Surrey SkyTrain expansion work set to begin in 2024: Fleming

B.C.’s minister of transportation says the province is working to keep up with Surrey’s growing population.

Rob Fleming says part of that means ensuring the city has the transit it needs, adding work on the multi-billion-dollar Surrey Langley SkyTrain is set to begin in 2024.

“We expect, in a few months’ time, in the new year, to be awarding contracts. The procurement is proceeding, we will begin this project in 2024 and it’s all going to be done in one phase,” he explained Wednesday.

Fleming says 430,000 people use transit in Surrey every day. Given that figure, and the anticipated increase in the population, he explains it’s important to “stop chasing growth and start shaping growth.”

“We know that Surrey is poised to become the largest city in the province, perhaps by 2036. It has grown by 100,000 people just in the last decade, and TransLink has put out an investment plan that calls for new bus rapid transit,” the transportation minister said, adding there is a lot of opportunity in Surrey to rebuild transit.

Fleming provided an update on the SkyTrain project to the community Wednesday night. That came the same day the province tabled potential legislation focusing on new housing builds near transit hubs. Following that announcement, the TransLink Mayors’ Council stressed the need for additional funding to “dramatically expand public transit service.”

“The fact is, you can’t have transit-oriented development without transit, and TransLink’s current system is unable to keep up with growing public demand for services across this region,” said Mayor Brad West, the chair of the Mayors’ Council.

“With transit in Metro Vancouver currently frozen at 2019 levels, we need to see both the provincial and federal governments commit funding to dramatically expand public transit service. This legislation represents one of the most significant changes to land use and zoning policy that we’ve ever seen in this province, but it won’t succeed unless our three levels of government work together to deliver better transit in this region.”

The province says the SkyTrain expansion will extend the Expo Line 16 kilometres from King George Station in Surrey to 203 Street in the City of Langley, with eight stations and three transit exchanges.

The project is estimated to cost $4.01 billion.

-With files from James Paracy