A CLOSER LOOK

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SORRY, BUS FULL!
Is West End Bus Service Failing Us?

An all too frequent sign on West End buses. (Milan Streit Photo)

by John Streit

(click photos to enlarge)

It’s a Saturday summer afternoon on Beach Avenue and the #23 Community Shuttle is packed as it approaches the bus stop on Bidwell Street. People are heading home after a day on the sand at English Bay and wisely choosing to use transit. The driver of the 25-foot vehicle slows as he approaches the bus stop, anticipating someone aboard disembarking, but no one does, so he keeps going, much to the disappointment of the many people there waiting.

Pass-ups are not uncommon on the #23, where no standing aboard is allowed.

Pandemic-related staff shortages at Coast Mountain Bus Company, like at many other companies including BC Ferries, haven’t helped the situation. The West End Journal has learned there are about 100 fewer bus drivers employed in April 2022 compared to pre-pandemic. On one day in June for example, 25 percent of the bus trips along the #23 were cut in one day, or 21 trips in each direction. Scheduled pick-ups which are supposed to be every eight minutes along the 18 stops from Terminal Avenue to Davie and Bidwell can often take much longer at busier times or with fewer trips scheduled.

Some in the transit community would like to see larger buses on the spectacular beachfront (plus Costco, SkyTrain and Canada Line station) route, like the 30 foot Vicinity compressed natural gas bus built by Aldergrove-based Vicinity Motor Corporation which can carry 44 sitting and standing passengers and has two doors. This “mini bus” is already running in Victoria.

The #6, wending its way through West End traffic. (Milan Streit Photo)

Longtime transit advocate Nathan Davidowicz would like to see other changes along the #23 route.

“We need accessibility for everyone, says Davidowicz. “The new Accessibility BC Act comes into force on September 1, 2022. The Park Board office is not easily accessible. We need to extend bus route #23 along Beach Avenue by 800 meters to reach the Parks Board Office. Similarly, we need the return of a bus service and stop in front of the Vancouver Aquatic Centre. If the City of Victoria can construct proper bike lanes to accommodate pedestrians, buses and micro-mobility, why can we not do it here?” Davidowicz asks.

According to the province, over 750 public sector organizations will be required to establish an accessibility committee and plan to receive feedback on their accessibility.

It may not seem like it when a full bus is cruising past you, but TransLink has boosted summer service in the West End and to Stanley Park until Labour Day. The regional body says “taking transit is a sustainable, cost-effective way to access the natural beauty our region has to offer and parking can be hard to find near many of these destinations; providing bus service helps with this problem.”

Balbir Mann is president of Unifor Local 111, representing 4,000 transit operators in Metro Vancouver and agrees that West Enders are poorly served. "Especially on the #5 and #6 lines. We hear of many pass-ups on these lines from our members. I don’t think there are enough buses on these runs. We don’t want to leave people behind. It makes riders angry when we pass up, and our members get blamed for this while doing their job. It causes lots of anxiety to our members and becomes a safety issue."

Waiting patiently … or not so patiently? (John Streit Photo)

ROUTE BY ROUTE SUMMER SCHEDULES

Say hello to seasonal service on the #5 and #6, shortening waits by two to eight minutes in the evenings, and the #19, shortening waits by four to nine minutes on weekdays between Main Street–Science World Station and Stanley Park.

#5 ROBSON / DOWNTOWN

Every day, every 10 minutes from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. (down from every 10 to 12 minutes), and every 12 minutes from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. (down from every 15 to 20 minutes).

#6 DAVIE / DOWNTOWN

Every day, every 10 minutes from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. (down from every 10 to 12 minutes), and every 12 minutes from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. (down from every 15 to 20 minutes).

#19 METRO STATION / STANLEY PARK

Weekdays every 6 to 7 minutes from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. (down from every 15 minutes); every 5 minutes from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. (down from every 9 to 12 minutes), and every 6 minutes from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. (down from every 12 minutes).

REASONS & STATS

Tina Lovgreen with TransLink tells The West End Journal that trip cancellations can be due to a number of things on a daily basis, including traffic delays, road closures due to protests, construction, accidents, vehicles breaking down, or operators calling in sick. “We can certainly understand it can be frustrating to have to wait longer for your bus,” said Lovgreen," “but we appreciate our customers’ patience and encourage them to consult with our trip planner, sign up for transit alerts, or call our customer information line for assistance.”

Despite the appreciated seasonal bump in service (to pre-COVID levels, essentially) regular service (September to April) is still down by as much as 30 percent, according to Davidowicz. “Many riders have given up waiting a long time for the local West End bus routes. Many are walking more and/or using micromobility. There are still many daily bus cancellations, so service reliability is a problem. Every ten percent increase in fares translates to three per cent reduction in ridership. Many other transit systems have frozen their fares and/or are offering free or cheaper fares. We had about a five percent increase in fares over the last two years and more are planned. Captive and disabled riders suffer the most,” he says

Lovgreen says that generally they are seeing ridership return. “We are seeing that people are choosing transit when they have somewhere to go, particularly to those summer destinations like parks and beaches which leads to some bus routes being busier this time of year.”

The 2021 Transit Service Performance Review reported that nearly 2.2 million unique customers used the transit system in the fall of that year, equivalent to 84 percent of the Metro Vancouver population. Interestingly, ridership continued to return slightly more on weekends than on weekdays.

Davidowicz says we need to order new extra buses if we are serious about increasing the mode split of transit and want to fight the climate emergency. “TransLink is telling riders that 15 minutes headway is good enough. This is wrong,” he says. “Frequency of service should be better when the density is higher, like in the West End. TransLink has been "robbing Paul to pay for Peter."  50 percent of regional riders are in the City of Vancouver and we can use extra service to increase our ridership even higher.”

Doubling bus service over 2022 levels is a key component of TransLink’s 10-year priority in its Transport 2050 plan.

A few other things on Davidowicz’s transit wish list include a # 11 Nelson Street bus to Stanley Park/Downtown, a maximum walk of 400 metres (or five minutes walk) to the nearest bus stop, more benches, shelters and better lighting at bus stops, and the return of the #N6 NightBus which was cut in 2016.

WE ASKED YOU - AND YOU SAID …

The West End Journal asked on Facebook: “What are your thoughts on neighbourhood transit? What changes from TransLink would you like to see?” Please kindly keep moving to the back of the bus (and don’t forget to thank the driver on the way out) as we share some of your thoughts and ideas!

  • Vitalii Vovk A higher than the bus capacity modern tram (aka streetcar or lrt) is needed for the perimeter of Davie-Denman-Robson. Only emergency/delivery vehicles on this route in order to make it more comfortable for walking, cycling, and enjoying the patios along the perimeter.

  • Jennifer Martin We need more buses, including on the weekend, when they are overcrowded with beach visitors. People who live in the West End have great challenges getting a bus to begin with, as they are more than full on a sunny day and often don't stop.

  • Shilo Darling More frequent service, especially on weekends. The #19 is so irregular and sometimes just doesn’t show! Why does the #23 ALWAYS stop at Bidwell for eight minutes? It’s not a long route. A bus going directly along Nelson through Cambie would actually get us across the city without needing five transfers. A demographic and efficiency study should be done and routes adjusted accordingly.

  • Johanna Van der Heijden Unfortunately the West End is now highly populated and bus service is similar to ten years ago. I am a senior and had several buses going by lately.

  • Fleming Dave Bus service would be vastly improved if there were dedicated lanes separate from car lanes so buses would not be held up in traffic - IMO - not simple but doable.

  • Drina Read Translink needs to restore service to the West End. The #5 and #6 used to go from the West End to the eastside (all along Main Street or Fraser Street to south Vancouver) without having to transfer at all. The buses were frequent and the stops were conveniently located.

  • Kevin Newmiller Denman is now a major artery for the North Shore traffic to cross the city to the Burrard and Granville bridges. This causes total gridlock at peak periods. Translink could double the buses and service may not improve as the buses are stuck in traffic. Dedicated bus lanes are really the only immediate solution.

  • Joey Bach How about buses on the #23 route not showing up? Bus company has failed to staff their schedule. The other issue with no-shows is a bus taken out of service. With limited capacity, a missed bus puts additional stress on the buses that follow.

  • Sharon Rhodes Could the #23 be a full size bus? The shuttle just ain't cutting it.

  • Karoly Negyesi Of course the real solution is to dig the SkyTrain further. It should have a stop under roughly the Gordon Neighbourhood House, one under the Westin Bayshore, and then head to the North Shore. No sane city plants underground rapid transit on the *edge* of a dense housing district, no, they dig under it. But I guess it was much cheaper to just fix the Dunsmuir Tunnel than get a TBM under the West End so we are stuck with whatever made sense in 1932 not with whatever made sense in 1985 or today... but yes, having shuttle buses on Nelson would help.

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Kevin Dale McKeown
Editor & Publisher
editor@thewestendjournal.ca