Green Bins in Apartments and Reducing Single-Usage Items

People in the Metro Vancouver region do their part to reduce waste and recycle. Over the last decade, we have reduced our waste by 11%, even as our region's population has increased. As I've posted in the past, people in apartments and townhouses recycle and use organics bins less than people who live in detached housing. There is an opportunity for changing behaviour.

From Metro Vancouver's Food Scraps aren't Garbage Campgain. Select the image to enlarge.

As people in townhouses and apartments often need to store organic waste under the sink or in their garage, there is concern that it may smell unpleasant, attract insects, and generally be messy and dirty.

With this in mind, Metro Vancouver has updated its resources with a larger focus on people who live in apartments and townhouses. Metro Vancouver's "Food Scraps Aren't Garbage" site has tips on how to manage organics cleanly and how to get a program set up in your building (if you don't have one already.) One tip is to store your green bin in the freezer.

This summer, Metro Vancouver's "What's your Superhabit?" educational campaign will be back. The program's goal is to educate people on easy ways to reduce the use of disposable cups, containers, and utensils. This year's campaign will focus on people under the age of 44 who tend to use more single-use items. Some simple reminders include using a travel mug, using a reusable water bottle and bringing a set of utensils to work.

While there are certainly other barriers to reducing waste and using the organics bin, changing behaviour is critical. The overall goal of Metro Vancouver's campaigns this year is to let people know that everyone is using fewer single-use items and using green bins, and that you should join the party.

Upcoming Events: State of the City, Community Dialogue on Safety

There are two upcoming events in the City this June that I wanted to highlight.

The first event is a Community Dialogue on Safety. As you may know, Langley City has a Citizens’ Assembly. The assembly consists of 29 members from our community who put their names forward and were chosen through a lottery system, taking into account our community’s demographic makeup. The mandate is to deliver a set of recommendations to Council that will improve community safety, transitioning from a more reactive to a proactive safety model.

An upcoming Community Dialogue will allow Citizens’ Assembly members to collaborate with attendees and share insights about safety and well-being in Langley City.

Name: Community Dialogue
Date: Wednesday, June 11
Time: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Location: Council Chambers, Langley City Hall

This event is open to anyone in the Langely City community. If you are unable to attend in person, you can also participate online.

The Greater Langley Chamber of Commerce will host the annual State of the City Address. I will deliver a presentation about what has been happening in Langley City over the last year and where we plan to go in the coming year. This year’s address will focus on community safety, community investments, and Langley City’s new data-driven approach to decision-making and organization accountability. We will be launching our KPI dashboard. KPIs, or Key Performance Indicators, are measurements that help track progress toward objectives and flag issues early, allowing organizations to make adjustments. There will also be a question-and-answer period and dinner.

Name: State of the City
Date: Thursday, June 19
Time: 5:30 pm  - 8:15 pm
Venue: Coast Langley City Hotel 
Cost:  $55

You can register to attend the State of the City Address on the Greater Langley Chamber of Commerce website. The City will also post videos from the address on its website.

Metro Vancouver Housing Corporation Affordable Housing Update

The Metro Vancouver Housing Corporation, a part of the Metro Vancouver Regional District, builds and directly manages affordable housing throughout our region. Today, it has a portfolio of 4,491 housing units, making it one of the largest affordable housing operations in the region. The Corporation's operating costs are self-funding, though funding to build new housing comes from other levels of government and the Regional District.

The Housing Corporation is currently updating its 10-year plan. There are five main areas it is looking to update.

The first area is whether it should slow down, maintain, or increase the pace of building new housing units. The pace is primarily driven by funding commitments from the federal and provincial governments.

The second area is whether the Housing Corporation should continue to partner with member municipalities and the private sector or just the private sector to deliver new housing units.

The third area is to examine the affordability and unit-mix targets for its housing. Today, the target is to have 30% of its total housing units with Rent-Geared-to-Income and 70% of its units with 2- or more bedrooms.

The fourth area is where to focus on developing new housing. For example, the Housing Corporation does not have any sites in Langley City or Township. Should the Housing Corporation focus on creating a sub-regional balance or continue its current approach on sites where opportunities present themselves?

Table showing Metro Vancouver Housing Corporation units by sub-region. Select the table to enlarge.

The final area concerns the type and scope of tenant programs and services to provide.

The Metro Vancouver Housing Corporation is well-regarded and accountable to the people of our region, as it receives limited funding through our property taxes. I am hopeful that the Corporation will continue to build on its success, increasing the number of units it can deliver, including here in Langley City.

Image Source: https://metrovancouver.org/services/housing/facility/pinewood-place

TransLink Ridership in 2024: Everyone is Taking the Bus. Overcrowding a Concern.

Every year, TransLink produces a "Transit Service Performance Review," which includes a summary report and detailed route-by-route key performance indicators such as ridership, revenue, on-time performance, and speed. The agency recently released its 2024 summary report and data.

Transit ridership is returning to 2019 levels when we saw record transit ridership. While SkyTrain, SeaBus, and West Coast Express are critical parts of our transit system, the bus network handles the majority of transit trips in our region. In 2024, TransLink had the third-highest bus ridership in Canada and the USA in absolute numbers.

TransLink System-Wide Monthly Journeys and Regional Population Growth, 2019-2024. Select image to enlarge.

Ridership growth was the strongest in the South of Fraser, which includes Surrey, White Rock, Langley City and Township. Another notable increase is that West Coast Express ridership rose by 20% between 2023 and 2024 as more people commute to Downtown Vancouver.

While it is good that people continue to rely on transit as a way to get around the region, it is becoming overcrowded like it was in 2019. As a transit rider myself, I remember the crush loads on the 502/503 and SkyTrain. The following map shows the top 20 overcrowded bus routes in Metro Vancouver. Many of these bus routes are now in the South of Fraser.

Map of Top 20 Overcrowded Bus Routes, Fall 2024. Select image to enlarge.

TransLink has been reallocating bus service across the region to address the most severe overcrowding, but it can be a bit of stealing from Peter to pay Paul. Bus ridership in Vancouver/UBC declined in 2024.

Last month, the Mayors' Council approved a new 2025 Investment Plan. This investment plan will begin delivering more bus services immediately to address overcrowding, expand existing routes, and create new routes to areas such as industrial zones and regional parks.

For more information, including the summary report, dashboards, and data set, please visit the TransLink Transit Service Performance Review webpage.