Transportation in Metro Vancouver is front and centre currently as the provincial election campaigns for all parties gears up. All three major parties have committed to increasing funding for public transit in our region. Two of the parties have made promises about reducing or eliminating tolling in Metro Vancouver which, while popular, will increase congestion in our region.
While increasing public transit funding is good, there is still a hole as these commitments don’t cover all the costs of building new transit infrastructure, nor the costs of operating an expanded transit network.
As the Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation has recently pointed out:
[The] announcements by two provincial parties on the future of the tolling system in Metro Vancouver demonstrates that transportation will be a key issue in this election. However, neither party has yet committed to workable solutions that will reduce congestion across our region over the long term. Completing the 10-Year Vision should be the first priority for our provincial and regional governments if we want to relieve congestion, improve affordability and protect the quality of life in Metro Vancouver.
The Mayors’ Council has launch a new campaign to “Cure Congestion” which includes building new rapid transit lines, upgrading SkyTrain, increasing bus service, replacing the Pattullo Bridge, and investing in regional roads.
The goal of the “Cure Congestion” campaign is to get the main provincial parties to make a clear commitment to completing our region’s 10-Year Transportation Vision.
No comments:
Post a Comment