Buggernut Posted July 13, 2009 Share Posted July 13, 2009 Build to Granville or Arbutus first, where it is absolutely critical. Extend to UBC in a later phase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buggernut Posted July 13, 2009 Share Posted July 13, 2009 Would it be possible to extend the SkyTrain underground to SFU? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 13, 2009 Author Share Posted July 13, 2009 There was an aerial tram or gondola plan for them. Whatever happened to it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonnaWin Posted July 13, 2009 Share Posted July 13, 2009 The commute to UBC along Broadway isn't that bad once you get past Arbutus. I agree that they can terminate around Granville/Arbutus and then phase in the Arbutus - UBC portion in a decade or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronthecivil Posted July 13, 2009 Share Posted July 13, 2009 The commute to UBC along Broadway isn't that bad once you get past Arbutus. I agree that they can terminate around Granville/Arbutus and then phase in the Arbutus - UBC portion in a decade or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 13, 2009 Author Share Posted July 13, 2009 Agreed. A full extension to UBC would be most ideal, but it can wait. Arbutus is the way to go (Granville is a bit too busy for the 99 B-Line buses to make their rendezvous). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronthecivil Posted July 13, 2009 Share Posted July 13, 2009 Agreed. A full extension to UBC would be most ideal, but it can wait. Arbutus is the way to go (Granville is a bit too busy for the 99 B-Line buses to make their rendezvous). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 13, 2009 Author Share Posted July 13, 2009 ^ I believe the city is requiring that the IGA redevelopment on Arbutus be designed with an underground train station entrance in mind....meaning, space for an underground station entrance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 14, 2009 Author Share Posted July 14, 2009 Of special note, Translink should be realizing a study of its own on the UBC extension this coming fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverpig Posted July 14, 2009 Share Posted July 14, 2009 ^ I believe the city is requiring that the IGA redevelopment on Arbutus be designed with an underground train station entrance in mind....meaning, space for an underground station entrance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 14, 2009 Author Share Posted July 14, 2009 ^ and they will. The City has plans to use the Arbutus corridor for streetcar/LRT in the future. And that's one of the reasons why there would be an Arbutus Skytrain station, to meet up with the future LRT/streetcar line - a station transfer point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverpig Posted July 14, 2009 Share Posted July 14, 2009 Well there you go then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_1 Posted July 14, 2009 Share Posted July 14, 2009 Arbutus to VCC-Clark would probably be 40% of the total cost of the enitre project. Politicians are too keen on completing entire transit projects but yet all the projects get delayed because of the enormous costs. UBC extension- Phase 1 should be to extend to Arbutus, not all the way to UBC at once Surrey extension- Phase 1 should be to extend to Guildford, not all the way to 168th avenue at once Interurban Commuter rail- phase 1 Cloverdale to Scott Road, not all the way to Langley, Abbotsford and Chilliwack at once Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 14, 2009 Author Share Posted July 14, 2009 ^ While a two-phased construction process would be most logical, there's a problem. For instance, the Millennium Line's 2002 completion was originally to have included a subway from VCC to Granville or Arbutus as well as the Port Moody-Coquitlam Line (now known as the Evergreen Line). The NDP couldn't find the money, so they decided to phase the project...even though a subway to Granville or Arbutus would have cost about $750-million back then in 2000 (compared to ~$1.5-billion today) and the Evergreen Line to Coquitlam would have cost $600-million (now, $1.4-billion). Keep in mind, the entire 23-km Millennium Line that exists today was built for $1.1-billion. Then the Liberal party was elected, and shelved both extensions. In 2002, the RAV project (now known as the Canada Line) was proposed and by 2005 the project was finally approved by the elected Translink board. Meanwhile, Translink was also planning to complete the Evergreen Line on its own....but rather than the originally planned SkyTrain, it would have been LRT. The Liberal government saw the incompetence with the Evergreen Line project stepped in, canceled the LRT technology and is now going for a "SkyTrain-like" technology....meaning, in public, it could be something like the Canada Line as the project will go to the tendering phase so it has to be neutral and can't be biased towards Bombardier's ALRT technology that we already use. The problem is that one of the main arguments that was used to cancel LRT in favour of SkyTrain was the lack of transfer for trains and operational and capital cost savings (same trains, train yard, etc.) from Vancouver: if a non-SkyTrain compatible but "SkyTrain-like" system gets approved, the whole argument for not building LRT is lost. And with the Broadway extension of the Millennium Line, NIMBY's and LRT enthusiasts are dangerously fanning the flames for LRT being built instead of SkyTrain. These people don't ride transit when they claim "overall ambiance" and the "number of stops" is important and that speed is not important. The BC NDP candidate for the Vancouver Point Grey riding was a big advocate for LRT instead of SkyTrain. I guess my point is: if we build a two-phased SkyTrain project now with intentions to extend it to UBC in the future, we might not get it whether it be a change of government or some asinine fringe group that spreads false information about the differences between LRT and SkyTrain. Also keep in mind that it's usually cheaper to do things all at once as there are less construction start-up costs. Don't forget about construction cost inflation...the more you wait, the more it costs. We thought the Broadway and Coquitlam extensions of the Millennium Line would be open 3 years after the main Millennium Line opens....boy were we wrong. Unless we signed a contract that says "after phase I is built, you must build us phase II and neither party can cancel without major penalties" then there's no promise that the line/extensions will be built. The Surrey extension is only 6-kms long, you can do it all at once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buggernut Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 Wouldn't a Skytrain extension along the Hastings corridor (from Downtown to say Cassiar St., where Burnaby, NE Sector, North Van and SFU traffic all converge) serve more people than an extension all the way to UBC? Last I heard, it's the busiest traffic corridor in the CoV next only to Central Broadway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 17, 2009 Author Share Posted July 17, 2009 Wouldn't a Skytrain extension along the Hastings corridor (from Downtown to say Cassiar St., where Burnaby, NE Sector, North Van and SFU traffic all converge) serve more people than an extension all the way to UBC? Last I heard, it's the busiest traffic corridor in the CoV next only to Central Broadway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buggernut Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 I personally think the Hastings corridor is better suited for light rail. The corridor is too close to the high speed backbone that is called the Millennium Line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitronuts Posted July 17, 2009 Author Share Posted July 17, 2009 Not close enough to alleviate most of the traffic on it. It would carry the load of both Hastings St. and Powell St, both of which get very busy. An LRT or streetcar service would be too slow for those commuting all the way from Coquitlam or North Van, and a bad obstruction to a high traffic area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buggernut Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 This hasn't been announced yet, but there are plans to build a West Coast Express station at Hastings Park as part of the renewal plan for the park. And of course, the contract to renew the WCE contract is in 2014 and it's quite possible we could see a vastly improved service with the new contract that also serves part of the Hastings corridor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Columbo Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 And two to three times the costs. Good luck with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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