Since its much anticipated launch in December, TransLink says the ridership numbers for the new Evergreen Line are off to a good start.
The new line connecting Burnaby and Coquitlam saw 30,000 trips taken on an average weekday in January, and over the first eight weeks following the opening, ridership grew by 10 per cent — a trend similar to what was seen when Canada Line first launched.
By comparison, the 97 B-Line, which largely covered the same route before it was discontinued, had only 10,000 boardings per weekday.
TransLink says there is strong evidence that people in the Tri Cities are trying out the system — 150,000 people tried the Evergreen extension since its launch.
The $1.4-billion Evergreen Line, which runs 11-kilometres long, was originally supposed to begin carrying passengers in 2014. However, a series of construction problems forced the opening date to be pushed back.
About 70,000 passengers will ride the route each day by 2021, TransLink expects.