TransLink got a chance to hear what Ladner residents have to say about planned cuts to local bus service at an open house last Thursday.
The evening session at the Ladner Community Centre was one of several the transportation authority is holding in the region to explain a service optimization initiative.
Pending reductions to the 606, 608 and 404 routes have upset some passengers, although the turnout at Thursday's open house was decidedly sparse.
The 606/608 route, which runs throughout Ladner during rush hour and then to and from the Bridgeport Station in Richmond, is to be converted to a minibus that terminates at the Ladner Exchange, requiring passengers to transfer to or from the 601.
TransLink says the modifications won't change the operating hours and frequency of the 606 and 608 community shuttles.
The 404, which travels between the Ladner Exchange and Brighouse Station, will no longer go through the George Massey Tunnel to Delta. Instead, it will be rerouted along Steveston Highway and terminate at the Riverport complex in Richmond, forcing passengers to transfer at Steveston Highway and Highway 99.
According to a TransLink route performance review last year, bus service costs for Ladner and Tsawwassen are the highest per passenger in the region. Due
to fewer passengers using local buses, costs here are even higher than such suburban communities as North Delta, Surrey, Langley and White Rock.
TransLink says its optimization plan is all about putting services where they are needed most.
"We are not growing the overall amount of service, but what we've been asked to do is look at where service is less used and find ways to shift those resources to more used service," said spokesperson Jeffery Busby. "It is going to free up resources for us to make investments and those investments are all across the region."
Busby said significant investments have been made south of the Fraser, including the 319 service along Scott Road in North Delta, which has been increased to every 15 minutes throughout the day. A new express service, meantime, has been introduced for the Fraser Highway to serve Langley, one that will be funded through savings by trimming underutilized routes elsewhere.
"Obviously, we are quite sympathetic that there are people who are impacted by this, but it's really responding to our mandate for efficiency," Busby said.
"What we do every year is look at how the various services are performing, both on the poorly performing services and the high performing services where we might see overcrowding."
For more information on TransLink's service changes, check www.transink. ca/serviceop.
