Columbo

Yeah, I hate her character in the series. She never does anything, all she does is go around whining and telling everyone that they need to listen to her because she's the "mother" of some dragon eggs that existed long before she was born.

Haha. No but seriously, if you need to make a connection that involves a 5 minute walk, their trip planner will sooner suggest 3 buses and take you on a 15km detour instead.

Hey why not, after all Broadway is a magical street with unlimited road space right? Let's spend money on this, why invest in a realistic long-term solution?

That's a good point, I've never thought about it that way. It is really stupid that if you live at Joyce and want to go to Metrotown, you have to pay $3.75 for a 2-zone and spend 3 minutes on the train. I would drive too.

Don't be silly, you don't pay gas taxes based on the region you live in, you pay based on how much you drive. And it follows that if you drive more, you contribute more to the wear and tear of the roads, and you put more pollution in our collective air. You're not subsidizing anyone.

Maybe if Surrey wasn't designed by what appears to be a 5-year-old it would actually be feasible to run buses there!

I don't mind the new signs but the existing ones are just fine too... but Translink has so many budget problems right now, so WHY are they spending precious dollars on this?!?!?!

My point was, even students who live on campus and don't take transit every day still voted to keep the UPass, even though it adds to their tuition. The UPass is subsidized but it's not free.

No it's not, except in special cases (e.g. you're taking only distance-ed courses). Still, the last time UBC voted on whether to keep the UPass, even at an increased fee, I think the students were 90-95% in favour.

Wait, but then by your logic won't everyone who works downtown move to Langley to get the most value out of their free transit? Because that's essentially the argument you have against the UPass...

Seriously? You think people will be "encouraged" to live further from UBC just to get the maximum value out of their UPass? You're aware that people transiting to UBC from Surrey spend at least 3 hours a day packed like a sardine on transit, right? It doesn't matter how much the trip costs, no one ever "wants" to do that. I'm sure students would live close to campus if they could, but do you have any idea how expensive it is? It's just not feasible for most students. Also, the further people commute, the more it benefits us all to get them out of their cars and onto transit. It's a good system. Deal with it.

The UPass is an investment for Translink, they're creating a generation of students that will hopefully use transit for life. I see no problem with them giving students a pass for 3 or 4 summers in their short education careers to bolster that invention. The return would be huge. Plus I happened to buy passes in the summer, but a lot of students either scam the system or just don't bus regularly in the summer. So giving these students UPasses doesn't represent any lost income, because these people weren't bringing in money for them in the first place. Plus like I said, it'll foster a greater appreciation for transit in a group of people that hopefully has decades of transit use ahead of them.

At this point, any extra money they find will just delay cuts to service that they say may soon have to take place. I think the same thing happened last quarter, which is so far great news. Yeah they budgeted for the Canada Line and for general operating costs, but they didn't anticipate just how high gas prices would go, which takes a huge toll. And the Canada Line was way over budget because of things largely out of their control, such as a huge increase in the cost of concrete and other building materials. It's hard to anticipate everything. I think they always knew that they'd need a new source of revenue to keep things going (ie gas tax), and I think they're still counting on it. But yeah any new money is great, and it'll help to keep them afloat. Before I blame them, I'd look at other city issues - like the urban sprawl south of the Fraser that makes Translink run empty buses to underpopulated areas at a huge loss, etc.

Three - They have enormous operating costs, not to mention the loans plus interest they have to repay for major infrastructure projects such as the Canada line.

I've always found this to be ridiculous. I never took summer classes so every summer I was stuck paying about $450 over 4 months for bus passes. What do they think, that poor students suddenly become wealthy during the summer? I needed the money I was earning to save for next year's tuition. If the goal of the UPass is to help students and to foster an appreciation for transit, why shouldn't it apply year-round?

Yeah, they pay for a bus ticket, and almost certainly a 2-zone at that.

I agree that they probably won't recover enough money from fare evaders using to make up for the turnstiles... But maybe turnstiles will give skytrain stations a semblance of increased security and get more people to ride the trains. I remember seeing a poll that said security was a major issue keeping a lot of people away from public transit, maybe this will help.

a surprising amount

The density around New West station is exploding, there's been at least 4 or 5 new apartment buildings constructed within walking distance in the past few years, and now they're building that huge one that's actually connected to the station. And yes, as you mentioned, there are plans for a large commercial area directly attached to it. They're finally getting it right.

Just wanted to say bravo and congrats to Translink on the absolutely incredible job they did over the past 2 weeks. I have to admit I was a bit worried at the outset. But I have never in my life found it easier to get around this city than during the Olympics. Not even the slightest of problems, it was truly outstanding - a job exceptionally well done.