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Knocking down the Lions Gate Bridge
By the mid-1990s, the Lions Gate Bridge was rusting badly. Just three lanes wide, one of only two routes into the City of Vancouver from the north, it was often congested. British Columbia’s Premier...
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New light rail for Calgary
Screen capture from Calgary West LRT video The city of Calgary, Vancouver’s nearest big-city neighbour to the east, is set to open a new $1.4 billion light rapid transit line on December 10, 2012. The...
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Driving the South Fraser Perimeter Road
This was a very soft launch. In early December, 2012, the opening of the new Port Mann Bridge received widespread media attention. The opening of the South Fraser Perimeter Road‘s eastern section,...
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Another year, another TransLink funding proposal
In its most recently posted quarterly report, Metro Vancouver’s transit authority forecast that it would provide 370 million passenger trips during 2012. In the nine months ending September 30,...
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Cheaper and cheaper to buy at the edge
New apartments for sale, Edge Street and Brown Avenue, Maple Ridge, July 2013 I’ve considered the question of Vancouver housing prices for some years, and will venture a conclusion. Housing prices are...
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Tolls and the decline of driving
Metro Vancouver’s transportation authority has created a stir with the disclosure that tolling revenues on the Golden Ears Bridge, which have been below expectations since the bridge opened in 2009,...
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Driving is risky; walking, even more
The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia’s most recent crash statistics attracted scant notice from the media, despite the finding that 281 people died in automobile-related crashes in B.C. in...
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We would need many more freeways
Architectural detail, Nakagin capsule tower (Tokyo, 1972) from Ignant.de Combine two assumptions – further population growth in Metro Vancouver and continued vehicle use at the current rate — and the...
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The Metro transit referendum and the mayors
LRT car of the future, from the City of Surrey website Over the past month, we’ve seen intense political bickering and positioning around public transit in Metro Vancouver. Events are moving quickly,...
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Port Mann Bridge: The case of the disappearing traffic
Part of the Port Mann Bridge; graphic from the current TI Corp service plan The British Columbia government now predicts heavier short-term financial losses on the Port Mann toll bridge than previously...
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TransLink mayors speak with one voice, mostly
About a month ago, Metro Vancouver’s mayors broke with previous form and achieved near-consensus on a 10-year plan for transit investment. Media coverage of this event has been limited, focusing on the...
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Traffic off the North Shore
Lions Gate Bridge, Saturday morning If North Vancouver continues to grow at the current rate, the bridges into the City of Vancouver will lock up altogether and people will have to SWIM to work,...
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Flying over the Fraser River
Over the past decade, taxpayers have invested perhaps $7 billion in new freeways, bridges, and other major highways in Greater Vancouver. And there’s more to come! British Columbia’s government has...
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A transit funding decision or a popularity contest?
The management and staff at Fraseropolis.com plan to vote “Yes” in the 2015 Metro Vancouver transit referendum. The arguments and alliances will be complex on both sides. We’ll wait some time before...
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The freeway islands, Langley, British Columbia
Commercial development, right, is surrounded by components of the 200th Street Interchange In 1999 or thereabouts, the British Columbia government and Langley Township agreed to locate commercial...
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The mayors’ case for a transportation tax
Replacement of the 1937 Pattulo Bridge over the Fraser River is part of the Metro Vancouver mayors’ long-term plan. The photo is taken from the plan document. Vicki and I attended a luncheon last...
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An urban hub for Metro Vancouver’s northeast sector
The Coquitlam urban core, from a 2013 municipal presentation. City Hall is the low-rise complex upper left. At least three new towers have joined this set within a 16-month period. The streets behind...
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Transit use is highest among lower income households
The University of British Columbia and health authority partners recently published a snapshot of transportation habits in Metro Vancouver based on an online survey of more than 28,000 people. Among...
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An open letter about a fatal crash
The following letter was sent by email on May 18, 2015 to Doug Bing, member of the British Columbia Legislature for Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows. Dear Doug, Re: Fatal crash on the Haney Bypass On Sunday...
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3 vaguely cheerful thoughts on Metro Vancouver’s transit vote
Slide from 2010 planning presentation (South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority) Elections BC advised us on July 2 that Metro Vancouver residents have rejected a 10-year transit plan,...
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