$500 million in provincial, federal funding needed to sustain Metro Vancouver's transit system, mayors say

Metro Vancouver’s mayors are asking for a bailout from the federal government to save the region's struggling transit network.

At a news conference Tuesday, representatives from the Mayors' Council on Regional Transportation and the transit authority called on Ottawa for $250 million in emergency relief, an amount that they will also be asking the province to match.

According to the Mayors' Council and TransLink, the current funding model, which relies on fares and property taxes, is inadequate. The infusion of an additional half a billion dollars is needed, they say, to offset the ongoing financial fallout from the pandemic, to sustain the current system, and to finance plans for much-needed expansion.

“Our region is growing faster than ever. And as long as we are stuck in survival mode, our transit system will not be able to keep pace with the main and the essential service it provides,” said Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West, the chair of the mayors' council.

"This is a critical point to invest in Metro Vancouver’s long-term infrastructure needs and the Mayors’ Council is determined to make sure this message is being heard in Ottawa,” he continued.

Ridership has rebounded to 82 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, according to TransLink, which says the system is on the verge of being overwhelmed in the region's fastest-growing communities. The region's population is projected to grow by more than a million people by 2050, according to a news release from the Mayors' Council.

The council has also endorsed an ambitious 10-year plan for the region, including a doubling of bus service, the introduction of nine new bus rapid transit lines, and the expansion of SkyTrain service south of the Fraser. Projects like a gondola on Burnaby Mountain and the expansion of the Millennium Line to UBC are also on the table