There are an endless number of examples, however the best and most tragic example is on transit, specifically in the form of the Langley SkyTrain extension – It was nothing more than a political promise in the heat of the 2020 election trying to win two Langley seats, successful, but losing those two Langley seats four years later. It was not, and cannot be defended by any common-sense business plan, it was purely political by any common-sense review of its existence! This project was decided despite there being, a very affordable interregional transit option (pennies on the dollar) available South of Fraser (still needed despite this tragic decision) but insanity/politics got in the way. The most recent transit decisions made and being made are NOT sustainable, and we the taxpayers are paying the price – when are our politicians going to wake up?
TransLink’s Financial Disaster: Remember TransLink is in virtual bankruptcy, requiring an additional $600 million per year to sustain the existing service levels by 2026. TransLink blames falling revenue, partially true, however the cost of building and maintaining a like-to-have SkyTrain (non-affordable) is key to their problem. Again it is not sustainable!
TransLink is not interested or responsible for public transit East of the Township of Langley: TransLink, is responsible for public transit in Metro Vancouver only by provincial legislation. They continue to feel threatened that any senior government funding will go anywhere but to TransLink (Metro Vancouver), so the Fraser Valley, east of the Township of Langley is forgotten about!
The abbreviated history of how Langley SkyTrain came about? – The facts.
- Mayor Dianne Watts initiates plan (2012) for light rail transit, 104th from Guildford east to King George Blvd. and South on King George Blvd to Newton (10.5 KMs) for $1.65 Billion. Plan in place funding secured, construction scheduled to begin in 2019, expected to open 2024.
- 2018 Municipal election, Doug McCallum wins – key plank in that election, cancel light rail plan in place and run SkyTrain down Fraser Highway to Langley City – 16 kms for $1.65 Billion. Not a dollar more says Doug McCallum!
NOTE: Why was this proposed by the new Municipal leadership? – It was nothing more than a land deal, with personal land value capture for friends and insiders, nothing more! Just use your imagination re the increase in land cost, with dramatic density increases on Fraser Highway from King George Blvd. through to Langley City (16 kms)? Who benefits – developers!
- 2018, after the election win, McCallum takes his plan to the first TransLink Mayor’s Council meeting. More than a dozen long term Mayors did not run for election or were defeated, the newly elected were not aware of the weighted vote system until it was too late. McCallum knowing how it works (past experience) goes to meeting with the needed votes in hand and gets support. Doug McCallum – not a dollar more than $1.65 Billion.
- October 8th, 2020 at Langley City Press Conference, (Election date October 24th, 2020), Premier John Horgan pledged $1.5 Billion to complete SkyTrain to Langley City. B.C. Government takes over project. Total cost announced was $3.1 Billion.
NOTE: Why was SkyTrain supported Provincially? It was in search of votes! When you promise the public SkyTrain, what do you think the public will say? No other options given, or costs mentioned? The public were sold pie in the sky!
- July 2022, B.C. Government announces full 16 KMs to be constructed in one phase finishing 2 years earlier at $500 Million less. Cost announced as $3.94 Billion!
- August 15th, 2024, the B.C. Government announces new cost of Langley SkyTrain line at $5.996 Billion and finishing 2 years later than planned (2031). Increase blamed on inflation and market challenges? Not the true cost or full truth?
- The True Actual Cost, wasn’t announced? – In December 2023 the province purchased a 37-acre parcel of land at 176th and Fraser Highway to build a $1 Billion operations and maintenance Center for TransLink, needed to support the SkyTrain extension. The land was valued at $5.65 Million in July of 2023 and sold for $8.052 million in November of 2023. Who did the B.C. Government buy that 37-acre property from?
Who made that $2.402 million windfall profit?
Actual Cost of Langley SkyTrain extension is now estimated to be $7 Billion!
So, what was the viable interregional transit option they ignored?
A publicly owned 99 KM State-of-the-Art Interurban Passenger Rail Corridor Pattullo Bridge (Surrey) to Chilliwack with passenger rights protected!
This corridor was designed for the movement of people plus goods and services for the Fraser Valley over 110 years ago. In 1988 when the Provincial Government, through their agency, (B.C. Hydro) sold the freight rights only to the corridor; they Protected and Reserved the Passenger Rights of the corridor for Future Passenger Rail Use …. At No Cost for its use! The corridor was not sold.
The estimated population South of the Fraser by 2025 (Provincial statistics) will be 1,313,732 and growing exponentially.
Through the discovery of a Master-Agreement in March of 2009 by then Township of Langley Mayor Rick Green, (Agreement between B.C. Hydro and CP Rail, previously unknown, dated August 26th 1988), launched a campaign for its renewal. That successful campaign to renew the agreement was supported unanimously through Council Resolutions by ALL Municipalities South of the Fraser. This agreement was renewed in June of 2009 by B.C. Hydro, six weeks before it was due to expire forever.
This plan for the implementation of a NEW South of Fraser Tram-Train Passenger service on a reactivated Interurban corridor is the result of thousands of hours of work by residents and local politicians over the past two decades.
The Goal: A once in a lifetime opportunity to establish a transportation link with a net value to the citizens of the Province of B.C. and specifically to the lower mainland of British Columbia being Priceless – just do the math. As stated, this opportunity was set up and protected in 1988 by a previous Provincial Government with a Vision – No Cost to the public; it is time that we take action!
This is an opportunity to show that vision today and into the future. This forward-thinking solution will be seen as smart; affordable, an economic game changer, environmentally friendly (beating all climate change targets), community resiliency, and politically smart serving close to 1.3 million citizens, Fourteen Post-Secondary Institutions, Sixteen Communities (Cities and Municipalities), 14 First Nations Communities, Major Industrial Parks, Tourism and Agri-Tourism.
Compare the FACTS of both proposals!
Length of Public Transit Lines:
Langley SkyTrain 16 KMs – King George Blvd to Langley City
Interurban 99 KMs – Pattullo Bridge to Chilliwack
Populations Served: SkyTrain 200,000 vs Interurban 1,300,000 (6 ½ times SkyTrain)
Cost per Capita: SkyTrain $35,000. vs Interurban $1,541. (4.4% that of SkyTrain)
Cost per KM: SkyTrain $437,500,000. vs Interurban $18,643,555. (4.2% that of SkyTrain)
Estimated Cost: SkyTrain $7,000,000,000. plus vs Interurban $1,850,000,000.
Land Cost: SkyTrain “Significant” vs Interurban “NIL – publicly owned corridor”
Number of Stations: SkyTrain 8 vs Interurban 14
Communities Reached: SkyTrain 5 vs Interurban 16
Post-Secondary Institutions served: SkyTrain 4 vs Interurban 14
Unprecedented and unparalleled Support for a Reactivated Interurban
- Public Support – ResearchCo (Mario Canseco May 2021 Poll) – 88% support South of Fraser, North Delta to Chilliwack! Abbotsford 93%, Chilliwack 89%, North Surrey 83%, Township of Langley 82%, City of Langley 76% and North Delta 85%!
- Post-Secondary Support – Members of South of Fraser Community Rail Task Force support Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Trinity Western University and UFV.
- Post-Secondary – University of the Fraser Valley Student Union Society.
- Municipal Support – Township of Langley UBCM – AGM Resolution June 26/2023!
- Municipal Support – Delta, Surrey, White Rock, Langley City, Langley Township, Abbotsford (2009) and Chilliwack (2019) supported passenger rights renewal.
- NEW Municipal Support – Lower Mainland Local Government Association (LMLGA) 30 members endorsed this initiative at Whistler AGM – May 2024.
- Business Support – Surrey Board of Trade support July 9th, 2021
- Business Support – Hydrogen B.C. / Canadian Hydrogen Fuel Cell Assoc. (CHFCA) support Aug. 2023. Supporting B.C.’s Hydrogen Industry!
- NEW! – Indigenous Society Support – B.C. Indigenous Housing Society!
John Horgan Delivered!
John Horgan delivered on our request. In a March 2017 meeting presentation requesting his government, should they be elected, conduct an independent study on this 99 km publicly owned, passenger protected, rail corridor between the Pattullo Bridge and the City of Chilliwack – A common sense request despite it coming from a team of individuals who he knew were not previous NDP supporters! The study was announced in the B.C. Government Throne Speech of February 11th, 2020 and the Budget Papers of February 18th 2020. We said, don’t believe us, conduct an independent study to measure its viability. John Horgan had a vision and saw the opportunity, pending the results of that Fraser Valley Rail Study.
Fraser Valley Regional Rail Pre-Feasibility Study – Published July 8th, 2022
The South Fraser Community Rail Society were asked to attend an initial 3-hour meeting of the Study Group consisting of the contracted consultant, their staff, our SFCRS executive, our special advisors as well as the Executive Leader of the Study for a presentation by our group. We were considered a “Key Stakeholder” by government and we supplied them with volumes of data and information, binders, maps and videos for the proposal that was on the table.
The study Terms of Reference included the entire 99 km rail corridor. The final results of the study were very supportive to move forward with a “Feasibility Study” by professional independent rail industry consultants. The study published was very comprehensive and supportive of a reactivated passenger rail corridor.
A Gerrymandered Study Area – While the study was very positive, someone in government corrupted the study area going from the full South of Fraser Region to Langley City to Chilliwack. In short, they propose the Interurban to be a feeder service for the Langley City SkyTrain project, feeding transit riders in the valley onto SkyTrain Langley. This move eliminates the populations of Cloverdale, Sullivan Station, Newton, Kennedy Heights and then the Pattullo Bridge. A reactivated Interurban, provides the comprehensive needs of Interregional Transit South of the Fraser while SkyTrain serves transit riders who for the most part, are going across the river to Vancouver and its suburbs.
You could easily argue a reactivated Interurban serves everything and more than what SkyTrain offers for pennies on the dollar. SkyTrain only serves a fraction of the Interurban catchment area.
Summary: For the record, John Horgan was a supporter of this proposal as he mentioned in his first press conference on the side of Highway #1 when announcing the widening project April of 2019 – He set this project as a priority for his government recognizing the widening of Highway #1 was not the full answer to the gridlock problem.
Fast forward to a meeting with Premier Horgan, our then MLA and former Mayor of the Township of Langley at the UBCM Convention in Whistler – September 2022. John Horgan advised both that a reactivated Interurban was now a TOP Priority for his government moving forward.
Since that time Premier Horgan resigned and since tragically passed away. Incoming Premier David Eby has clearly demonstrated his choice for a centralized government, controlled out of the Premier’s office with no interest in the populace form of governance that John Horgan was so popular for. No willingness to meet or to discuss, which direction was strangely followed by his Minister of Transportation.
Well, the results are in, David Eby has single handedly driven his party down to a one seat majority, and by all accounts, while he states he has listened to the public post-election, his actions since, speak to the contrary on a wide variety of issues! It appears Premier David Eby has not learned a thing by barely holding onto government.
2024 Election results South of the Fraser:
NDP – Lost – DOWN 8 seats (Lost 1 in Cloverdale, 2 in Langleys, 1 in Abby. and 2 in Chilliwack – Cloverdale east no seats!)
Conservatives – GAINED – UP 10 seats
This is an interesting result considering the heat the government took in social media and with community groups South of the Fraser over its multiple press conferences over the delayed widening of Highway #1 and lack of action on Interregional Public Transit – Is there a connection with losing these seats?
RG
Protect your Democratic Rights – Protect your NEIGHBORS Democratic Rights – stay informed, stay involved and VOTE!!!
I am working on future posts that I believe are of significant concern to Township of Langley Residents, come back often for news of interest to Township residents.
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