TransLink adds security to curb queue-jumping at Vancouver transit hub

Extra security guards and transit police officers have been brought in to try to stop bus passengers from butting in line at one of the busiest transit hubs in Vancouver.

The move by TransLink, the transit authority of B.C's south coast, came after confrontations between passengers, triggered by queue-jumping, on Wednesday morning at Broadway and Commercial Drive in east Vancouver.

Since Tuesday's return to school, there have been long lineups during the morning rush hours for the 99B-Line rapid bus along Broadway to the University of British Columbia. The lineup on Thursday morning stretched about 100 metres, with an average 20-minute wait to get on a bus.

TransLink has added a dozen transit police officers and security guards to try to maintain order at the Broadway transit intersection, where a SkyTrain line merges with various bus lines.

The additional security kept passenger crowds calm Thursday morning but didn't successfully stop everyone from jumping the queue.

"That's a very bad thing. I've seen a couple of people do that," Patrick Sauriol, a 99B-Line passenger, said.

Sauriol said he spent half an hour in line Wednesday, only to watch people cut in front and jump on the express bus.

"We told people to get to the back of the line. Nobody wants to really pay attention to that," he said. "If you are going to spend 25 minutes getting on a bus, you don't want to see people jumping ahead of you."

TransLink said it is reviewing procedures at the Broadway transit hub and will determine whether and what permanent changes are needed.