Expo Line - Surrey Langley Extension: Planning & Pre-Construction

[casper]

Originally Posted by Sheba

You missed the mall anchored Guildford - technically South Surrey is anchored by a mall too. If you want you can help yourself to a cookie.

Surrey's mayor lives in an Ivory Tower too, with an LRT plan that a lot of people are against.

The Lower mainland mayors are not all that bad. The 14 mayors of the Victoria capital regional district set the standard.

[cabotp]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Actually, the recently-approved plan literally IS to have the mall gone completely.

Granted, 2041 is a long way away, and plans can change.

All we can see is that a bunch of mixed use towers will be put in the same place as the mall is. What we can't see is what will be under ground or what will be on the base of those towers. Which is why I feel the mall in some form will exist. Just not as it exists now.

Of course 40 years is a long time. I might even be 6 feet under by then. And shopping trends may have seriously changed by then that we won't need a mall.

[Waders]

Originally Posted by cabotp

All we can see is that a bunch of mixed use towers will be put in the same place as the mall is. What we can't see is what will be under ground or what will be on the base of those towers. Which is why I feel the mall in some form will exist. Just not as it exists now.

Of course 40 years is a long time. I might even be 6 feet under by then. And shopping trends may have seriously changed by then that we won't need a mall.

Nope, there wouldn't be any underground mall. It will be similar to the Station Square format, with podium at the base of each tower.

The article specifically said the following.

This master plan would move the retail and businesses housed inside the existing mall onto a new network of streets lined with commercial frontage, essentially replicating a mixed-use residential and commercial model that was first introduced in the area with Station Square redevelopment next door.

.

Anyway, I think we should get back to the topic for this thread: Surrey LRT.

[Firebrand]

From Global News

Surrey mayor, councillors under fire over trip to Phoenix to learn about LRT

Surrey’s mayor, TransLink’s CEO and five municipal councillors are facing new criticism over a trip to Phoenix, Arizona last week.


The trip was aimed at helping the Surrey councillors get a better understanding of what a light rail transit (LRT) system would look like in their hometown by experiencing it in Phoenix.

The criticism comes in the wake of controversy over a trip to France Mayor Linda Hepner took in March to attend a real estate conference.

Doug Elford with the Surrey Community Alliance thinks the timing of this trip is questionable.

“There seems to be a lot of politicians regionally taking advantage of the perks of the job,” he said.

But Surrey Councillor Tom Gill said the trip was worthwhile, and gave officials insight into the actual workings of light rail.

“The purpose was to see and demonstrate and understand how LRT works within a city,” he said.

Gill said that before the trip he was hesitant about the new form of transportation, but is now confident that Surrey has made the right choice.

“Well there is no question, I think the LRT in Pheonix clearly demonstrated that this amenity, this infrastructure, really does bring transformation to a city,”Gill said.

Elford said that Gill was recently in Australia with some members of the Metro Vancouver board looking at the country’s transit system.

“Really the timing of it all is not that great, the optics are not good at all,” he said.

Politicians from Langley also participated in the trip to Phoenix. The cost of the trip is not known at this time.

The 27-kilometre LRT system will be built in two phases.

Phase one will stretch from Newton to Guildford, and will connect to the existing Expo Line SkyTrain stations.

Phase two will take commuters from Surrey to Langley while connecting to King George Station.

Written by Janet Brown
Published at April 9, 2018 at 2:48 pm
Link

[flipper316]

Originally Posted by Firebrand

From Global News

Surrey mayor, councillors under fire over trip to Phoenix to learn about LRT



Written by Janet Brown
Published at April 9, 2018 at 2:48 pm
Link

These clowns seriously gotta go.

[SFUVancouver]

Phoenix? Of all cities with LRT, they chose Phoenix?

Phoenix, with 42km of LRT and a measly 50,000 daily ridership after ten years of operation.

Safety first!

[Metro-One]

Originally Posted by SFUVancouver

Phoenix? Of all cities with LRT, they chose Phoenix?

Phoenix, with 42km of LRT and a measly 50,000 daily ridership after ten years of operation.

Safety first!

Yeah... because Phoenix is a world class transit city...

If that is their bench mark we are really in trouble.

Why not go to Calgary if it is really about learning from LRT systems with decent success rates.

Also again they are referring to the Langley Line as LRT.

This has to stop / be officially challenged in print.

[nname]

Originally Posted by SFUVancouver

Phoenix? Of all cities with LRT, they chose Phoenix?

Phoenix, with 42km of LRT and a measly 50,000 daily ridership after ten years of operation.

Maybe that's what they envisioned. With the line eventually extended to White Rock, plus the line to Langley... its exactly 42km.

And 50,000 daily riders? Maybe that's Surrey's ridership goal

[Firebrand]

Also, isn’t it pointless to “learn” how LRT works in cities when they rammed it down to our throats and approved Phase 1 for construction? It’s just a waste of taxpayers’ dollars.

Also, this:

Politicians from Langley also participated in the trip to Phoenix.

Who? Ted Schaffer? Nathan Pachal? Jack Froese? I think they left it intentially vague so that readers assume that Langley is going for LRT.

[Metro-One]

Yeah, the route / implementation has also already been designed / decided, so what’s to learn? That per KM LRT in Phoenix is severely under performing?

Or was it just to get some sun and watch the LRT go by the pool side?

[cganuelas1995]

Phoenix is a bad example. It's a massive sprawl. The metropolitan area is 12.7% the area of the state.

That is huge.

[Firebrand]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

This has to stop / be officially challenged in print.

How’s that gonna work? Hepner and Co. ignore the letters people sent about the cons of the LRT, and when somebody’s publishing his/her opinion about it on a newspaper, Surrey counters that by saying they are lying or they are spreading out misinformation. A lot of people I know aren’t even aware that the LRT plan exists, and Surrey is taking advantage of that in order for the Expo extension to never happen.

Do you know any people other than Daryl that can challenge them?

[Metro-One]

We need to send letters to Translink / BC government to release an official statement on the current situation regarding the technology choice for the Langley transit line.

Has it been decided in a closed door back handed way as LRT?

Is an extension of the Expo Line still being considered? (As it should be!).

[GlassCity]

So Linda Hepner has decided not to run...this is what I've been dreaming of all along. Please oh please let there be a pro-SkyTrain candidate. It's not too late.

[Firebrand]

Originally Posted by GlassCity

So Linda Hepner has decided not to run...this is what I've been dreaming of all along. Please oh please let there be a pro-SkyTrain candidate. It's not too late.

I still can't believe that Hepner is following Gregor Robertson, not seeking re-election. Must be the corporate donation bans.

[flipper316]

Originally Posted by GlassCity

So Linda Hepner has decided not to run...this is what I've been dreaming of all along. Please oh please let there be a pro-SkyTrain candidate. It's not too late.

R u serious or is this a late April Fool's joke?

[flipper316]

Originally Posted by flipper316

R u serious or is this a late April Fool's joke?

Nvm just read it. Let's hope she takes LRT with her.

[Waders]

Originally Posted by flipper316

Nvm just read it. Let's hope she takes LRT with her.

Hard to say. Depends on which party controls the city council after the new election.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Originally Posted by SFUVancouver

Phoenix? Of all cities with LRT, they chose Phoenix?

Phoenix, with 42km of LRT and a measly 50,000 daily ridership after ten years of operation.

Safety first!

Originally Posted by cganuelas1995

Phoenix is a bad example. It's a massive sprawl. The metropolitan area is 12.7% the area of the state.

That is huge.

The actual LRT line isn't anything to learn from either. Not only does it stop at every red light (again, not every "LRT" has signal priority), locals say it's basically an expensive bus for bar-hoppers, sports fans and condo developers, and that commuters would've been better served by improving the existing bus network.

But of course, anything looks cool when you're a tourist. Perhaps we should pay to take Hepner and Desmond to Disneyland - that way, they'll come back and advocate for a monorail instead.

[GlassCity]

Originally Posted by Firebrand

I still can't believe that Hepner is following Gregor Robertson, not seeking re-election. Must be the corporate donation bans.

Could just be ambitious, a la Diane Watts. Federal election is only another year away.