Surrey-Newton-Guildford LRT cost increase to $1.65 billion makes it Canada’s worst value rapid transit project
- Media Release
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- For immediate release — April 30, 2018
TransLink has revealed that the cost to build the Surrey-Newton-Guildford LRT has nearly doubled to $1.65 billion dollars.
At these costs, which exceed $150 million per kilometre, the first line to be built as part of Surrey’s at-grade LRT vision will be more expensive per kilometre than previous SkyTrain projects, including both the Millennium Line: Evergreen Extension and the Canada Line.
- Will run entirely on city streets and be prone to delays, blockages and collisions
- Offers only 27% of the capacity of the Canada Line in its ultimate configuration
- Is expected to be only half as fast as SkyTrain’s Expo Line
- Takes away crucial traffic lanes on 104th Avenue, one of Surrey’s busiest arterial roads
- Will not decrease commute times, with riders saving only 2 minutes end-to-end
- Does not service Fraser Highway, Fleetwood, Clayton and Langley
- Does not connect to South Surrey, requiring a transfer to reach Guildford and Downtown
- Requires annual operation subsidies of several millions of dollars per year
Our verdict: The Surrey-Newton-Guildford LRT will be the worst value rapid transit investment in Canada’s history.
No other rapid transit project in Canada will deliver so little for this much money.
The selection of Light Rail technology is the outcome of years of misinformation from LRT advocates who have consistently overstated the cost savings of building an at-grade system instead of an elevated one.
In the months leading up to this, Surrey’s LRT vision has been criticized by experts across the country for its poor business case; is facing heat from prominent community voices including Surrey-Guildford MLA Garry Begg, who says Surrey Council is doing a poor job “selling” LRT; and it has drawn the ire of locals who have faced consequences such as the razing of trees in Hawthorne Park for an LRT-related road project.
We will not stand for a system that offers poor value for the money, congests our communities, and does not deliver the travel time savings that Surrey residents will expect from their future rapid transit system.
It is time to abandon the Surrey-Newton-Guildford LRT project and scrap the Surrey LRT vision.
SkyTrain for Surrey is a BC-based community organization that has advocated for the expansion of the Vancouver SkyTrain system, including our successful advocacy for the under-construction Surrey Langley SkyTrain extension.
Media Contact: Daryl Dela Cruz – Founder, SkyTrain for Surrey ・ Phone: +1 604 329 3529, [email protected]
