TransLink pledges ‘new chapter’ in reliable bus service with launch of 4 RapidBus lines

TransLink has launched what it calls a “major new chapter” in transit service, with the launch of four new RapidBus lines.

The new routes will replace some existing B-Line service and add bus rapid transit service to seven Metro Vancouver communities.

TransLink estimates about 330,000 people now live within walking distance of a RapidBus corridor, and that the new service will be 20 per cent faster than existing bus service.

“The best way to get more people onto transit is to offer fast, reliable and frequent service that people can count on,” said TransLink CEO Kevin Desmond.

“RapidBus is that service.”

1:51 New details on Surrey-to-Langley SkyTrain extension

Desmond said 60 per cent of TransLink’s ridership remains bus users, a fact he said will not change for years while the agency builds out the SkyTrain network.

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As a result, he said, it is important to improve bus service in a way that attracts people to the transit system.

TransLink is pledging that RapidBus lines will run at three- to 10-minute service during peak hours, and no less frequently than 15 minutes off-peak until midnight.

The lines include fewer stops, all-door boarding, and shelters with digital signs that tell riders when the next bus is coming.

The agency has also worked with cities to create changes to the road network intended to speed up bus travel.

“That’s the key element in my view, what really differentiates what we’re doing here in a lot of different ways, not just the pretty blue and green buses, but faster buses on the right of way,” said Desmond.

Those changes include dedicated bus lanes, queue jump lanes, traffic signal priority and turn signal changes.

TransLink’s new RapidBus lines:

• R1 King George Boulevard (Guildford Exchange/Newton Exchange), with eight-minute service during peak hours
• R3 Lougheed Highway (Coquitlam Central Station/Haney Place), with 10-minute service during peak hours
• R4 41st Avenue (Joyce Station/UBC), with three to six-minute service during peak hours
• R5 Hastings Street (Burrard Station/SFU), with four to five-minute service during peak hours

A fifth line, the R2, will launch in April connecting North Vancouver and West Vancouver, running Marine Drive between Phibbs Exchange and Park Royal.

Desmond said planning is also underway for two additional RapidBus lines that have secured funding. One will connect Richmond to the Expo SkyTrain Line, while the other will connect Newton to Scott Road Station.

Public consultation on those lines is slated to begin later this year, with a goal of launching the lines by late 2021 or 2022.