During the recent provincial election campaign local candidates from all political parties acknowledged that enhanced regional transportation is essential to the economic viability of Squamish and the Sea to Sky Corridor. So where are we with that agenda?
On the negative side, the report of the B.C. Transit Independent Review Panel, released last August, revealed that only 42 per cent of the municipalities surveyed felt that the level of communication between B.C. Transit and local governments was good. As well, many local governments felt the quality and timeliness of information received from B.C. Transit needed improvement.
Twenty months ago, the Squamish/Whistler commuter service got the axe. To further compound the problem, Greyhound cut the number of buses on the route by almost half, leaving commuters scrambling for alternatives. Jordan Sturdy, our newly minted MLA, says he is ready to work with the municipalities, the regional district and TransLink on public transit options. At the moment the possibility of a TransLink connection between Squamish and the North Shore appears to be sketchy; the DOS will have to line up behind some heavy hitters from the Lower Mainland.
A recent position paper by the Mayors' Council on Regional Transportation revealed that to be sustainable in Metro Vancouver, TransLink requires a $450 million annual top up, in addition to its yearly revenues of $1 billion. As well, Surrey's proposed light-rail system is projected to cost $2 billion, while the price tag for Vancouver's planned Broadway corridor subway will be in the vicinity of $3 billion. Ultimately, Metro Vancouver's transit funding options will hinge on a referendum scheduled for the fall of 2014.
Meanwhile, B.C. Transit is studying the implementation of a regional transportation service. That research, which is expected to be completed by the end of the year, will shed light on funding alternatives. In all likelihood it will come down to how much taxpayers are willing to shell out for the service.
This past January the mayors' council made a number of suggestions to generate revenue for Lower Mainland routes, including the introduction of a vehicle levy, a regional sales tax of 0.5 per cent, and a regional carbon tax. Some of those funding mechanisms could also be applied to the Sea to Sky Corridor.
During the election campaign, liquified natural gas production in B.C. was touted by the Liberals as a major economic generator for decades. The proposed LNG facility at the former Woodfibre site, once it has undergone a rigorous environmental review, could provide the kind of tax and job infusion Squamish has not seen since the pulp mill was shuttered nearly a decade ago. And if liquid natural gas delivers the fiscal bonanza the provincial government envisions, a share of that windfall could go a long way toward advancing regional transit in the corridor.
