However, that was delayed, at least in part due to the pandemic.
Last September, TransLink initiated public consultation on the station designs for the first stage of the extension, but that was abruptly halted due to the provincial election call.
The entire seamless extension of the existing Expo Line from King George Station in Surrey City Centre to 203 Street in Langley Centre will be elevated, with a total route length of 16 km and eight new stations.
The complete cost of the project is estimated to be about $3.1 billion, including the acquisition of additional train cars and the construction of a major train yard near the Langley end of the extension.
TransLink Awards Battery-Electric Contract to Nova Bus
January 28, 2021
TransLink, Metro Vancouver’s transportation network, has awarded a contract to Nova Bus to provide 15 more battery-electric buses to its fleet. The order will more than quadruple TransLink’s current battery-electric bus fleet – increasing the total from four to 19.
More than half of TransLink’s fleet uses clean technology, including compressed natural gas, hybrid diesel-electric and fully electric vehicles. Each bus is expected to save $40,000 in fuel costs per year compared to a conventional diesel bus. The buses can be charged in approximately five minutes at charging stations while picking up passengers.
Most of the fund will be used to replace ageing bus vehicles, including one-to-one replacements of 57 ageing conventional diesel buses with electric-battery buses, with the federal fund covering $86.09 million of the total cost of $88.74 million.
Another $15.9 million will go to 64 replacement community shuttle mini-buses, $6.54 million will go towards 44 replacement HandyDART vehicles, and just under $2 million to over two dozen service support vehicles.
Confirmation of this funding will allow TransLink to begin the process of ordering these bus vehicles by early this year to ensure a delivery timeline spanning 2021 to 2023.
To support the significant influx of electric-battery buses, TransLink will also receive $27.75 million towards the $30.6 million costs of upgrading the Port Coquitlam Transit Centre bus depot with equipment and infrastructure that can handle the maintenance and charging needs of these electrified models.