In a move to reduce congestion and speed transit commutes, two bus-only lanes were opened this week on Marine Drive and across the Lions Gate Bridge.
A new transit priority signal has also been installed at Marine Drive at Taylor Way to allow buses to pull ahead of regular traffic stopped at the intersection and proceed to the bus queue jump lane southbound onto the Lions Gate Bridge or across to North Vancouver.
Currently, buses represent 2% of the traffic on Lions Gate Bridge but carry 28% of the people who cross during morning rush hour.
“The Lions Gate Bridge is pretty much at capacity during rush hours,” said Ralph Sultan, MLA for West Vancouver-Capilano, in a press release. “Since we can’t squeeze more vehicles across the bridge, we have to figure out how to get more people across the bridge.”
The lanes, which opened yesterday, are part of a larger $34-million transit project funded by the federal and provincial governments and TransLink; the project is geared at improving travel times along the route.
Construction continues on the new Capilano River Bridge and the Marine Drive Overpass as well as on bike and pedestrian pathways. The entire project is expected to be finished this summer.
Jenny Wagler
Twitter: JennyWagler_BIV