Recently, TransLink announced the departure of its CEO, Kevin Desmond, as he’s returning to the U.S. where his wife and family live. I’ll be very sorry to see him leave. Let me explain why. I’ve had interactions with TransLink and its predecessor, the Urban Transit Authority, for more than 40 years. Back in the late…
Category: Skytrain
Broadway corridor: The lesser of two evils
As you may be aware, TransLink will soon be building the first phase of an underground SkyTrain line along the Broadway corridor from the Commercial-Broadway station to Arbutus. If Vancouver city council has its way, by 2030 the new line will extend all the way to UBC at a cost estimated as high as $3.8…
How would you feel about heating your lunch next to a toilet?
The labour dispute has been happening for more than three weeks now, and it’s going to escalate further next week with three days of full shutdown. So far, bus routes and SeaBus sailings have been affected. Soon, we will find out if SkyTrain is, too. But I’m happy to tell you that HandyDART is not…
UBC SkyTrain will haunt us for generations to come
I am so disappointed that Vancouver city council voted by a margin of 9 to 2 to approve the SkyTrain extension from Arbutus all the way to UBC. Even the three Green councillors all voted in favour of this very un-environmental proposal! As I pointed out in my recent blog on this topic, UBC professor…
The sky-high price of gullibility: The case against underground SkyTrain to UBC
The possibility of an underground Broadway SkyTrain all the way to UBC has been in the news again lately. I so hope that this does not come to pass. Let me explain why. First, let’s talk briefly about some of … Continue reading
Faster than driving & having more fun — on a bike!
On CBC Radio this morning, I was listening to an interesting piece about the annual Rush Hour Challenge put on by HUB Cycling to see which mode of transportation is the most time-efficient to get a commuter to downtown Vancouver. The challenge pits cyclists, car drivers and transit users against each other to see who…
Time to “tap out” TransLink’s senior managers
Most folks are surprised when I tell them that TransLink spends 10 cents of every farebox dollar on the process of actually collecting that dollar. Economists refer to this as the “friction cost.” By comparison, the collection of income tax is incredibly efficient, with a friction cost so small that it amounts to a rounding…