Close X
Tuesday, November 12, 2024
ADVT 
National

TransLink warns of huge public transport cuts unless '$600m funding gap' is addressed

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 25 Jul, 2024 01:52 PM
  • TransLink warns of huge public transport cuts unless '$600m funding gap' is addressed

Metro Vancouver's transportation provider TransLink is warning of massive service cuts unless a $600-million funding gap is addressed.

It says overall transit reductions of up to 50 per cent would be required starting in 2026, eliminating about 145 bus routes and "significantly reducing" SkyTrain, SeaBus and HandyDART services.

TransLink says in a report to the Mayor's Council on Regional Transportation that the West Coast Express train service between Vancouver and Mission could also be eliminated.

The report was tabled at Thursday's meeting of regional mayors.

Council chair Brad West, mayor of Port Coquitlam, told the meeting that the consequences outlined in the report "are hard to imagine."

He says the report paints a picture of what services could look like if the next provincial government isn't prepared to work with the council to address the funding gap.

"It's incredibly important that we're very upfront with the public about the reality that TransLink is in," he said.

He said in a statement that the forecast cuts would be "catastrophic and unacceptable."

The report says the level of service cuts it describes would mean more than half a million people would no longer be within walking distance of transit.

It blames the funding gap on falling fuel tax revenue, fare increases being held below inflation and inflationary pressures on its expenses.

MORE National ARTICLES

Surrey mayor accepts outcome of judicial review

Surrey mayor accepts outcome of judicial review
Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke says she still opposes the province's mandated transition to a municipal police force, but she accepts the outcome of a judicial review. The mayor told a council meeting that the city is moving forward with what needs to be done to ensure residents are prioritized in the provincially legislated transition.

Surrey mayor accepts outcome of judicial review

BC's official opposition shuffles portfolios

BC's official opposition shuffles portfolios
B-C's official Opposition has shuffled its shadow cabinet portfolios. A statement from B-C United says former provincial cabinet minister Shirley Bond has been appointed as shadow minister for mental health and addiction.

BC's official opposition shuffles portfolios

Vancouver police arrest five, seize drugs, in Quebec gang investigation

Vancouver police arrest five, seize drugs, in Quebec gang investigation
Vancouver police have arrested five men, and recovered more than 24 kilograms of illicit drugs, after a lengthy investigation into a gang originally from Quebec. A statement from the department says members of the gang known as Zone 43 established operations in Vancouver and were the focus of a 14-month investigation by its organized crime section.

Vancouver police arrest five, seize drugs, in Quebec gang investigation

Two children remain in hospital after Saskatchewan school bus crash

Two children remain in hospital after Saskatchewan school bus crash
Two children remain in hospital for observation after a crash that saw a school bus roll over off a road in rural Saskatchewan. The crash happened Monday afternoon at the intersection of two gravel roads near Rockglen, in the southwest part of the province.

Two children remain in hospital after Saskatchewan school bus crash

Border strike averted after union reaches tentative agreement with Ottawa

Border strike averted after union reaches tentative agreement with Ottawa
Workers at Canada's borders are no longer planning to go on strike this week after their union reached a tentative agreement with the federal government. The Public Service Alliance of Canada said Tuesday it reached a deal with the government for Canada Border Services Agency employees after working "around the clock." 

Border strike averted after union reaches tentative agreement with Ottawa

Delta weekend fire destroys vacant building

Delta weekend fire destroys vacant building
Police in Delta are looking for witnesses after a weekend fire destroyed a vacant building in Ladner. They say there were no injuries caused by the fire, which happened in the 49-hundred block of Chisholm Street and was reported shortly before midnight Saturday.

Delta weekend fire destroys vacant building