Seven mayors across Metro Vancouver announced their support yesterday of Translink’s Moving Forward funding supplement, which calls for a two-cents per litre gas tax increase to fund the Evergreen Line, among other things.
The plan, supported by Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson and Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts, is slated for a vote this Friday at the mayor’s council on regional transportation.
Other municipalities’ mayors on side include: Coquitlam, Langley City, Port Coquitlam, West Vancouver and North Vancouver District.
In total, the seven Mayors represent more than 70% of the region’s population. Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan and Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie have said they will vote against the tax. Their cities are both already served by rapid transit.
In a joint statement, the seven mayors, who met yesterday, said “approval of the Moving Forward plan is crucial to reducing gridlock, growing Metro Vancouver’s economy, and achieving long-term environmental goals for the region.”
The plan, which will secure more than $400 million in federal government funding and approximately $600 million in provincial government funding, is said to benefit every municipality in the region and will include the following:
- $20 million annually for major road network improvements;
- Evergreen Line program – an 11 kilometre extension of SkyTrain to connect Coquitlam and Vancouver via Port Moody and Burnaby;
- $6 million annually for cycling infrastructure expansion;
- Expanded bus service hours totalling 425,000 hours region-wide;
- Highway 1 rapid bus service from Langley to the Lougheed SkyTrain station;
- SkyTrain station upgrades in Vancouver and Burnaby; and
“This region cannot, must not, become choked with congestion the likes of Los Angeles or Seattle. Our prosperity as a region will depend on a well-developed transportation system that allows for the effective movement of both people and goods,” the mayors said in a joint statement.
Jennifer Harrison
@JHarrisonBIV