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Is SkyTrain "The Best" Transportation Solution for the Valley??

What are the different passenger rail options, what is LRT, what is Commuter Rail. It is very important to understand that their is signifigant differences in the speed, the coaches, diesel engines, electric and most importantly COST.

The average cost for light rail in North America is about $35m/kilometre


DRL: Deluxe: $700m $27,000,000/km
UMA: Community: $120m $6,000,000/km
FVHRS: Tourist: $6m $325,000/km
LRT (typical): $35,000,000/km
Canada Line: $2,000m $105,000,000/km
Evergreen Line: $1,400m $127,000,000/km
UBC Line: $2,800m $233,000,000/km

Minister Kevin Falcon is talking Skytrain to Langley down Fraser Hwy. In a perfect world we could deliver a gold plated car with all the bells and whistles mony could buy but people in the valley are saying why not think about a cost saving passenger rail solution. Ultimately the citizens of the valley want a passenger rail service now not in 2031.

Look at the following detailed information and then please write a letter to Premier Gordon Campbell and cc Minister Kevin Falcon. Tell Premier Gordon Campbell you want a community passenger rail service by 2010 to support the tourist traffic coming to BC. To provide an added transit service for people arriving for the Olympics at the Abbotsford Airport.

Why is our Premier so focused on state of the art transportation solutions for VANCOUVER. Doesn't he realize that a lot of people coming to BC for the Olympics will stay in hotels/motels and with families in the Fraser Valley? How are they going to deal with the traffic jams from Chilliwack to the Port Mann Bridge. The plan has got to be BUSSES and more BUSSES

Let's be smart, let's get a passenger rail service up now. It can be done. Yes it will cost money....but NOT anything like the cost of SKYTRAIN... so please look at the following different passenger rail options. Become familiar with what is LRT, what is Commuter Rail.

Look at the significant differences in the speed, the coaches, diesel engines vs. electric engines and most importantly THE COST. Yes SkyTrain is an option, but the question is...Is this your option of choice or is it just a way for the government to delay delivering a passenger rail service to the valley by talking about an expensive transportation solution that in fact will never come to pass?
See Full Report

Matthew Claxton - Langley Advance APRIL 29 08
Forum pushes light rail revival

At a Saturday forum, passenger rail advocates argued the cost benefits of reusing the old Interurban line.
Passenger rail in Langley makes sense, a group of rail advocates told local politicians and members of the public on Saturday.

At the six-hour rail forum organized by the Valley Transportation Advisory Committee (VALTAC) in the Township council chambers, the potential costs and benefits of a revived Interurban line were laid out.




A desire for streetcars - May 08
Langley Township Councilor Jordan Bateman presented a plan to turn Langley into a streetcar suburb to VALTAC members Wednesday afternoon.

Commuter rail could work - May 08
The new president of Southern Railway of B.C. says he’s willing to let people — not just cargo — ride his rails if a new commuter rail service ever gets on track through Surrey, Langley and up the Fraser Valley.

Rail advocates meet up - May 08
Members of the Valley Transit Advisory Committee (VALTAC) met with Township councillor Jordan Bateman on Wednesday to talk about rail projects.

Southern Railway has big shipping ideas
Company president says his plan will significantly reduce trucks at Deltaport

SkyTrains to be built in Mexico
New SkyTrain cars announced as part of a $150-million expansion of the TransLink fleet will be built by Canadian company Bombardier -- in Mexico

Frustrated commuters staging all-day rally
Supporters of a light-rail commuter system for the Fraser Valley are rallying in Langley on Saturday.

Put local transit first - Chilliwack mayor Clint Haimes
Despite being booed "in abstentia" at the recent "Rails to the Valley" forum, I am not, and never have been an enemy of effective, affordable rapid transit.

Interurban option pushed
The money spent on six kilometres of SkyTrain could get 30 kilometres of the old Interurban rail line up and running again, says the Valley Transportation Advisory Committee (VALTAC).

Don't ignore south of Fraser
No matter how you look at it, the five municipalities south of the Fraser are significantly underserved by TransLink's bus service, compared to the rest of Metro Vancouver.


Passenger rail a long way off
The push for a Fraser Valley passenger rail system has lost a little steam with the publication of a Fraser Valley Regional District draft report discouraging the concept.


Strategic Advisors Report
Download the full Jan 08 report on the Asia Pacific Gateway and Corridor initiative.
see more





South of the Fraser Transit Plan
Township Council voted to support the South of the Fraser Transit Plan 5 - 4.



Politicians need to consider light rail
May 02, 2008
Letter to Editor Langley Times - Rick Green, Mayoral Candidate Langley Township.
Image by - Rob NEWELL/Langley Times

Transportation planner Stephen Rees was among a panel of transportation experts who spoke at VALTAC’s forum last Saturday.

Editor: The organizers of the VALTAC transportation forum on Saturday should be congratulated. Now we have to hope our mayor and other mayors south of the Fraser, along with provincial politicians, are listening.

All too often the obvious is overlooked in solving major problems. Costly, over-thought solutions are brought forward by bureaucracies intent on justifying their existence. Whatever happened to common sense?

Light rail transit is not new. It was thought of and implemented back in the early 1900s and, as one panel member said on Saturday, they designed, planned and constructed the interurban line in three years. We couldn’t design or plan that infrastructure today in three years — let alone build it.

This unique opportunity is available to us — all we need is to use our common sense and get on with it. The problem with that notion is that we assume our politicians, municipal, provincial and federal, are listening and interested in common sense.

The province, municipalities and unelected TransLink board are forcing two options for transit — buses or SkyTrain (at an estimated $120 million per kilometre). Gordon Campbell’s recently announced transportation plan has a $14 billion price tag, but it may as well be $30 billion, because the likelihood of that kind of money being spent on our regional transportation needs within the suggested time frame is pie in the sky.

It is just plain unrealistic politics, and make no doubt about it, it is just politics. When we have such a cost-effective option as light rail available to us, it would be completely irresponsible not to get on with a plan to move forward.

We are told we can’t institute light rail on a line carrying so much heavy rail traffic (which is growing considerably).

Some of the VALTAC directors have delved into, investigated and obtained copies of agreements that are still valid, regarding the interurban line’s history. There are rights that flow from the historic agreements dealing with passenger travel on this line.

While we seem to be willing to sit back once again and take what is thrown at us, it is now time, as part of the commuter initiative, to deal with the relocation of heavy rail.

If you look at the current number of unit trains that are running through the Township and the City daily, the powers that be are looking at doubling that number in the not too distant future.

If we keep turning our back on this problem and take on the population that is intended for Langley under the Livable Region Plan, our children and their children will be wondering what was wrong with the politicians and the electorate of the past. We will be known for our lack of foresight, the opposite of our ancestors, who had considerable foresight.

Mayor Kurt Alberts sat on the former TransLink board that approved of the implementation of a bus program for our region, giving no support to light rail. Like so many municipal leaders in the region, Mayor Alberts has lagged behind the wishes of the taxpayer.

They stand up and pump their chests at the building of rail overpasses (at considerable cost to Township taxpayers), when those dollars could be spent to build a new rail bridge over the Fraser at New Westminster to help solve the problem of unit trains going through the middle of the Township and City.

Politicians must start listening, using their common sense and take action. It was great to see Mayor Alberts attend the forum on Saturday. He should have stayed longer.

 

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Find out the latest information on the efforts being put forth to revive the  Interurban.


VALTAC Press Releases


Translink April 08
Press Release




Asia Pacific Gateway
and Corridor News


Editors POINT
Editors opinion on local transportation issues.
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Brian Lewis
from The Province wrote an excellent article about the Economy and Transportation Sustainability Dialogue that was hosted in Surrey.

The future of transportation and economic development south of the Fraser River rests primarily with rail and water -- not roads.

That was one strong message emerging from a Metro Vancouver-sponsored forum in Surrey where elected officials, business leaders and representatives from community groups gathered to discuss the challenges facing this fast-growing region.

The whole article is available at The Province's website.


 
Transportation related letters to news editors around the province. Full Government report on the Port Mann Highway 1 project. One of three component projects of the British Columbia Canada - Gateway Program. New transit plan unveiled by the BC government. Join in on the discussions, feedback and issues by participating in our facebook community. Stay in the know by subscribing to our e-news mailing list. View the results from our latest survey.