SkyTrain Station Renovations

[MIPS]

Originally Posted by Express691

Starting early 2022, Burrard is to close fully for 2 years to allow for station upgrades.

https://youtu.be/mXhlAOgEuhE

It's still a preliminary model but is it that hard to stay loyal to the atrium frame design? It looks out of place.

[WestCoastEcho]

Originally Posted by Vin

2 years for this kind of upgrade? They might as well not do anything to it.

Even those instant one-day bathroom replacement service (Bath Fitter) does a better job.



What you heard is absolutely correct.

Renovations take longer than new builds, and this is a station that is also deep underground and will still have trains running through it while closed. This is going to be a fairly challenging rebuild of the station that sorely needs it.

[cganuelas1995]

Originally Posted by WestCoastEcho

Renovations take longer than new builds, and this is a station that is also deep underground and will still have trains running through it while closed. This is going to be a fairly challenging rebuild of the station that sorely needs it.

Couldn't they do one side at a time and possibly even renovate Granville while they're at it, doing a few shuttles between Stadium and Waterfront?

[scryer]

Honestly I'm not that impressed with the renovations for Burrard station . I would think that if they were to close down the station for 2 years that there would be an additional entrance constructed such as an additional entrance on the eastern side of Burrard street.

Maybe I just misunderstood the project details here?

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by scryer

Honestly I'm not that impressed with the renovations for Burrard station . I would think that if they were to close down the station for 2 years that there would be an additional entrance constructed such as an additional entrance on the eastern side of Burrard street.

Maybe I just misunderstood the project details here?

I think they don't have enough clearance to do escalators so that's why they toyed with the idea of an elevator only entrance. Even an escalator replacement at Burrard would probably have shut the station for at least a year. I assume they aren't building any new escalators to the platform.

[CanSpice]

Originally Posted by scryer

Honestly I'm not that impressed with the renovations for Burrard station . I would think that if they were to close down the station for 2 years that there would be an additional entrance constructed such as an additional entrance on the eastern side of Burrard street.

Maybe I just misunderstood the project details here?

Does TransLink own property on the eastern side of Burrard Street?

[logicbomb]

Honestly shocked that they are closing down Burrard Stn for 2 years. Never had any issues with congestion or found the flow of the station too troubling. I know it's a busy hub, but it never felt as busy as many other expo line stations.

[scryer]

Originally Posted by CanSpice

Does TransLink own property on the eastern side of Burrard Street?

Thank you for bringing that up because I honestly don't think so . Which would probably make it unfeasible for an additional entrance unless they just did a portal with stairs. But we all know how we feel about accessibility so that just may not be in the cards either.

[WBC]

Originally Posted by logicbomb

Honestly shocked that they are closing down Burrard Stn for 2 years. Never had any issues with congestion or found the flow of the station too troubling. I know it's a busy hub, but it never felt as busy as many other expo line stations.

Let's not forget this is Canada and that congestion here is defined as the state of being able to see other humans without binoculars.

BTW, This is minimum 2 years. After witnessing Granville station taking year and a half to replace escalators and Metrotown taking over 3 years to complete nothing can surprise me anymore.

And yes Metrotown reno did create much nicer, spacious station, but ultimately one could argue that without pedestrian overpass the actual experience is kind of worse, at least for me coming from the mall direction. Maybe one day it will be better when the buss loop gets redesigned but that could be decades in the future.

Doing all this and not creating a new entrance, even a small one across Burrard is such a waste. Yes, the new Burrard station will be better and yes the escalator/elevator issues will be resolved but not making more connections and integration points is very shortsighted.

[s211]

Originally Posted by scryer

Thank you for bringing that up because I honestly don't think so . Which would probably make it unfeasible for an additional entrance unless they just did a portal with stairs. But we all know how we feel about accessibility so that just may not be in the cards either.

I've heard that Translink unsuccessfully tried to use moral suasion to get the owners of Park Place to pony up for a tunnel under Burrard, but that's going back many years now.

[cganuelas1995]

Originally Posted by scryer

Honestly I'm not that impressed with the renovations for Burrard station . I would think that if they were to close down the station for 2 years that there would be an additional entrance constructed such as an additional entrance on the eastern side of Burrard street.

Maybe I just misunderstood the project details here?

Wouldn't they have to tear up Burrard to build a new entrance across the street?

[aberdeen5698]

Originally Posted by WBC

...Metrotown reno did create much nicer, spacious station, but ultimately one could argue that without pedestrian overpass the actual experience is kind of worse...

Especially considering that probably well over 80% of the people using the station are there to access the mall.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Nonsense, wasting half a minute at the crosswalk with a Chinese evangelist's megaphone in your face builds character!

[logicbomb]

Originally Posted by aberdeen5698

Especially considering that probably well over 80% of the people using the station are there to access the mall.

The most hilarious thing are the police they put there to fine jaywalkers, and the perpetual traffic-pedestrian conflict when police aren't there. One of the most preventable chokepoints.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by WestCoastEcho

Renovations take longer than new builds, and this is a station that is also deep underground and will still have trains running through it while closed. This is going to be a fairly challenging rebuild of the station that sorely needs it.

That's usually the excuse for what goes on here. But I've seen more complex renovations taking half the time elsewhere.

What they did at Granville Station to replace the escalators was even worse. 1.5 years!

[MIPS]

Well by the looks of it they have to remove the old Burrard stairs and canopy, then they have to dig the new tunnel down. That easily means the main entrance and two thirds of the ticket hall will be closed due to construction.
That doesn't leave a whole heck of a lot of space open for the public, so why not just close the station entirely? It's a 5 minute walk to Granville.

[dleung]

Closing a major station for 2 years seems like a pretty bad deal to save only an additional 2.5 years. One would've expect the savings to be closer to 70-80%, with a better design, for it to be worth the closure.

[officedweller]

From the drawings, here's what's planned:
- Existing escalators from street will be demolished and removed.
- That area will be used for new escaltor from the sunken ticket concourse to the lower concourse below. The lower concourse landing area will need to be expanded.
- The new escalators from street will land where the Park Place tunnel would have been (next to elevators).
- I don't know if additional escalators will be added to the lower (outbound) platform.

I suppose they could have built the new escalators from street first with construction on the north side,
then demo'd the old ones and kept construction to the south side of the site.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Think they'll add KO panels for an line extension further west, or is that a pipe dream?

[Mac Write]

They really need to add up/down escalators to/from the outbound platform. That's essential (of course they didn't do it at Granville)/