Issues: Public Transit and Transportation

I will be a committed advocate for better public transit and transportation alternatives in Surrey. With the price of gas constantly rising, we need to see more buses on more routes immediately.

Most of the recent hype around transportation in Surrey has surrounded the Gateway Project. However, Gateway is a raw deal for Surrey for two reasons. First, tolls on the Port Mann are unfair to residents of Surrey who cross this bridge on a regular basis, (almost all other bridges in the Lower Mainland will remain untolled). These tolls amount to essentially a tax on everyone living in Surrey and the Fraser Valley who crosses the Port Mann bridge on a regular basis. Worse yet, there is no viable transit alternative from Surrey across the Port Mann into Coquitlam, Burnaby, and Vancouver. I would like to see rapid bus transit (RBT) across the Port Mann, paired with queue-jumper lanes, as soon as possible. This system was originally part of TransLink's 10-year Outlook Plan, but funding was recently shifted to build queue-jumper lanes on other bridges that will serve transit users on their way to Olympic venues in 2010. In my opinion, Surrey should receive its fair share of funding for public transit over the Port Mann.

Future funds for bridges and transportation infrastructure from the province and TransLink should be going toward rebuilding the Pattullo Bridge. The Pattullo is notoriously unsafe and is the major road entrance to Surrey's metro centre from the northwest. It is overdue for an upgrade. As well, fixing the Patullo could very well help to ease congestion on the Port Mann by making this route a viable alternative for rush-hour commuters.

Another major project that I support is reviving the Interurban Line for passenger-rail through Surrey, and I believe that VALTAC (the Valley Transportation Advisory Committee) is doing some great work advocating for this. I am very excited about this initiative and look forward to seeing the forthcoming business plans for the different phases of the project. Passenger-rail on the Interurban Line would provide for better transit service between communities in Surrey. Surrey's downtown Whalley area is destined to become the regional downtown core of the Fraser Valley, and we need to make sure that all residents - from Cloverdale, Sullivan, Newton, South Surrey, and Guildford - have good access to that core area. The passenger-rail line would travel from Cloverdale through Sullivan Heights and Newton into Whalley, eventually being extended to Langley in time for the Olympics and eventually following the rest of the rail line out through Abbotsford to Chilliwack. Train service could reliably move large amounts of people, at a mere fraction of the cost of a Skytrain service, and could realistically be delivered within a few years. The chronic overcrowding and pass-ups on the 395 and 502 bus routes is driving many commuters from Cloverdale back into their cars for lack of a better alternative, and we need to find a solution now.

There will be many changes made to public transit service south of the Fraser in the next few years. For instance, the introduction of the Canada Line to Richmond will dramatically affect the bus service levels from South Surrey to downtown Vancouver. Many buses which now run a direct route from South Surrey into downtown Vancouver will be redirected to the Canada Line, where riders will have to transfer onto what is likely going to be an overcrowded Skytrain car with no seats available. With the 351 bus being redirected, riders may even have to transfer one more time once in Vancouver to get to their destination. I support maintaining the existing direct bus routes from South Surrey to downtown Vancouver.

A major issue concerning public transit users is safety. People do not feel safe at Skytrain stations, bus stops and exchanges in Surrey. These places often attract crime and unsavoury activities, and compromise the safety of people riding public transit, especially at night. There are a few things that need to be done. First, more frequent service on bus routes in Surrey outside of peak hours, later in the evening, would reduce the waiting time late at night. The infrequency of bus service on some routes is quite frankly a little shameful. Secondly, we need a greater sense of security at our Skytrain stops and major bus exchanges, such as Newton or Surrey Central. This can be done not only through increased lighting and video surveillance, but through an increased presence of people at these locations, both Transit Police officers and security guards. We need a sense of security on public transit in Surrey if we want to increase ridership at all times of day and thereby increase safety just by way of numbers.

Another major factor preventing a lot of people in Surrey from making the shift to transit is the lack of adequate service late at night. I will lobby for 24-hour Skytrain service. The Skytrain service could run on a reduced schedule overnight. Now, folks from Surrey who go downtown at night must either return by midnight, drive a car, or take a $70 to $80 cab ride home. Providing overnight Skytrain as a late-night transportation alternative is good public safety policy as well as transportation policy.

Lastly, I'd like to see fairer transit fares for people in Surrey. The fact that a trip on Skytrain from Scott Road Station to Columbia Station costs someone in Surrey a two-zone fare ($3.75),yet someone in Vancouver can travel from Joyce Station all the way out to UBC on a one-zone fare ($2.50) is, quite frankly, ridiculous and indicative of the mistreatment that transit riders south of the Fraser receive.