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Post by Dane on Aug 4, 2009 14:54:16 GMT -8
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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 17, 2009 20:24:16 GMT -8
Did anyone take the Canada-Line today?
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Post by Kahloke on Aug 17, 2009 20:43:10 GMT -8
It would be great to see some opening day photos. With any luck, one of our members was there with camera in hand.
I didn't go to the Link Light Rail opening in Seattle last month. I do plan on riding that one soon, however. My girlfriend and I are going to a Mariners game on Aug 30th. I am planning on parking at the Tukwila Light Rail Station, and taking the train into Seattle from there. I'll bring my camera with me and get pics.
Hopefully, Canada Line will have fewer glitches than Sounder's Link Light Rail train, much of which has to do with some software glitches in their pay stations. That had better be fixed by now.
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Post by Scott on Aug 17, 2009 20:56:40 GMT -8
I heard there were up to 2 hour waits for people to get on the RAV line today - emphasizing the fact that it's carrying capacity it actually lower than Skytrain. I also read in one of the many news articles that there are long stretches where there is only one track, and not two - is this really true??? They dug that huge hole all the way up Cambie and there's only one track down there??? After all the money spent and trouble caused by building this thing, I sure hope it doesn't suffer from lack of capacity right from the start. I know there were A LOT of people there today, but it seems there are some questions being raised already.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 17, 2009 21:16:23 GMT -8
Thanks for that great report Paul. I appreciate the sequential layout of your narrative and the comments on the grades.
I look forward to the video. I wonder who provided the catering for this particular production? ;D
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Post by Dane on Aug 17, 2009 23:26:26 GMT -8
I took it from 49th to Waterfront. I had planned on doing the whole line but it was uncomfortably busy, and the lines were ridiculous (which is a good thing). Had I not needed to go to Cambie & 37th today I would have avoided it, but I didn't have change so walked to 49, which I knew would be the quietest non airport station and rode into town again.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Aug 18, 2009 6:08:01 GMT -8
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Post by Scott on Aug 18, 2009 18:02:38 GMT -8
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Post by Dane on Aug 18, 2009 19:08:45 GMT -8
They're valid points. That trains aren't built with expansion in mind (like the Sky Train Mk II, which concievably can be sliced with a thir car) and the stations are built only for the length of the existing trains. The philosophy of both previous Sky Train lines, and most other cities' rapid transit lines is to overbuild that stations to accomodate future expansion. Canada Line would have been like this too had money not been as large an issue. Stations were shortened pretty early in the planning process. Equipment was also purchased for percieved immediate demand, meaning that the system come September should essentially be "full capacity" during rush hour with future investment being needed for any capacity expansion. This is also unlike most mass transit systems built with the idea that the demand will steadily rise over the first few years of service.
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Post by ferryfanyvr on Aug 18, 2009 19:48:16 GMT -8
I took the Canada Line for the first time today. I live near Denman in the West End and work at Cambie and No 5 Road in Richmond. My weekday commute usually takes anywhere from 75 minutes to 90 minutes, and occasionaly up to 2 hours, with 3 buses...usually a North or West Van bus from Georgia & Denman up to Burrard, then the 98 B-Line from Burrard to No 3 Road and Cambie, then the 410 to No 5 and Cambie. Today using the Canada Line instead of the 98, my trip was 55 minutes in the morning and 50 minutes coming home. So far, I am very impressed.
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Post by Dane on Aug 18, 2009 19:59:41 GMT -8
he's also wrong when it comes capacity, since there is much available capacity available with the addition of trainsets. Train sets that don't exist, there in lies the potential problem for Canada Line. It's a wonderfully built line, and as a result of the success it will surely have new cars will probably be needed sooner rather than later. That need, however, may not be satisfied given the balance books of TL, the Province, and the Feds. Stations aren't short, they are of standard length to accomodate one trainset, they are about as long as a Skytrain station, plus or minus a few feet. Stations are short. You're mistaken for three reasons. 1 - they were planned to be about 33% longer, but were shortened to save money when the magnitude of the project became clear. 2 - station length doesn't actual matter in feet, anyways, it matters in size compared to operating trains. Being the same length as the trains precludes making trains longer, the easiest way to enlarge capacity. 3 - Given 2, Sky Train stations on the E Line were built to accomodate 6 car Mk I trains, even though they (almost) always run as 4 car trains. the M Line was built to accomodate 6 Mk II cars, even though they only run as 2 or 4 car sets. Thus, Sky Train does have room for expansion which Canada Line doesn't, so your comparison isn't helpful but rather misleading. |
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Post by Curtis on Aug 23, 2009 22:00:35 GMT -8
I'm back from Vancouver and I've rode the Canada Line from end to end a couple times. I rode it for the first time on Friday night from Richmond-Brighouse to Waterfront and back and I was impressed...until about the time we went from being a Skytrain to a Groundtrain. We'd ride to YVR and back the next day.
It's interesting to compare the different models of Skytrains. The Mark I trains with their sideway seating vary quite differently from the Mark II trains that have back and forth seating. The Canada line trains don't improve on the Mark II trains too much other than having wider cars and electronic signboards showing the next and terminus stations.
One thing I prefer on the mark ones that isn't on the other trains is that when the announcement of the next station comes on it gives you a tone before the announcement is made It's a pity it doesn't happen on the other two. On the Canada line trains, one thing that annoyed me was that a few seconds after the train departed the station the announcement that this train was bound for [insert terminus station here] came on a few seconds after departure from a station. I personally would have had that announcement addressed while the train was still in the station like the MK I/II trains so you don't go in the wrong direction.
Other than that, very nice ride. Made it very easy for us to get to downtown by just walking to Bridgeport Station from our hotel. Saved us the trouble of going through Vancouver Traffic. I'm sure we'll use it lots in the future when we stay in Richmond. I guess we'll have to go to a Canuck game soon.
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Post by DENelson83 on Aug 28, 2009 22:40:55 GMT -8
PK is 49? I doubt it. When I saw him on the CR on her first day in service, he looked more in his 60's. But I digress. I noticed that TransLink now uses a faded blue colour to refer to the Canada Line instead of red. It has me confused with the Expo Line's blue. |
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Post by DENelson83 on Sept 12, 2009 21:45:39 GMT -8
Also, I've had a bit of a beef with the Canada Line's route since I learned of it. How come it only terminates in the south at Richmond-Brighouse? It should have gone all the way through Richmond, with stations at Blundell, Broadmoor and South Arm, across the South Arm of the Fraser, and coursed all the way through Delta, with stations at Ladner and Tsawwassen Centre, to finally terminate at the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal. If the George Massey Tunnel gets twinned, an extra section should be added so the Canada Line can run snugly through it.
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Post by Curtis on Sept 12, 2009 22:06:52 GMT -8
Dave, remember that they wanted the line ready in time for the Olympics...I'm going to predict that when the time comes to expand the Canada Line, this will be part of the plan. Would be nice for Route 1 Foot Passengers to be able to get to Downtown in about an hour. But an idea like that wouldn't come about until about...lets say...2030.
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Neil
Voyager 
Posts: 7,172
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Post by Neil on Sept 12, 2009 22:54:04 GMT -8
PK is 49? I doubt it. When I saw him on the CR on her first day in service, he looked more in his 60's. But I digress. Classy statement, DE. Also, I've had a bit of a beef with the Canada Line's route since I learned of it. How come it only terminates in the south at Richmond-Brighouse? Umm... maybe because the addition you've suggested would pretty much bankrupt the province's transportation budget for the next ten years... |
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Post by DENelson83 on Sept 13, 2009 10:09:39 GMT -8
Also, I've had a bit of a beef with the Canada Line's route since I learned of it. How come it only terminates in the south at Richmond-Brighouse? Umm... maybe because the addition you've suggested would pretty much bankrupt the province's transportation budget for the next ten years... I didn't mean build it now. The province should just do what I would normally do, and save up. |
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Sept 13, 2009 11:42:05 GMT -8
Umm... maybe because the addition you've suggested would pretty much bankrupt the province's transportation budget for the next ten years... I didn't mean build it now. The province should just do what I would normally do, and save up. There are only about 50,000 people living in Tsawwassen and Ladner, far below the number needed to justify such a long and phenomenally expensive extension. As far as looking to the future goes, Delta also has one of the slowest rates of population growth in metro Vancouver- it's barely budged in the 22 years I've been living here. As well, the Tsawwassen ferry terminal, even at peak times, only handles a few hundred foot passengers per hour. The number of employees is a small fraction of the number working at the airport. In terms of transit priorities for the metro area, rapid transit for south Delta probably isn't on anyone's radar screen. |
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Sept 23, 2009 18:56:00 GMT -8
Checked out the new line today after doing a jaunt over to Langdale and back. In a word: it's efficient, but not really something that would interest most people who don't have a reason to get from one point to another along the line. The cars are roomy, and although the seats are just as hard and uncomfortable as all the other skytrains, there's more legroom for those of us taller than five foot two. The blue seat coverings are the only dash of color in the grey cars, aside from the yellow stanchions.
Of course, most of it is underground, and the relatively small slice of Richmond that it passes over is commercial-industrial, and quite ugly.
It's quite a hike from the Waterfront terminus to the other Millenium-Expo operation; too bad they couldn't have engineered them to be closer, for the benefit of elderly or handicapped patrons, but I guess it would have been too costly.
I noticed a lot of people getting on at YVR with luggage, so I think this line will be successful as a link between our downtown and the airport. I travelled outside of peak hours, but although it certainly wasn't as busy as the Expo line, it seemed quite well used.
All in all, quick, efficient, but unless you're a commuter or a hard core transit buff, probably not worth going too much out of your way for.
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