The Official Transit Thread

[ronthecivil]

That doesn't work for 99 bline.. it's always busy.

Leaving earlier doesn't help since people have have classes 30 mins earlier will be on those buses.

Leave at six a.m. like the weary commuters over the Port Man and Alex Fraser are forced to if they don't want a massive lineup! (And have no alternatives since for some reason all the transit money flows from south to north).

[Common sense]

Why does it have to be another ugly skytrain eyesore. Wouldn't light rail be less intrusive and cheaper?

I'd rather have buses than light rail. At least buses can move around if there's a crash on one lane.

LRT - you're stuck on the tracks.

[Weber's Playoff Beard]

C) Capacity to UBC could be addressed by adding to other bus routes. Aren't people taking that Bline down 41st to UBC? One would think all the Richmond studants would. That would releive a lot of the pressure.

There is no bline on 41st avenue. There's an express bus. Pass ups if departing from Joyce station start at Main Street. So people on Main Street don't get to get on half the time. 480 from Richmond is another route to UBC but it's a long trip. Every bus route is busy and that's expected, but the demand is there, but not enough buses. Why do you insist on expanding outwards when essential service can't even be maintained and the demand is definitely there.

If translink had enough funding, this shouldn't even be a problem. UBC, extension in Surrey, and whatever south of fraser stuff you want should be all built.

[Opmac]

There is no bline on 41st avenue. There's an express bus. Pass ups if departing from Joyce station start at Main Street. So people on Main Street don't get to get on half the time. 480 from Richmond is another route to UBC but it's a long trip. Every bus route is busy and that's expected, but the demand is there, but not enough buses. Why do you insist on expanding outwards when essential service can't even be maintained and the demand is definitely there.

If translink had enough funding, this shouldn't even be a problem. UBC, extension in Surrey, and whatever south of fraser stuff you want should be all built.

The 99 B-Line is also an express bus. It's all in the branding. There's minute differences between the #43 and a B-Line service. People flock to the 99 B-Line because of its perception for being faster.

In 2009, the #91 B-Line was supposed to replace the #43 on 41st Ave and #95 B-Line replacing the #135 on Hastings St. Delayed to 2011. Yet to happen.

Perhaps TransLink should loosen the rules on what qualifies as B-Line service.

As for expanding outwards, people in Surrey pay for taxes too and they haven't gotten squat.

Edited January 27, 2012 by Opmac

[Rookie Magic]

A huge problem is that you have multiple high schools along the UBC bus routes. There are at least 4 high schools and Langara on the 49 route and about 6 high schools on the 41. Once you get past all the high schools its pretty clear riding.

Getting on the bus is the biggest problem. You just kind of have to time your buses so that you guarantee yourself to get on. My parents drop me off at Langara on their way to dropping my brothers off to school so I always get a seat on the bus.

[canucks.brad]

The 99 B-Line is also an express bus. It's all in the branding. There's minute differences between the #43 and a B-Line service. People flock to the 99 B-Line because of its perception for being faster. In 2009, the #91 B-Line was supposed to replace the #43 on 41st Ave and #95 B-Line replacing the #135 on Hastings St. Delayed to 2011. Yet to happen. Perhaps TransLink should loosen the rules on what qualifies as B-Line service. As for expanding outwards, people in Surrey pay for taxes too and they haven't gotten squat.

i remember the whole #91 and #95...im still waiting for that 95..too bad im graduating lol

[Denguin]

A huge problem is that you have multiple high schools along the UBC bus routes. There are at least 4 high schools and Langara on the 49 route and about 6 high schools on the 41. Once you get past all the high schools its pretty clear riding.

Getting on the bus is the biggest problem. You just kind of have to time your buses so that you guarantee yourself to get on. My parents drop me off at Langara on their way to dropping my brothers off to school so I always get a seat on the bus.

The problem is that people don't know what routes to take.

People always assume the B-Line is WAY faster than any other route out there, so they flock to it.

A common one at UBC is to transfer to the Canada Line. Instead of taking the 99 to Cambie, try taking the 84 to Cambie and going from Olympic Village. There are numerous instances where multiple routes could be taken, but people just don't know about them.

[Weber's Playoff Beard]

The problem is that people don't know what routes to take.

People always assume the B-Line is WAY faster than any other route out there, so they flock to it.

A common one at UBC is to transfer to the Canada Line. Instead of taking the 99 to Cambie, try taking the 84 to Cambie and going from Olympic Village. There are numerous instances where multiple routes could be taken, but people just don't know about them.

Yep I agree. Similar to how the 480 runs down 41st Ave and turns at Granville, so in other words, someone could take that instead of waiting for a 41 or 49 bus. I understand what you're saying.

Problem is, all the bus routes are busy and I'm not here to argue whether or not something is considered "bline" or not. That doesn't matter. What matters is that we can the right infrastructure to move people around the city of Vancouver and its suburbs both efficiently and effectively.

I have no problem with expanding into Surrey, the problem is, you're suggesting we add even more buses to the 99Bline route. They're running every 2 minutes at peak times and the buses are still all full. Do you recommend they order more buses so they run every minute? UBC is an educational institution that will be there for years to come. The student population is getting bigger and bigger. The skytrain line will provide service to UBC for many many years. The buses can then be placed elsewhere, say Surrey... I'm pretty sure Translink has already planned for a skytrain to UBC by bored tunnel. There's just no funding and they need to go over the specifics.

Please don't ever suggest cut and cover near busy parts of the city ever again.

[Rookie Magic]

The problem is that people don't know what routes to take.

People always assume the B-Line is WAY faster than any other route out there, so they flock to it.

A common one at UBC is to transfer to the Canada Line. Instead of taking the 99 to Cambie, try taking the 84 to Cambie and going from Olympic Village. There are numerous instances where multiple routes could be taken, but people just don't know about them.

Yeah definitely. 84 is probably the fastest route to and from UBC. It's the one I always take if I ever need to travel down that way or need to take the skytrain. Only 30 minutes end to end and fairly empty.

[ronthecivil]

Yep I agree. Similar to how the 480 runs down 41st Ave and turns at Granville, so in other words, someone could take that instead of waiting for a 41 or 49 bus. I understand what you're saying.

Problem is, all the bus routes are busy and I'm not here to argue whether or not something is considered "bline" or not. That doesn't matter. What matters is that we can the right infrastructure to move people around the city of Vancouver and its suburbs both efficiently and effectively.

I have no problem with expanding into Surrey, the problem is, you're suggesting we add even more buses to the 99Bline route. They're running every 2 minutes at peak times and the buses are still all full. Do you recommend they order more buses so they run every minute? UBC is an educational institution that will be there for years to come. The student population is getting bigger and bigger. The skytrain line will provide service to UBC for many many years. The buses can then be placed elsewhere, say Surrey... I'm pretty sure Translink has already planned for a skytrain to UBC by bored tunnel. There's just no funding and they need to go over the specifics.

Please don't ever suggest cut and cover near busy parts of the city ever again.

Make the express bus line on 41st run every two minutes like the broadway bus and that will provide enough capacity. There isn't going to be much growth in Vancouver so why the need for massive growth?

And especially a bored tunnel line (which incidentily would still require massive cut and cover holes for all the stations aka all the major intersections anyways) which should only ever be considered if it's the only option due to grade or water crossings. Incidentily, one could easily build a skytrain down broadway ELEVATED LIKE THE REST OF THE GVRD and make it look quite nice by builiding it on two seperate gracial structures that would go in the parking lanes and really only take out spots where there was a pillar which would have minimal effects on the area. (And could be made to look very nice). Sure that would be more expensive that monolith concrete but would pale in costs to a bored tunnel (which will never EVER happen).

But before we do any of that how about we build some express buses following the Bline line standard down both Fraser and King George Highways as a start. Like start them next week.

The south of fraser residents should seriously just leave the GVRD since all we are is a cash cow for the more affluent north side of the river. Holly regressive tax system batman!

UBC does not need a skytrain. Or anything. People get to UBC just fine. If UBC wants more buses, they can pay with it from higher UPass rates.

Coquitlam does not need a line all the way to Douglas. Cutting off the last two stations would still provide a conection to West Coast Express and get people through the bottleneck at Port Moody. From there you could funnel off frequent bus service to a hub at Ioco north to Westwood Plateau and east to Coquitlam Centre and Douglas college. That would be more than good enough.

Mean while, the south of fraser residents, who will soon be forced to pay 6 bucks a day for tolls, or fight through the soon to be insane other crossings, and who pay far more in gas taxes since we're forced to use that much more, currently have NO REASONABLE alternatives.

I wish I could complain about how my subsidised pass and the woe's of getting passed up by the express bus. South of the fraser we pay top dollar for milk run buses, or get taxed to the teeth (with more on the way) to be stuck in congestion while our express buses are but unfufilled promises 7+ years overdue and counting!!!!!!!!

[ronthecivil]

^{Ok this is how we could keep things moving in Surrey in the short term at relatively little money.}

^{Just extend skytrain one stop to 152nd street and fraser which happens to be Fleetwood town centre (you know, the things that are supposed to be connected by skytrain). This 3km of sktrain and one station would be priddy cheap.}

^{Then you make a new Bline bus that would go from Willowbrook mall up Fraser highway to the 152nd station. Then it goes north to guilford, then west to Surrey Central. It then goes south on King George to White Rock.}

^{One skytrain, and one (all be it long but noone would take the entire length) Bline route. With part of it being the short run between two stations and Guildford town centre (you could in fact short run the two lines so that the frenquentcy through that route is doubled).}

^{And if I was to ask myself the same old "how to pay for it"? Easy! Just eliminate the last two stations from Evergreen. You stil have the west coast connect and still express thorugh the straights of Port Moody with a connection at the town centre in Ioco. From there express busses to Westwood Plateau via Coquitlam Centre and Douglas college would be short and you would have enough money left over to put frequent buses into Poco and Maple Ridge.}

^{Slightly less skytrain but a more complete transit network.}

[Opmac]

Been a while since this thread was posted in.

TransLink is ordering 25 low-floor, articulated hybrid buses with an option for 20 more to be delivered by February 2013.

http://www.cptdb.ca/...showtopic=14293

They are going to be air conditioned.

New Flyer and NovaBus submitted bids.

The NovaBus

• http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennistt/5266071782/
  
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/chsscassidy/5887048948/
  
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennistt/5265388769/
  
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennistt/5265390167/
  

The seating on top of the back wheel is the same as the current NovaBus, but it seems like there is much more leg room. I'll admit the NovaBus is beautiful.

[Weber's Playoff Beard]

Make the express bus line on 41st run every two minutes like the broadway bus and that will provide enough capacity. There isn't going to be much growth in Vancouver so why the need for massive growth?

And especially a bored tunnel line (which incidentily would still require massive cut and cover holes for all the stations aka all the major intersections anyways) which should only ever be considered if it's the only option due to grade or water crossings. Incidentily, one could easily build a skytrain down broadway ELEVATED LIKE THE REST OF THE GVRD and make it look quite nice by builiding it on two seperate gracial structures that would go in the parking lanes and really only take out spots where there was a pillar which would have minimal effects on the area. (And could be made to look very nice). Sure that would be more expensive that monolith concrete but would pale in costs to a bored tunnel (which will never EVER happen).

But before we do any of that how about we build some express buses following the Bline line standard down both Fraser and King George Highways as a start. Like start them next week.

The south of fraser residents should seriously just leave the GVRD since all we are is a cash cow for the more affluent north side of the river. Holly regressive tax system batman!

UBC does not need a skytrain. Or anything. People get to UBC just fine. If UBC wants more buses, they can pay with it from higher UPass rates.

Coquitlam does not need a line all the way to Douglas. Cutting off the last two stations would still provide a conection to West Coast Express and get people through the bottleneck at Port Moody. From there you could funnel off frequent bus service to a hub at Ioco north to Westwood Plateau and east to Coquitlam Centre and Douglas college. That would be more than good enough.

Mean while, the south of fraser residents, who will soon be forced to pay 6 bucks a day for tolls, or fight through the soon to be insane other crossings, and who pay far more in gas taxes since we're forced to use that much more, currently have NO REASONABLE alternatives.

I wish I could complain about how my subsidised pass and the woe's of getting passed up by the express bus. South of the fraser we pay top dollar for milk run buses, or get taxed to the teeth (with more on the way) to be stuck in congestion while our express buses are but unfufilled promises 7+ years overdue and counting!!!!!!!!

The 43 express bus doesn't even run all day...

[Taelin]

They should get double-deckers for the 99!

That bus is always full...on every single day of the week. Thank god I don't go to UBC, or I'd be complaining for a skytrain.

[Opmac]

They should get double-deckers for the 99!

That bus is always full...on every single day of the week. Thank god I don't go to UBC, or I'd be complaining for a skytrain.

They wouldn't be able to because of the trolley wires.

[jbrizzy]

And especially a bored tunnel line (which incidentily would still require massive cut and cover holes for all the stations aka all the major intersections anyways) which should only ever be considered if it's the only option due to grade or water crossings. Incidentily, one could easily build a skytrain down broadway ELEVATED LIKE THE REST OF THE GVRD and make it look quite nice by builiding it on two seperate gracial structures that would go in the parking lanes and really only take out spots where there was a pillar which would have minimal effects on the area. (And could be made to look very nice). Sure that would be more expensive that monolith concrete but would pale in costs to a bored tunnel (which will never EVER happen).

it's supposed to be cut and cover under 10th ave with station entrances on broadway..

[Buggernut]

They should get double-deckers for the 99!

That bus is always full...on every single day of the week. Thank god I don't go to UBC, or I'd be complaining for a skytrain.

Why would you want a double decker over an articulated? Entrance and exit is much easier to/from the back section of an artic, with its extra exits and all, than the top level of a DD.

[cj_coolcat]

it's supposed to be cut and cover under 10th ave with station entrances on broadway..

Well that would really suck for all the people who live on 10th.

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

Why would you want a double decker over an articulated? Entrance and exit is much easier to/from the back section of an artic, with its extra exits and all, than the top level of a DD.

Come on, man. You know that debate is more complicated than you're painting it out to be.

[ronthecivil]

The 43 express bus doesn't even run all day...

Oh no! One of the four express lines to UBC only runs part of the day!

That's four more Bline type buses than the whole south of fraser. Even the heavily populated areas of Surrey/Langley where our only alternatives are a horrifically slow and rarely occuring set of milk run buses that could get me to work in an hour and a half on a good day or the driving (in ten foot increments for the last few kilometers) over the Port Mann or Alex Fraser, with the former soon to be a lot nicer to drive on but an extra 6 bucks a day (aka 180 a week) on top of the massive gas taxes we pay to subsidise the rest of the region.