Kevin Desmond, CEO, TransLink –

“Many people spend a lot of time stuck in traffic when travelling to and from the North Shore. This feasibility study will look at ways we can improve congestion, understand the gridlock and prepare for future growth. As we build our next regional transportation plan – Transport2050 – the findings will also help inform the blueprint for the next 30 years of transit and transportation in Metro Vancouver.”

Linda Buchanan, mayor, City of North Vancouver –

“This study is the critical next step in finding a solution to traffic and transportation issues across the North Shore. Council's vision is to make the City of North Vancouver the ‘healthiest small city in the world,’ and one of the ways we do that is by supporting the creation of sustainable and innovative transportation options like fixed-link rapid transit across Burrard Inlet.”

Kennedy Stewart, mayor, City of Vancouver –

“In order to deal with rising congestion and the growing impacts of climate change, we need to make serious and long-term investments in rapid transit. And in an interconnected region like Metro Vancouver, improvements in one part of the system help us spend less time on the road and more time with the people we love. With public transit usage at all-time highs and growth that is outpacing the rest of North America, we need these kinds of investments more than ever to keep our region moving forward.”

Mike Little, mayor, District of North Vancouver –

“I’m glad to see the Province of BC participating in funding this study along with the three local municipalities and Translink, as it demonstrates the provincial government’s commitment to easing traffic congestion on the North Shore. Transportation is the number 1 issue for residents of the District of North Vancouver, and it requires all parties to work together to solve it.”

Mary-Ann Booth, mayor, City of West Vancouver –

“The Integrated North Shore Transportation Planning Project determined that a number of incremental changes are required to address traffic and congestion issues in our community. A fixed link for rapid transit will take years to implement, so we need to start thinking about it now.”

This assessment will be undertaken in two stages.

Stage 1

The first stage involves a preliminary scan of possible options for new connections between the North Shore and the region’s rapid transit network. Factors to be examined include: topography, geotechnical aspects, structural aspects, weather and climate change impacts, as well as the cost to build, operate and maintain infrastructure, and ridership projections/needs.

This phase would assume existing land use designations and areas targeted for higher growth, as well as population and employment growth projections. This will inform a short list of fixed link alignment options that will advance to the next stage.

Stage 2

This stage is intended to provide more detailed engineering and planning review of the short-listed options from Stage 1. This will involve collection of additional engineering data (i.e.: structural, geotechnical, environmental, traffic modelling, ridership forecasting, property, major utilities, preliminary geometric design) and growth scenario sensitivity testing.

The study is underway and is expected to be completed in 2020.