Back-to-school rush hits transit system
Transit route across Metro Vancouver were crowded on Tuesday morning as thousands of students head back to school for the first day of classes, following the expansion of the the popular U-pass program from UBC and SFU to Langara College and Capilano University.
The most crowded spots were the 99 B-Line stop at the Commercial-Broadway station in Vancouver, the Canada Line Brighouse station in Richmond, and the Production Way-SFU bus stop heading up to SFU.
TransLink's Ken Hardie says the regional transit authority has added hundreds of new buses and dozens of new Skytrain cars to the system since last fall.
But morning back-ups and longer wait times are still expected over the first few weeks of school as students sort out their class schedules.
"The back-to-school rush is probably the busiest time of the year for us," said Hardie.
Hardie said the best advice is to simply stay off the roads during the morning rush if you can.
"If you have any kind of a choice as to when you travel, try to stay away from that say 7:30 a.m. PT to 8:30 a.m. period. Because a little bit before then, a little bit after then, you won't be facing lineups and you shouldn't have any difficulty getting to where you're going," said Hardie.
With rain in the forecast on Tuesday morning Hardie also advised everyone to dress warmly and be prepared for long waits at some busy transit stops.
More U-Pass expansion
The expansion of the U-Pass program means all students at Capilano University and Langara College will now pay $30 a month for unlimited travel on the transit network.
And in the coming months, trains and buses could get even more packed as the program is expanded to universities, colleges and other campuses around Vancouver and across B.C.
Under the expanded program, students at each school will be able to vote in a referendum if they want to bring the pass in to their school. In total the program is expected to apply to about 439,000 students.
Nimmi Takkar, the B.C. chair of the Canadian Federation of Students, says he supports the U-Pass programs and hopes all schools will take advantage of the U-Pass.
"It's going be a great savings for students," said Takkar.
But Takkar agrees that it is important to allow the students to vote on the new program before bringing it to each school.
"It allows for a referendum, so for students to actually buy in, so there's going to be a 'Yes or no' vote happening on campuses in the fall."