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

[nname]

Originally Posted by aberdeen5698

Yeah, but my point is "where the heck is downtown Port Coquitlam?" Maybe my idea of it is actually downtown Coquitlam...

I suppose if you need to go to that station then you're probably in the vast majority of folks who know where it is. But for me it's just confusing, just like those highway signs that say "West Vancouver". Are they saying "this road takes you to West Vancouver" or "this westbound road takes you to Vancouver"?

I don't remember any people use "downtown Coquitlam" here, but if you talk to locals about "downtown Port Coquitlam", then they know exactly what you are talking about.

Most people here uses "City Centre" to describe the area in Coquitlam from the bus loop to just south of Westwood Plateau, and that's different from the "downtown" as defined by the city (the mall and 1 block immediately adjacent to it). So most of the high rises you see are part of the City Centre, but they are not part of the downtown core.

[Tvisforme]

Originally Posted by GMasterAres

...if you are still confused, I suggest going on the ICBC website and pulling up the signs literature for BC. Knowing how to read signs while driving is kind of important.

It is important, of course, and that is a useful link. However, it is worth noting that the page you refer to does not actually mention your point about compass directions, so it would not clarify the matter.

[Tvisforme]

Originally Posted by nname

I don't remember any people use "downtown Coquitlam" here, but if you talk to locals about "downtown Port Coquitlam", then they know exactly what you are talking about.

Most people here uses "City Centre" to describe the area in Coquitlam from the bus loop to just south of Westwood Plateau, and that's different from the "downtown" as defined by the city (the mall and 1 block immediately adjacent to it). So most of the high rises you see are part of the City Centre, but they are not part of the downtown core.

Yes, these terms can very much be relative to the municipality. On the North Shore, for example, "downtown" generally refers to the area in Vancouver proper, and not anywhere on the north side of Burrard Inlet.

[nname]

Originally Posted by Tvisforme

Yes, these terms can very much be relative to the municipality. On the North Shore, for example, "downtown" generally refers to the area in Vancouver proper, and not anywhere on the north side of Burrard Inlet.

Yes, if you say "downtown" while you're in Port Coquitlam, most people will think you are referring to Port Coquitlam downtown. You'll need to say "downtown Vancouver" or just "Vancouver" if you're referring the other one.

I think in Coquitlam, if you just say "downtown", people will get confused and ask you which one? But they are just thinking whether it's downtown Vancouver or downtown Port Coquitlam, and never think about the one in Coquitlam. If you meant Coquitlam downtown, then just say "Coquitlam Centre", "City Centre" or "Town Centre".

[officedweller]

I think 'downtown' references are also historical.
Older cities will have a historic 'downtown' and that's what's meant as the 'downtown'.
It doesn't mean a built up area with highrises.
It means the historic heart of the city (which also comes with a grid system of streets) (Port Coquitlam, New Westminster, Port Moody, Langley City, North Vancouver, Nanaimo, Kelowna, Vernon, Penticton)
Newer cities may not have a 'downtown', at least not until it builds one of the highrise varieties (Coquitlam, Burnaby, Surrey, Richmond))

[Vantage]

I live in Downtown PoCo, WE EXIST

[Dave2]

Companies invited to submit qualifications for Surrey-Langley SkyTrain extension/

[cairnstone]

Has any of the the qualified bidders been made public

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by cairnstone

Has any of the the qualified bidders been made public

Too soon. The stage they're at is inviting potential teams to bid - no announcements have been made about which teams are deemed to have qualified. They're breaking the project up into three different contracts, to build the guideway and roadworks and utilities in one contract, to build the stations in a second, and the latest is to build the track and signalling elements of the project.

Co-ordinating those elements will add complexity (and maybe time), but might mean more companies will bid, which might save money. That's the theory, anyway. We'll probably never know if that's true, but we will see if the split contract approach can be run smoothly, or adds more problems (compared to a single contract to a team as the Broadway project). It probably helps that there aren't any tunnels on the Langley extension.

[jlove390]

Surrey Langley SkyTrain takes another step

https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2023MOTI0001-000001

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by jlove390

Surrey Langley SkyTrain takes another step

https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2023MOTI0001-000001

Two teams have been invited to bid in the RFP stage to design, build and finance the elevated guideway, roadworks and utilities, as well as active transportation elements of the Surrey Langley SkyTrain. "The Province anticipates the successful proponent will be announced in late fall 2023.

In October 2022, the Province issued a separate RFQ for the construction of eight new SkyTrain stations, including active transportation elements, such as cycling and walking paths around the new stations. A third RFQ was issued in November 2022 for the systems and trackwork contract, including design, installation and integration of electrical systems, such as power, telecommunications and automatic controls, and the supply and installation of the trackwork.

The Province will announce the short-listed proponents for the second and third RFPs in 2023. Contract awards are anticipated in early 2024."

[VancouverOfTheFuture]

Originally Posted by Changing City

Two teams have been invited to bid in the RFP stage to design, build and finance the elevated guideway, roadworks and utilities, as well as active transportation elements of the Surrey Langley SkyTrain. "The Province anticipates the successful proponent will be announced in late fall 2023.

In October 2022, the Province issued a separate RFQ for the construction of eight new SkyTrain stations, including active transportation elements, such as cycling and walking paths around the new stations. A third RFQ was issued in November 2022 for the systems and trackwork contract, including design, installation and integration of electrical systems, such as power, telecommunications and automatic controls, and the supply and installation of the trackwork.

The Province will announce the short-listed proponents for the second and third RFPs in 2023. Contract awards are anticipated in early 2024."

good to see it happening. it was always a natural progression and common sense. (barring that blip of stupid LRT planning)

[idunno]

Exciting! My recollection with the Broadway Subway was that construction began very shortly after contracts were awarded. So that means we could see shovels in the ground in just over a year!

[Jimbo604]

DailyHive.com: Two teams shortlisted for first $1.1 billion contract for Surrey-Langley SkyTrain
Kenneth Chan Jan 4 2023, 12:18 pm
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/surrey-langley-skytrain-elevated-guidway-contractor-shortlist

excerpt:
"Construction on the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain extension of the Expo Line is expected to begin in 2024, and the provincial government has taken a step towards meeting that timeline for the project.

It was announced on Tuesday the provincial government has shortlisted two teams — South Fraser Guideway Connectors and SkyLink Guideway Partners — to build the concrete elevated guideway for the 16 km extension along Fraser Highway between King George Station in Surrey City Centre and 203 Street Station in Langley Centre.

The provincial government has budgeted $1.1 billion for this component of the entire $4 billion project. ...

The contractor for the elevated guideway contract will be finalized in late Fall 2023. ..."


Source: link above

[officedweller]

From the Metro Roads thread:

Originally Posted by Lexus

2023, February 11

Fraser HWY

@140 Street looking West

Untitled by Lexus LX600, on Flickr

@140 Street looking East

Untitled by Lexus LX600, on Flickr

Right between 96 Avenue and 144 Street looking East

Untitled by Lexus LX600, on Flickr

Right between 96 Avenue and 144 Street looking West

Untitled by Lexus LX600, on Flickr

[jlove390]

Surrey-Langley SkyTrain line on track to open in late 2028, project director tells Surrey council

https://www.surreynowleader.com/news/sur...8-project-director-tells-surrey-council/

[cganuelas1995]

Originally Posted by jlove390

Surrey-Langley SkyTrain line on track to open in late 2028, project director tells Surrey council

https://www.surreynowleader.com/news/sur...8-project-director-tells-surrey-council/

Hopefully that stays

[mcj]

Originally Posted by jlove390

Surrey-Langley SkyTrain line on track to open in late 2028, project director tells Surrey council

https://www.surreynowleader.com/news/sur...8-project-director-tells-surrey-council/

Gotta love how Doug Elford thinks it's even remotely possible to build a 72nd Ave. connection across ALR land in the next year.

[FarmerHaight]

Originally Posted by mcj

Gotta love how Doug Elford thinks it's even remotely possible to build a 72nd Ave. connection across ALR land in the next year.

Surrey should have considered the effect sprawling all over the place with a discombobulated grid and lackluster transit would have on traffic flow years ago.

And do his complaints even make sense? You would think that people who normally take the Fraser could divert to the TCH, highway 10, 64th, 88th, or 96th with minimal delays.

[GMasterAres]

Originally Posted by FarmerHaight

Surrey should have considered the effect sprawling all over the place with a discombobulated grid and lackluster transit would have on traffic flow years ago.

And do his complaints even make sense? You would think that people who normally take the Fraser could divert to the TCH, highway 10, 64th, 88th, or 96th with minimal delays.

Complaints make sense if you've ever driven through Surrey on a regular basis during rush hour. It's a nightmare going east-west and even north-south during rush hour. Even with Fraser Highway widened, it can take 10-15 minutes just to cross 152nd on any of 88th, 64th, and 96th. Highway 10 tends to back up as you reach 176th and can do so for multiple km.

Fraser Highway itself will backup often headed eastbound from 176th all the way to up the hill coming down or since your tag says you're in the West End, basically the distance from Stanley Park to just past Burrard Street.

Pressure is pretty big along the routes and shutting down Fraser Highway which they just did effectively for half a year+ a few times with the current widening, will add at least +30 minutes to the average commuter's 1-way commute over normal easy. Adding effectively +1 hour per day to commuters I would call "significant" with no alternatives and no room for any issues on the alternate routes.

1 accident on one of the alternates like 96th or Fraser Highway, or a big accident on SFPR causing people to divert to the Surrey E/W through roads, and you're adding 1-2 hours+. That happened recently SFPR was effectively shut to an accident as I was headed home and I had to divert up along 104th to rejoin HWY 1. My typical 45 minute commute took 3 hours that day.

1 accident.

As for your first comment regarding sprawl, if Surrey and other cities in the suburbs didn't sprawl the last 20 years, we'd have even more of a housing crisis today. I agree that they should have considered the effect from at least a roads perspective but transit is under the Provincial Government and reginal, and most of the Mayors including the past Mayors of Vancouver, Burnaby, and Richmond voted multiple times against any transit expansion in Surrey and beyond. So they can't take all the blame, just some of it regarding major roads networks.

And in general, not exclusive to Surrey, many of the suburbs seem to stuck in the mode of only expanding roads when there is redevelopment so you end up with these patchworks of road expansions and sidewalks that end up going 2 blocks only to stop at a ditch because the next plots of land haven't been built on. The new council in Township of Langley is taking the first steps of the suburb cities/towns to actually stop that ridiculous cycle that has resulted in things like a 4 block stretch of 140th avenue in Surrey going from 2 lanes to 1 lane to 2 lanes and being that way for the past 25 years.

25 years to get rid of that 4 block choke point on a major N/S route??? So yes Surrey does take some blame for sure for crappy road networks I agree there though not all.