SkyTrain (Vancouver)

The SkyTrain in Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada is an urban Advanced Rapid Transit system operating two lines, the Expo Line and the Millennium Line. The system runs principally on elevated tracks (hence the name). It uses fully automated trains with no human drivers on board, and has had no derailments or collisions in its history.^[2] With 33 stations, it moves over 220,000 people a day along the 49.5 km (30.8 mi) of track. Built in time for the Expo 86 World's Fair, it is the world's longest automated light rapid transit system and it uses the world's longest mass transit-only bridge, the SkyBridge. The system uses the same family of linear induction motor-driven trains as the Scarborough RT line in Toronto, the Putra LRT in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the Detroit People Mover in Detroit, and the JFK AirTrain in New York City.

Construction of the Canada Line began in November 2005. The Evergreen Line, as of 2007, is in its planning stages. The former will be complete in 2009, and the latter in 2011. The Canada Line will run from downtown Vancouver to Richmond, with a branch to the airport. The Evergreen Line, a light-rapid-transit line, will run from Lougheed Town Centre to Coquitlam Town Centre.

SkyTrain operates on a proof-of-payment fare system and is policed by the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority Police Service. Passengers are subject to random fare inspections. TransLink believes it loses about CAD$6 million in unpaid fares annually. In addition to the police force, stations are patrolled by SkyTrain attendants, who can perform first aid and provide customer assistance.

History

Shortly after Vancouver was chosen to host the 1986 World's Fair, or Expo, civic leaders asked the provincial government to finance an alternative mode of transportation. Roadways were expected to be overcrowded during the fair because of the large number of visitors in the city. Originally, a traditional light rapid transit system was planned.^[3] In the end, Bombardier's "Advanced Rapid Transit" was selected primarily because labour costs would be relatively low.^[4] Construction of the original line proceeded under the Socred government of Bill Bennett,^[5] whose inauguration was commended at Waterfront Station.

The SkyTrain was conceived as a legacy project of Expo 86 and the first line was finished in 1985 in time to showcase the fair's theme: "Transportation and Communication: World in Motion - World in Touch."^[6] In 1989, the SkyBridge, along with Scott Road Station was built.^[7] The line was expanded yet again in 1994 with the opening of the Gateway, Surrey Central, and King George stations.

Until 1999, the British Columbia Rapid Transit Company owned and operated SkyTrain on behalf of the Vancouver Regional Transit System, which was responsible for public transportation in the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) in conjunction with a separate organization, BC Transit. In 1999, the GVRD's new transportation agency, TransLink, was handed responsibility for SkyTrain, which is now owned and operated by a subsidiary, the British Columbia Rapid Transit Company Ltd.^[8]

When it became evident that the region's expanding population would soon outstrip the capacity of the public transit system, TransLink was forced to look at ways to accommodate much greater numbers. Several options, including streetcars and rapid buses were proposed before a final decision was made to build a new SkyTrain line.^[9]

The first section of the Millennium Line opened in 2002 with Braid and Sapperton stations. Most of the remaining portion began operating later that year, serving North Burnaby and East Vancouver. Completion of the Millennium Line's final leg was delayed because of funding shortfalls, giving it the nickname "SkyTrain to nowhere."^[10] Completion of the line was announced with the 2006 opening of the VCC-Clark Station near Clark Drive and Broadway. The new line ends five kilometres short of the original proposed terminus at Granville Street.^[11]

Lines

The SkyTrain runs on two lines; the Expo Line (coloured blue on maps), and the Millennium Line (coloured yellow on maps). A third line — The Canada Line — is under construction until November 2009. Another line, the Evergreen Line, will be a Light Rail Transit and has passed the approval stage. There are 33 stations on the two lines in operation. The length of the system is 49.5 kilometres (approximately 30.8 mi).^[12] When not in use, the trains are stored at the Edmonds Yard and Control Centre, located between Edmonds and 22nd Street stations (Southridge and Griffiths Drives) in Burnaby.

In operation

Main articles: Expo Line and Millennium Line

The Expo Line connects Waterfront Station in Vancouver to King George Station in Surrey. It was built in 1985, in time for the 1986 World's Fair and has 20 stations. It was named the "Expo Line" after the Millennium Line was built. When it opened, it only ran as far as New Westminster Station prior to Expo. During and after the fair, it was extended to Columbia Station and later ran across the Fraser River to Scott Road once the Skybridge was finished. In 1994 the terminus of Expo line became King George Station in Central Surrey. It was built on a budget of $854 million (1986 dollars),^[13]

The Millennium Line follows the Expo Line from Waterfront Station to Columbia Station in New Westminster, then continues along its own route through North Burnaby and East Vancouver to Vancouver Community College (VCC-Clark Station) in Vancouver (the extension of the Millennium Line from Commercial Drive Station to VCC-Clark Station was opened on January 6, 2006). It was built on a $1.2 billion budget.^[14] The Millennium Line consists of 13 stations that are not shared with the Expo Line. Unlike the stations on the Expo Line, Millennium Line stations were designed by British Columbia's top architects. The stations ended up being dramatically different than those on the Expo Line.^[14] In 2004, Busby + Associates Architects, designers of the Brentwood Town Centre Station in Burnaby, were honoured for their work with a Governor General's Medal in Architecture.^[15] As of 2007, there are plans to extend the Millennium Line westward along the Broadway corridor through the Central Broadway business district and possibly to the University of British Columbia(UBC).

Expansion

Main articles: Canada Line and Evergreen Line

The Canada Line (known in earlier planning stages as the Richmond-Airport-Vancouver or RAV Line) is scheduled to be completed in November 2009, in time for the 2010 Winter Olympics. It will be built by InTransitBC, a consortium headed by SNC-Lavalin on a 1.9 billion contract.^[16] It will design, finance, build operate and maintain the line in a Public Private Partnership Project (P3 or PPP).^[17] It was announced on November 25, 2005 that the new line would be called the Canada Line.^[18]

The Canada Line will not use Bombardier's proprietary SkyTrain linear induction technology, but rather another fully automated transit vehicle using more conventional motors than the linear induction motor used in Expo and Millennium line trains. This was largely a consequence of the public-private partnership format (a condition of BC government funding), which favoured the proposal by SNC-Lavalin/Serco over that of the RAVxpress consortium. It will use the same fare system as the rest of the transit system that is managed by TransLink. The entire line will run from Waterfront Station to Richmond-Brighouse Station, with a branch serving Vancouver International Airport, creating a total of 16 stations: four on Lulu Island, three on Sea Island, and nine in Vancouver.^[19]

The Evergreen Line (referred to in planning as the Coquitlam Line) was originally scheduled to be completed in 2009, but was extended to 2011 due to budget concerns.^[20] The line will connect Lougheed Town Centre Station on the Millennium Line in Burnaby to the Coquitlam City Centre area. It will be a light-rail tramway built mostly at street level, rather than a fully segregated rapid transit system. The expected cost is $970 million.^[21]

From Lougheed Station, the vehicles are to run north along the North and Clarke Roads, then through a tunnel under Burnaby Mountain, through Port Moody, and towards Coquitlam Centre where it will have another short elevated section. The line will then turn northward again along Pinetree Way and end at Guildford Way, with another possible station somewhat further north.^[22]

TransLink says that if they were to bring the SkyTrain along the Broadway corridor, it would not go all the way to UBC. Because of cost reasons, the SkyTrain would travel under Broadway and would end at a certain point, where SkyTrain riders would have to transfer onto a rapid bus that would travel the rest of the westward route; eventually ending at UBC. If the SkyTrain were to end at Arbutus, there would be stops at Finning, Main, Cambie, Willow/Oak, Granville and Arbutus. The Rapid Bus system would finish the route with stops at MacDonald, Alma, Sasamat, Wesbrook and UBC. The estimated cost for this extension of the Millennium Line would be approximately $700 million (1999).^[23] According to TransLink's Three-Year Plan and 10-Year Outlook written in 2004, the construction on this extension is unlikely to start before 2013, and the new line will not have priority over the Canada or Evergreen lines.^[24] The line would connect the line up with the currently under-construction Canada Line at Broadway-City Hall Station and the current terminus of the Millennium Line at VCC-Clark Station.

Fares

Further information: TransLink fares (Vancouver)

Municipalities in Greater Vancouver are divided into three fare zones, which measure distance travelled on SkyTrain. Children (6-13), secondary school students, and the elderly are entitled to discounted concession fares. Fares are purchased at the mezzanine level of stations from self-served ticket vending machines. These machines accept cash, and debit and credit cards. Transfers from buses, monthly FareCards and U-Passes are also accepted. Tickets can be upgraded^[25]

SkyTrain's fare system is organized on the proof-of-payment system; there are no turnstiles at the entrances to train platforms. Fares are enforced by random sweeps through trains and occasional checks for fares at the top or bottom of stairs, exits to elevators and escalators by SkyTrain personnel. TransLink is believed to lose over $6 million in revenue annually because of fare evasion.^[26] Installing turnstiles to prevent fare evasion has been suggested, but TransLink has said that the cost to implement, maintain, and enforce them would be greater than the losses due to fare evasion.^[26]In spite of this, TransLink directors want to install turnstiles at Canada Line stations.^[27] Attendants are normally posted at SkyTrain entrances to collect and check fares when a large volume of passengers can be expected. For example, at Stadium-Chinatown Station following a British Columbia Lions or Vancouver Canucks home game, or a concert at General Motors Place. Failure to show proof of payment can result in a $173 fine.^[26]

Ticket scalping has always been a problem. Resellers frequently ask for used tickets from customers, who in turn, resell the same ticket for a reduced price. TransLink advises that customers should only buy tickets from authorized Fare dealers or ticket vending machines.^[28] In March 2007, TransLink launched a "don't give it away" campaign, advising customers not to give away used tickets. In the March 2, 2007 edition of The Buzzer, TransLink says that ticket resellers can earn up to $300 a day.^[29]

Safety

Law enforcement services are provided by the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority Police Service (GVTAPS). They replaced the old TransLink Special Provincial Constables, who had limited authority. As of December 4, 2005, officers have the full powers of provincial police and carry firearms. They may arrest people for outstanding warrants, enforce drug laws, and enforce the criminal code beyond TransLink property, as well as deal with offences that begin off TransLink property and make their way onto it. The police force issues violation tickets for fare evasion and other infractions on SkyTrain, buses, SeaBus, and West Coast Express.^[30] SkyTrain attendants provide customer service, first aid and troubleshoot train and station operations. They also perform fare inspections alongside the police force.^[31] Public controversy sparked in March 2005 when it was announced that transit police would carry guns. Solicitor General John Les however, backed the move saying that it would enhance SkyTrain security.^[32]

Over the years, violence and drug abuse has been a major concern, but TransLink says the system is safe.^[33][34] The neighboorhoods SkyTrain serves have become known areas, where drug dealing, break-ins and robberies occur. Inspector Kash Heed of the Vancouver Police Department says that crime does not take place in the stations themselves, but 400-700 metres outside, criminal activity becomes visible.^[35]

Stations are monitored with closed circuit television cameras, allowing SkyTrain operators to monitor for criminal activity. Designated wait areas have enhanced lighting, waiting benches, and emergency telephones. Trains have yellow strips above each window. Pressing it alerts operators of a security hazard. On-board speaker phones provide two way communication with passengers and control operators.^[36] The surveillance system in place as of 2007 is being upgraded to an improved digital one.^[37]

Public effect

Larry Ward, former president and CEO of British Columbia Rapid Transit Corporation told Goliath that the public reaction of the Millennium Line was positive; customers enjoy the spaciousness of the Mark II cars, the brighter station colours and the general ambiance.^[38] The SkyTrain had a significant effect on the development of areas the stations serve for several reasons. Most importantly, because growing suburbs did not have an effective way to get to and from downtown Vancouver since the Trans-Canada highway. During the same period, the overall population rose from 400,000 to 1.3 million people.^[39]

According to BC Transit's document SkyTrain: A catalyst for development, more than $5 billion dollars worth of private investment had occurred within a 10-15 minute walking distance of the SkyTrain and SeaBus. The document said that the two modes of transportation were the driving force of the investment, thought it did not disaggregate the general growth in that area.^[40] When Broadway Station opened in 1985, consequently causing disruption to business south of the station. When Commercial Drive Station, adjacent to Broadway opened, The Hub opened, which aimed at repairing the damage done by the Expo Line station. The Hub is a strip of local businesses that are localed within Commercial Drive Station where Expo Line passengers transfer to the Millennium Line and vice versa. Close to 50 000 people pass through the intersection every business day.^[41]

Controversy

Malcolm Johnson, a member of the Light Rail Committee in Delta says that traditional light rail technology would have been a better solution than SkyTrain. He believes that light rail is less expensive, more adaptable and accessible than the system used, and that city planners are unaware of this. Johnson wrote to The Georgia Straight that the Canada (RAV) Line is a "clear example of this".^[42] TransLink said that the Millennium Line would cost taxpayers $35 per trip for every new rider it attracts if it were a bus route. The SkyTrain only cost $16 per rider. Peter Boothroyd said the line was a sinkhole; that it wouldn't be used enough without causing financial problems.^[43]

Environmentalists say that the BC Government used contrived cost figures to argue that SkyTrain was better than light rail. Deming Smith of Society Promoting Environmental Conservation believes the use of Bombardier's technology was politically charged; that construction workers would vote for his platform for giving them employment.^[44] Construction of the Canada Line raised concerns over the disruption of local business near Yaletown, Cambie Street and No. 3 Road in Richmond. InTransitBC responded by launching an ad campaign promoting local business on the line.^[45] The system has had debt problems. In 1998, the operating cost was three and a half times the actual operating budget.^[46]

Design

The SkyTrain uses Alcatel's SelTrac signalling technology to run trains automatically.^[47] Its use has never led to accidents. The two lines follow a common route between Waterfront Station in downtown Vancouver and Columbia Station in New Westminster, serving the cities of Vancouver, Burnaby and New Westminster en route. From Columbia, Expo Line trains continue through Surrey to King George Station, while Millennium Line trains loop back through New Westminster, Burnaby and Vancouver to VCC-Clark Station. Although most of the system is elevated (hence its name), SkyTrain runs at or below grade through Downtown Vancouver, and for short stretches in Burnaby and New Westminster. The SkyTrain was one of the first fully automated rapid-transit systems in the world, and remains the longest today.^[12]

All stations have elevators. On September 22, 2006, a new entrance to Granville Station was opened, making this previously inaccessible station accessible for disabled patrons, who had been forced to board trains at either Burrard or Stadium-Chinatown Station.^[48]

The SkyTrain uses the world's longest bridge dedicated to transit services: the Skybridge. It crosses the Fraser River between New Westminster and Surrey. It is a 616 m (2,021 ft) long cable-stayed bridge,^[49] with 123 m (404 ft) tall towers.

TransLink upgraded all Expo Line platform station edges to match those on the Millennium Line shortly after it was completed. The new, wider edges are brighter and have been tiled in hopes of providing a safer environment for the visually impaired.^[50]

Rolling stock

Originally the Expo Line used 12-metre (40-foot) lightweight 'MK I' ('Mark I') ICTS cars from Urban Transportation Development Corporation and similar to the ones used in Toronto's Scarborough RT and Detroit's People Mover. For the Millennium Line, articulated pairs of new 18-metre (60-foot) 'MK II' ('Mark II') cars were built by Bombardier Transportation, similar to the cars used in Kuala Lumpur's Putra LRT. Each pair of cars (either two old cars or one articulated set of two new cars) is permanently joined together in a two-car trainset, or 'married pair'. Both MK I and MK II cars are wheelchair-accessible vehicles, having space for wheelchairs. However, three stations have accessibility issues because of nearby construction: Columbia Station, Scott Road Station, and Sapperton Station. Bicycles are also permitted on board during non-peak hours in both directions, and opposite the peak direction during peak hours.

SkyTrain cars reach speeds of 90 km/h (56 mph).^[51] When including wait times at stops, the end-to-end average speed is 35 km/h (22 mph), three times faster than a bus and almost twice as fast as a B-Line express bus.^[52]

Both old and new cars run on both lines. MK I vehicles normally run as 4-car trains, but can be run in 2, 4 or 6-car configuration. MK II's can be operated in 2 or 4-car trains. MK I and MK II vehicles cannot operate together in normal service, but can be coupled in manual operation for failure recovery. One set of articulated MK IIs are usually run during periods of low passenger volume (late at night, for example), while six-car MK I and two joined MK II trains are possible at times of peak capacity (for example, when many people are going home from a special event in downtown Vancouver) and during track maintenance, when frequencies are reduced.

The fleet is made up of 210 cars (150 MK I and 60 MK II): the original 114 MK I cars from 1984-1986, which have run an average of more than 3.2 million kilometres apiece; 16 MK I cars from 1990 for the Scott Road extension; 20 MK I cars from 1994 for the King George extension; 60 MK II cars from 2002 for the Millennium Line and ridership growth on the Expo Line.

In November, 2006, Bombardier won a contract to supply 34 ART MKII cars with a bid of $113 million. The cars are expected to be in service in the first half of 2009. Canada Line will be using ROTEM (unit of Hyundai) LRV cars when it opens in the same year.^[53] The Burnaby factory that produced the train cars cost Bombardier $15 million.^[54]

See also

• List of rapid transit systems

References

Wikipedia information about SkyTrain (Vancouver) This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "SkyTrain (Vancouver)". It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer). Help contribute to Americola and edit this article.