TransLink's Compass Card and Calgary's CONNECT Smart Card

TransLink has been working towards implementing a smart card fare payment system to replace the current system of cash, tickets, and passes. Funding for this program was announced in April 2009. Along with implementing a smart card system, TransLink was forced to install expensive faregates at SkyTrain stations by the province. This made TransLink one of two agencies in North America (the other being Los Angeles’s Metro) to move away from a proof-of-fare system for rail-based transit.

Smart cards are replacing traditional payment on transit systems throughout the world. Along the west coast of the US, Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles transit agencies current use smart card systems.

All these transit agencies had delays in implementation their smart cards systems due to the challenges of rolling out a technologically complex system. Though once the smart card systems got implemented, the experience of using transit greatly improved. You simply tap your card to use transit, and the system figures out the rest.

In Metro Vancouver, the cost of implementing TransLink’s Compass Card system has increased from $171 million to $194 million. In addition, the system’s full launch date has been delayed. This is not surprising as other transit agencies have faced similar challenges.

As I’m in Calgary this week, I thought I’d highlight Calgary’s smart card system.

Calgary Transit is also implementing a smart card payment system. Unlike TransLink which uses a zone-based system which requires tapping-on and tapping-off when using transit, Calgary Transit uses a simpler flat-fare system.

Calgary received funding to implement its smart card system back in 2010. As Calgary Transit wasn’t installing costly fare gates and has a simpler fare structure, the system was supposed to be in service by June 2012. The original price tag for the project was $8 million. The system was not in service by mid-2012 and due to problems with implementing the system, Calgary Transit cancelled the project.

Last late year Calgary Transit relaunched its smart card fare payment project. The total cost of the project could rice from $8 million to $19 million. A date has not been determined for when the system will go live.

TransLink’s major issue with the Compass Card system appears to be with the time it takes for smart cards to be read when tapped on a bus. Once that issue gets resolved, it appears that TransLink will be able to roll out the system to more transit users.

While delays and cost increases are never good, TransLink is unfortunately not the first transit agency to experience challenges implementing a smart card fare payment system.

TomTom Traffic Index, Mobility, and Accessibility

For the past few years, TomTom has released a congestion report which profiles major cities in the world. The results are not surprising; cars can’t go the maximum speed limit during peak travel periods in major cities. The Province published an article on the report and used the sensational headline: “Gridlock! Vancouver has the worst congestion in Canada”.

When the first Traffic Index report was publish in 2012, I posted a critique on the study. I found that if free-flow traffic speeds are low, congestion delay will appear larger due to the way TomTom calculates their index. This is the case in Metro Vancouver.

The Traffic Index also doesn’t address walking, cycling, or transit which are important modes of travel in Metro Vancouver.

Todd Litman of the Victoria Transport Policy Institutes has written extensively on mobility and accessibility. Mobility is how fast you can get from point-a to point-b. Accessibility is the ease of “reaching goods, services, activities and destinations.” Litman argues that accessibility is what we should be focusing on, and that mobility is only one component of accessibility.

According to Litman, it is more important to build communities that have a variety of densities and land-uses that support putting people closer to the things they need like jobs and shopping. Building these types of communities also makes it easier to provide high-quality transit service while improving the walking and cycling experience.

Is it better to build a community so people can drive faster to a grocery store that is father away, or is it better to build a community that supports more grocery stores, so that people are closer to them? I support option B.

In fact Litman found that congestion may actually improve people's access to jobs, even if they drive.

A study that measured the number of jobs accessible by automobile within certain time periods for the 51 largest US metropolitan areas found that the five cities with the most intense congestion (highest Travel Time Index rating) are among the best for automobile employment access because their lower traffic speeds are more than offset by higher employment densities which reduce commute distances.

This is backed up by data from Stats Canada which showed that people's commute time actually dropped between 1992 and 2005 in Metro Vancouver.

The TomTom report is solely focused on the mobility of people travelling in an automobile. Methodology aside, the Time Travel Index completely ignores transit, cycling, and walking. An accessible region is a multi-modal region; Metro Vancouver is a multi-modal region. So while the TomTom report is good at generating headlines, it provides very little insight.

I do like the quote in the Province from the CEO of TomTom, “The traditional responses to congestion, such as building new roads or widening existing ones, are no longer proving to be effective.” In fact, the only way to reduce congestion is by using road pricing.

Thoughts on Calgary: Bike Lanes, Transit, and Accessible Design

When I graduated from High School, instead of escaping to Vancouver for post-secondary education, I ended up in Calgary. This week I’m back in Calgary for work. It is amazing to see some of the changes in the community since I left over 10 years ago.

When I lived in Calgary, its downtown was full of offices, but hardly anyone lived downtown. After 6pm, there wasn't a person to be found on the street. Today, there are more condos. People are cycling, walking, and enjoying life in downtown after 6pm.

While not without some controversy at the end of April, Calgary City Council voted to build separated bike lanes in their downtown core. There is consensus that the future success of Calgary depends on improving cycling, walking, and transit accessibility.

Seperated bike lanes under construction in Downtown Calgary.

In Metro Vancouver, the construction of separated bike lanes has been framed by some as a leftist conspiracy. This is totally unfounded. The fact that Calgary City Council was able to approve $7.5 million to pilot separated bike lanes gives me hope that places like Surrey and Langley could reallocate road space and built on-street separated bike lanes too.

If you need proof that transit can work without City of Vancouver density, Calgary is the perfect case study. During peak periods there is light rail transit every 3 minutes. Light rail will get you to most parts of the City. Because light rail is so popular, Calgary is expanded all station platforms to be able to handle 4-car trains. For comparison, the Expo Line in Metro Vancouver can only handle 2-car trains.

Banff Trail C Train Station Platform.

While TransLink is better than Calgary Transit when it comes to providing information online and on buses, there are some things that Calgary Transit does better.

One of the things I find annoying in Metro Vancouver is that the majority of bus stop signs simply say “bus stop”. In every other region I’m been to in North America (outside of BC), transit agency put the bus route on these signs. This is extremely helpful and I have no idea why this does not happen in Metro Vancouver.

Calgary Transit Bus Stop at Lion's Park C Train Station.

Another thing that TransLink could learn from Calgary Transit is what to do when the rail transit system needs to be shut down. When an issue prevents the SkyTrain system from running, TransLink usually sets up replacement bus service. When this happens, it is usually poorly communicated and is unclear where to wait for replacement bus service. Calgary Transit marks where to wait for replacement bus service when there is a service interruption.

While much of Calgary is still sprawled out single-family homes and strip mall, Calgary is become a more accessible city. While many of their light rail station are surrounded by parking lots, they are starting to be replaced by transit-oriented development.

If Calgary continues to embrace accessible community design, it could be an example for other cities to follow if the City can control its sprawl.

Central Newton Cultural Commercial District

Earlier this year, I posted about a new project that is being proposed in what Surrey is calling the “Central Newton Cultural Commercial District.” As I noted at the time, the regional zoning would need to be changes from Industrial to “Mixed Employment”. The regional Industrial Zone allows “heavy and light industrial activities, and appropriate accessory uses” while the “Mixed Employment” zone allows anything but residential.

The City of Surrey has a large section of industrial-zoned land along the Interurban/South Railway of BC corridor in the Newton area. While this land has been zoned for industrial uses for a long time, a number of factors have led to retail becoming established in the area. One of the primary reasons why is that Surrey allows “General Service” businesses, restaurants, and limited retailing in industrial areas.

“Generals Services” includes things like photocopying services, film processing, rentals, appliance repair services, veterinary clinics, adult education institutions, banks, but not retail stores.

While in a typical business park this sort of zoning would allow for restaurant that primary serve employees and allow manufactures to have a showrooms, many business-owner in the Newton area have stretch the definitions of allowed uses in the area. Some businesses are also operating out of the scope of their business license.

Proposed Central Newton Cultural Commercial District around the intersection of 128th Street and 80th Avenue.

Over time, this has created a retail and office area that caters to the South Asian community in Surrey. The proposed creation of the “Central Newton Cultural Commercial District” is a way to recognize what is already happening in the area. By creating the zone, Surrey is hoping to direct future retail into this new district while at the same time strengthen the zoning to protect the surrounding industrial land from future retail/commercial uses. Surrey also plans to strengthen its bylaw enforcement in the area.

By formally recognizing the “Central Newton Cultural Commercial District”, Surrey and TransLink will also be able to better plan and provision for roads, parking, walking, cycling, and transit service.

Surrey is asking Metro Vancouver to change 6.5 ha from the regional Industrial Zone to the Mixed Employment Zone to support this district. As a minor amendment to the regional growth strategy, it will only need 50%+1 weighted support from the Metro Vancouver board to be approved.

I think that Surrey is doing the right thing by embracing the current land-use in the area while putting provisions in place to protect the remaining industrial land in Newton.