this, but it's kind of become an ingrained habit for me. Kind of like how I find myself always walking to the specific part of the train closest to the station exit where I will be getting off... maybe not too important here with our shorter platforms, but I picked up the habit in Japan where the platforms can be as much as 300m long sometimes

[cganuelas1995]

Originally Posted by xd_1771

What, so I'm not the only one who does this

The ordeal started in 2013 when I began to really heavily use the Expo Line and has continued since. In my head I've managed to remember the specific intervals at which the trains would depart my home station... i.e. :06, :12, :18, etc. and often timed bus connections based on those. Even now I'm able to do this, like, the fastest way I know from King George to Richmond-KPU gets me there in 45 minutes almost consistently, and involves catching a specific train that gives me exactly 1min30 to transfer to the 410, which in turn gives me around 3-8 mins to transfer to the 301 at 91/Westminster. I remember when TL dropped Expo Line frequencies down to every 7 mins on weekends, it threw me off because I could no longer count on the trains arriving at the same interval every hour. I found my productivity dropping on weekends since I had to allocate extra time to almost every trip. It really counts on those occasions when I need to make various trips within a single day. Really glad they're back to 6 mins (and with 6-car trains, with the huge surge in ridership in the last year we need the capacity).

I don't imagine most people time down to the second like this, but it's kind of become an ingrained habit for me. Kind of like how I find myself always walking to the specific part of the train closest to the station exit where I will be getting off... maybe not too important here with our shorter platforms, but I picked up the habit in Japan where the platforms can be as much as 300m long sometimes

I look at the two departure boards at Vancouver City Centre station and calculate the times to see if the train going to Waterfront is gonna turn into a Richmond train, so I can get some extra sit-on-ass time.

[Reecemartin]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Yeah, by the time you've found which schedule at which stop, and read it all the way through, the bus has already come and gone.

I know TransLink's busy right now, but Singapore's official transit app, for example, tells you when the next bus/train is coming, where it'll end up, how long it'll take, and how crowded it is (same with the connecting routes). It even gives taxi booking options!

Translink hardly needs to, anyone can make an app.

[CanSpice]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Yeah, by the time you've found which schedule at which stop, and read it all the way through, the bus has already come and gone.

I know TransLink's busy right now, but Singapore's official transit app, for example, tells you when the next bus/train is coming, where it'll end up, how long it'll take, and how crowded it is (same with the connecting routes). It even gives taxi booking options!

You could always use Transit App which combines TransLink's real-time info with actual real-time info from riders on the bus or train.

[Trainguy]

Vancouver Sun

7 January 2018
Talk of Delaying TransLink Projects Borders on Nonsense

Vancouver British Columbia - The mayors of Surrey and Vancouver are pushing back on any possible slowdown on the Broadway subway or Surrey light-rail transit following statements made by Burnaby mayor Derek Corrigan that raised questions on the future of both mega-projects.

Corrigan, the new chair of the TransLink Mayors' Council on Regional Transportation, said its first priority is to replace the aging Pattullo Bridge and suggested it was unrealistic to do all three projects concurrently, which is the vision laid out in the mayors' council 10 year plan.

Surrey Mayor Linda Hepner said the Pattullo Bridge has been identified as the top priority in the region, but took umbrage at Corrigan's suggestions the Broadway subway and light-rail transit project could afford to be delayed.

"He's being presumptive in his other comment around the Broadway line and the LRT in Surrey as not being potentially significant priorities, and not being possible to do all three at the same time," said Hepner, who served as vice-chair on the council until she was replaced by North Vancouver Mayor Richard Walton last month.

For the first time in a decade, there's money on the table from the federal and provincial government and talk of a slowdown at this point in the game, at a time when the region is struggling with affordability and congestion, "borders on nonsense," Hepner said.

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, who was defeated by Corrigan in a secret vote after a three-year tenure as council chair, said now is not the time to delay urgently needed projects, given there is more than $2 billion on the table from Ottawa.

"It's a false choice to say it's either Pattullo Bridge or rapid transit," said Robertson in a statement.

"All three of these key projects need to happen ASAP and TransLink has spent years preparing to deliver them at the same time. This is the year to get funding confirmed and shovels in the ground."

The 10 year plan, which mayors approved in 2014 with Corrigan as the sole dissenting vote, includes a new four-lane Pattullo Bridge by 2023, an extension of the Millennium Line along Broadway to Arbutus Street, and rapid transit in Surrey and Langley.

In an interview with Postmedia News on the weekend, Corrigan suggested it wasn't possible to embark on the projects at the same time.

"I don't know if there is any organization across Canada capable of doing three major projects like that simultaneously and doing them well," he said.

When asked whether the Broadway subway and Surrey LRT should be delayed until after the Pattullo Bridge is replaced, he said, "I'm not sure, I'm going to be talking to the provincial government about that."

Corrigan is "putting the cart before the horse," said Hepner, as there hasn't been an opportunity to tender the projects on the marketplace.

"I'm worried that kind of talk can influence both the federal and the provincial governments, that they would hear his voice and believe that to be representative of the council, and I don't think it's anywhere close in representing the council," she said.

If Corrigan plans to de-prioritize the Broadway subway and Surrey light-rail transit, his stance can be challenged in council by way of a proportional vote, Hepner added.

"Anyone can call for a weighted vote at any time," she said.

"I don't think there are many mayors around that table who haven't seen the importance of transportation in the region."

Cheryl Chan

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by Trainguy

Vancouver Sun

7 January 2018
Talk of Delaying TransLink Projects Borders on Nonsense

Vancouver British Columbia - The mayors of Surrey and Vancouver are pushing back on any possible slowdown on the Broadway subway or Surrey light-rail transit following statements made by Burnaby mayor Derek Corrigan that raised questions on the future of both mega-projects.

aka the people who used to be in charge and have mega projects planned in their city...

Plus has been pointed out many times, it's not like he's the only person who has a voice. None of these projects have gotten beyond planning at this point either.

[GeeCee]

Proceed on Broadway and the Patullo, scrap Surrey LRT and do it later as SkyTrain. Easy!

[Metro-One]

Originally Posted by GeeCee

Proceed on Broadway and the Patullo, scrap Surrey LRT and do it later as SkyTrain. Easy!

Agreed! (And open the Pattullo as 6 lanes from the get go. The bridge deck will be designed for such, as will the approaches, so why waste the time and money opening it as 4 just to please New West for a couple years in a bizarre political play).

[cganuelas1995]

Originally Posted by GeeCee

Proceed on Broadway and the Patullo, scrap Surrey LRT and do it later as SkyTrain. Easy!

The Surrey LRT being getting funding from outside of Surrey would make sense if the project was regionally important and was gonna get a lot of use from people outside Surrey.

[Metro-One]

Originally Posted by cganuelas1995

The Surrey LRT being getting funding from outside of Surrey would make sense if the project was regionally important and was gonna get a lot of use from people outside Surrey.

As a flat rule that is petty and would only create more of a mess between our various governments.

A good middle ground is if a project fails the business case then a larger portion should be covered by the communities championing it.

[ilikeredheads]

let's face it, the surrey streetcar is anything but a "urgently needed" project.

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by ilikeredheads

let's face it, the surrey streetcar is anything but a "urgently needed" project.

I completely agree with you on the L Line route. The Fraser Hwy route is needed - as Skytrain.

[Trainguy]

Originally Posted by Sheba

aka the people who used to be in charge and have mega projects planned in their city...

Plus has been pointed out many times, it's not like he's the only person who has a voice. None of these projects have gotten beyond planning at this point either.

The reason the GEB went ahead and was completed in a timely manner is because there was no government money involved. I am sure there are "conditions" attached to the 40% the NDP are promising. Let's see how long it takes to get the shovels in the ground on any of these projects.

[KPELLY]

Originally Posted by Sheba

I completely agree with you on the L Line route. The Fraser Hwy route is needed - as Skytrain.

Agreed, I think the Fraser Hwy skytrain route will be very successful as well.

It has the same advantages as the Expo Line through Vancouver and Burnaby in that it diagonally cuts through the area which causes the average distances to the stations to be less than strictly E/W or N/S routes.

[officedweller]

Agreed - a diagonal route is good for feeder routes and good for commute times.