New map shows removal of tolls increased congestion in Langley, Surrey, Maple Ridge, and Pitt Meadows

In December, TransLink released data about the increase in vehicle traffic across the Port Mann Bridge and Golden Ears Bridge since the provincial government removed tolls on those crossing.

As I posted about in December, traffic was up about 30% on both the Port Mann and Golden Ears. Traffic was down on the Pattullo Bridge, Alex Fraser Bridge, and George Massey Tunnel. Overall, there was an 8% increase in traffic across all river crossings. This is significantly higher than normal growth in traffic.

What does this mean for commuters in Langley and Surrey? More time stuck in traffic. The following map from TransLink shows the impact of the toll removal on the major road network in our region in the peak afternoon travel period.

Toll removal has mixed effects on peak pm period speeds. Red = Slower; Green = Faster; Grey = Minimal Change. Select map to enlarge.

Along the Highway 1 corridor, traffic congestion has increased in both the Burnaby Lake area and through Langley. Congestion has also increased on Highway 15 and 152 Street which connect to Highway 1.

While congestion has reduced on the Alex Fraser Bridge, congestion has increased in the peak travel direction on approaches to the bridge. While congestion has decreased along the north section of the SFPR, it has increased along the south section.

Interesting enough, the Highway 99 corridor has seen a significant reduction in congestion which further calls into question the need for a replacement crossing.

Another positive is that traffic is down through New Westminster which should be a welcome relief for residents in that community.

While people are no longer paying a cash toll on the Port Mann or Golden Ears, they are now being tolled with longer commutes and increased fuel costs due to stop and go traffic.

Mayors’ Council investigating more bus service for region, big boost in South of Fraser

As part of the Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation Vision, 11 new B-Line routes are in the works that will be deployed throughout Metro Vancouver. While the original plan would provide frequent, express bus service, it didn’t include upgraded customer amenities such as custom bus shelters, real-time information at stops, ticket purchasing at stops, and the implementation of transit priority measures on the road network.

In mid-November, I posted about how the Mayors’ Council was investigating working with municipalities to fund these enhancements. At the December Mayors’ Council meeting, TransLink staff noted that providing some of the customer amenities and limited transit priority measures would requires $6 million per year in cost-sharing with municipalities over eight years. This is their recommendation for moving forward.

The Mayors’ Council Transportation Vision is split into three phases. Phase one is already funded and being implemented. Phase two will hopefully have funding in place this year.

Phase two bus expansion will see a 6% increase in service by 2020/21. The Mayors’ Council is investigating moving some of the proposed phase three bus service improvements into phase two. This would deliver a total 8% increase in bus service by 2020/21.

The following map shows where the proposed enhanced phase two bus service will be delivered.

Map of Phase 2 Bus Service Package – Minimum and Moderate Scope Combined. Select map to enlarge.

Some of the proposed service enhancements include:

• New service to Harbourside in North Vancouver
• New service to East Fraser Lands in Vancouver
• New service to East Fraser Heights in Surrey
• Improved integration with the West Coast Express and 2019 Lougheed B-Line
• Improved service in Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge
• New service on 68 Avenue in Surrey
• Langley shuttle bus network re-structuring

The South of Fraser will see a large increase in bus service if this enhanced phase two plan moves forward.

Proposed distribution of new bus service hours in Phase One and Phase Two. Select chart to enlarge.

For a long time, transit service in the South of Fraser was not keeping up with population growth. If this enhanced phase two plan moves forward, South of Fraser transit will start to catch up with growth.

What you need to know about your 2018 property assessment notice, property tax, and affordability in Langley City

The BC Assessment Authority has mailed out 2018 property assessment notices to people and corporations that own property in the Fraser Valley. The assessed value of property is based on the market value on July 1, 2017.

Historically in Langley City, the price of single family housing has increased in value at a faster rate than townhouses or apartments. The following table shows the change between 2016 and 2018.

Municipality	2016 Assessment	Typical Change in Value	2017 Assessment	Typical Change in Value	2018 Assessment
City of Langley (Example 1)	$540,000.00	34.00%	$725,000.00	8.00%	$788,700.00
City of Langley (Example 2)	$528,000.00	35.00%	$711,000.00	10.00%	$783,500.00
City of Langley- Strata Condo	N/A	N/A	$242,000.00	36.00%	$329,000.00

This has changed between 2017 and 2018. While single family housing have continued to increase in value, there has been a significant increase in the value of condos in Langley City. This rapid increase in condo values is concerning as it further limits the availability of affordable housing in our community. This spike in condo values is likely a spillover from the housing affordability crises in other communities west of the Fraser River.

As I posted about earlier in the fall, the federal and provincial governments have a large role to play in providing affordable housing options to people. In Langley City, the municipality has essentially zoned the area north of the Nicomekl for apartments and townhouses to support more affordable housing options, but we still need the help of the province and federal governments to ensure there is affordable housing for all.

One of the common misconceptions is how property tax and property value is linked. Hopefully, I can clear this up.

At the beginning of the year, council approves a budget for the municipality. Operating expenditures increase yearly. This means that a revenue increase is required as municipalities must have balanced budgets.

In this simplified example, a municipality that only has residential properties determined that a 4% property tax increase was required to balance the budget. How would that impact people’s property tax?

	2017 Property Value	Property Value Change	2018 Property Value	2017 Property Tax	2018 Property Tax	Property Tax Change
Single Family House A	$750,000.00	7.00%	$802,500.00	$3,750.00	$3,490.88	-6.91%
Single Family House B	$600,000.00	10.00%	$660,000.00	$3,000.00	$2,871.00	-4.30%
Condo A	$200,000.00	30.00%	$260,000.00	$1,000.00	$1,131.00	13.10%
Condo B	$300,000.00	35.00%	$405,000.00	$1,500.00	$1,761.75	17.45%
Average Property Value Increase		20.50%
Property Tax Collected				$9,250.00	$9,254.63	4%

The preceding table showed an example change in property values that averaged out to 20.5%.

If property values increased faster than the average, you will see an increase in your property tax that is relative to the change in value. Likewise, if property values increases slower than the average, you will see a decrease that is relative to the change in value.

The current property tax system creates this imbalance. This is why Langley City council has been calling for the provincial government to fix the system. We would like to have a system where property tax can be applied at different rates for single-family and multi-family properties to ensure a more balanced property tax distribution. You can read more about this in a previous post.

Transit investments pay off with increased ridership in 2017. 2018 will be a critical year for transit’s future.

For many major transit agencies in North America, 2017 was a year of modest or no growth in ridership. In Ottawa, Edmonton, and Calgary, transit ridership was on-track to slightly decline. In Toronto, TTC ridership was essentially flat. Transit ridership in Montreal was on-track to increase by around 2%.

	2016	2017	Change
Boardings: January 1 to November 30
	355.05 M	377.41 M	6.30%
Boardings by Mode in November
Bus	20.70 M	21.27 M	2.80%
Expo/Millennium	8.03 M	8.93 M	11.20%
Canada Line	3.62 M	3.79 M	4.90%
SeaBus	.41 M	.44 M	7.20%
West Coast Express	.23 M	.21 M	-6.60%
All modes	32.98 M	34.65 M	5.10%

Metro Vancouver ridership is on-track to increase by 6% in 2017. With the introduction of the Evergreen Extension to the Tri-Cities area, Expo/Millennium ridership has skyrocketed. Overall transit ridership has seen massive gains in the Tri-Cities with 25% growth during the weekdays, and 50% growth during the weekends. The introduction of SkyTrian service to this part of Metro Vancouver has had a profound impact on how people get around.

Bus ridership, Canada Line ridership, and SeaBus ridership also increased which was due to the implementation of new or enhanced transit service as part of the Mayors’ Council’s 10-Year Vision.

West Coast Express ridership has seen a decline which is no surprise given the introduction of SkyTrain service in the Tri-Cities area.

2018 should continue to see increased transit ridership as the Mayors’ Vision continues to be rolled out. More new bus service hours will be added this year.

The last year was an overall positive year for transit service improvements in Metro Vancouver. With the recent shake-up at the Mayors’ Council, I hope that moving forward with transit improvements including light rail along King George Boulevard, 104 Avenue, and Fraser Highway isn’t delayed. It would be a shame to see all the good work in developing the Mayors’ Council’s plan, and its implementation, be unravelled.

2018 will be a critical year for the future of transit service improvements in our region because the provincial government will have to enable new funding, including a regional developer cost charge, and another regionally-sourced, provincially-controlled revenue source. If the province does not, transit expansion, including light rail in the South of Fraser, will grind to a halt.