What can Toronto
learn from Vancouver’s transit system? I recently visited Canada’s
third largest city and toured its buses, ferries and SkyTrain rail
system. SkyTrain uses the same technology as the Scarborough Rapid
Transit line, but covers a much larger area than the SRT.
Wedged between
water, mountains and the U.S. border, the narrow delta of the Fraser
River is home to around two million people. Most live in cities
served by TransLink, a regional transportation authority that
oversees both transit and the road system.
TransLink
administers one regional commuter rail line, a frequent ferry
service called SeaBus, the SkyTrain network with its two existing
lines, as well as buses powered both by electricity and other fuels.
Despite the high cost of extending transit service into low density
suburbs, surface routes in the older parts of the city did not seem
to be suffering -- I found them to be quite frequent.
To augment
regular local buses, two major express routes cut across the older
city, one north-south and the other east-west. These “B-Lines” offer
faster service, stopping only at certain intersections.
Greater
Vancouver has a zone fare system, and a rush hour trip can add up
when heading into the suburbs or taking the ferry to North
Vancouver. A monthly pass covering the central zone costs $69, and
$130 for all three zones.
Despite not
carrying a transit map with me, I was able to travel around without
getting lost. Perhaps due to B.C.’s regular rainfall, many bus stops
have shelters, and many of those have maps of the transit system,
along with information showing how often buses arrive.
At SkyTrain
stations you can use dedicated phones to call for travel information
while standing right in front of a map -- without having to pay a
quarter. Operators are available in the evening, unlike at the TTC.
Vancouver is a
younger city than Toronto, and so is its transit system. TransLink
appears to be more flush with cash than many transit authorities
here in Ontario, and is preparing to build both a new SkyTrain route
and a suburban light rail line. The agency is also upgrading
regional roads and highways.
The TransLink
board recently approved a $1.9 billion SkyTrain project to link
downtown Vancouver with the region’s international airport, and
Richmond, a southern suburb. The “RAV” line is supposed to be
completed before 2010, the year Vancouver is to share the Winter
Olympics with the Whistler ski resort.
RAV has drawn
criticism, especially that it will not attract enough riders to
justify the high cost. That sounds similar to Toronto -- both the
Sheppard subway and the proposed extension of the Spadina line are
vulnerable to the same critique.
Touring around
Vancouver, I found the locals to be friendlier than we Torontonians.
Bus drivers were often courteous and helpful, although I did
chastise one operator. Despite driving an articulated bus full of
passengers, he insisted on using one hand to hold his cellphone.