^ Thanks.
As mentioned in another thread the line is officially opening on August 17th.
Canada Line linking Vancouver and Richmond to open Aug. 17
By Kelly Sinoski, Vancouver Sun
METRO VANCOUVER - The new Canada Line linking downtown Vancouver and Richmond will officially open to the public on Monday, Aug. 17, three weeks ahead of Labour Day and three months ahead of schedule.
Commuters can get a free ride on the 19-kilometre rapid transit line, which will run from 1 p.m. until 9 p.m. on opening day to accommodate any potential crowds outside the morning rush hour. No bikes or pets allowed on opening day.
The line will open for regular SkyTrain hours the next day, with the first train leaving Waterfront 4:50 a.m., Richmond Brighouse at 5:05 a.m. and the airport at 5:10 a.m.
The journey between Waterfront and Richmond-Brighouse takes about 26 minutes and costs a two-zone fare of $3.75 per single trip. Passengers heading to the airport will pay a surcharge of $2.50, bringing the fare to $6.25 per single trip but their tickets will be good for 90 minutes.
However, the surcharge won’t come into effect for at least the first four months of operation as TransLink has agreed to defer the Canada Line-YVR add fare until 2010.
The $2-billion Canada Line, which is part of the government’s $14-billion investment in public transit, is equivalent to a 10-lane road between Vancouver and Richmond and is expected to take 200,000 one-way trips off the road system. It was originally slated to open in November but the date was then pushed ahead to Labour Day.
It's now opening another three weeks earlier than planned even though work is still continuing on many of the 16 stations. The new line boasts trains that are longer, wider and have more capacity than trains on the existing two SkyTrain lines to accommodate passengers who will be hauling luggage to and from the airport.
The project, overseen by TransLink subsidiary Canada Line Rapid Transit Inc, has had its share of controversy since it was conceived four years ago. At the time, several municipalities opposed the project, saying it wasn't a priority project in Metro Vancouver and raising concerns about the way TransLink was funding future transportation projects.
The project, originally cited to cost $1.5 billion but in the end cost $2 billion, was nearly killed several times but survived.
It then caused a furore when those building it decided to build a cut-and-cover section along Cambie Street, where merchants complained the dug-up construction zone was prohibiting customers from accessing their shops and killing their businesses.
Several merchants moved out. Others, such maternity shop owner Susan Heyes, successfully sued TransLink, InTransitBC and the Canada Line Rapid Transit for causing a nuisance. She was awarded $600,000 in damages earlier this year.
Meanwhile, TransLink expects to have to subsidize the Canada Line for at least four years before ridership is high enough to reach a break-even point.
The cost is a large part of the reason for the financial crunch that has TransLink looking for as much as $450 million a year in additional funding to operate Metro Vancouver's transit system and its major roads. The rapid transit line was built as public-private partnerships, and in agreements with its partners, TransLink took on most of the "ridership risk."
That means TransLink will have to subsidize the until ridership hits forecast levels, which the regional transportation authority acknowledges will take years. The Canada Line isn't expected to see its projected 100,000 riders a day until 2013.
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun
http://www.vancouversun.com/Canada+L...013/story.html