Waiting...

For a bus that will come in 56 minutes since its a Sunday and I've just missed the suburban commuter special that will take me into Vancouver. To add to the insult of waiting 56 minutes in the rain the bus will be full because the Park and Ride is the last stop before the highway and I'll have to stand the 45 minute trip with my awkward combination of baggage.

That's not so bad but when an hour passes and I find that the next bus has been cancelled or 'rerouted' according to Translink I am pretty frustrated, possibly to a point where I will not choose transit the next time I go into Vancouver. To think that this regularly happens on weekdays to commuters trying to get to work on time and not just to people heading into town on the weekend is ridiculous. To do this to people who have made a concious choice to forgo the status quo and take transit rather than joining the 1000's of SOV's which make their way into the city each morning seems backwards.

Once the Canada (RAV?) Line is completed all the suburban busses will likely be funnelled into Richmond to take the train into Vancouver. That's fine if you're headed downtown but for those headed to UBC its another transfer and a cross-town bus from Cambie instead of Granville adds atleast 10 minutes to travel time if you consider the 99 B-Line as an example. This means that students who don't have an affordable alternative mode of transport will suffer simply because theyhave no other choice while those who can't handle their altered commute will be forced back into their cars.

Congestion is a huge problem outof White Rock/South Surrey. With no rapid transit in sight and increasing populations both in the city centre and developments on the outskirts this problem can only get worse.