Tell Vancouver to Be More Ambitious Upgrading the Bus Lanes on East Broadway!
Broadway’s buses are unlike any other on the continent, and if you ride them, you already know that. We have plenty of mindblowing stats about Broadway below, but perhaps the most shocking is that the 99 is the busiest bus route in Canada and the US.
Despite this, bus lanes only exist for a few hours per day. And as a result, Broadway causes the greatest amount of bus passenger delay of any corridor in the region. If Broadway’s buses were congestion-free, the riders would save a cumulative 90,000 minutes each day.
99 B-Line riders deserve better
The Broadway Subway will improve travel times for a lot of these people, but it’s still at least two years away, and it won’t serve some of the 99’s busiest stops, like the one at Fraser Street.
In a couple months, the City of Vancouver is planning on extending the hours of some of these bus lanes. The cost will be minimal, as they simply have to swap the existing signs. Unfortunately, this move only covers a small segment, and only covers a few hours.
Vancouver’s Current Proposal
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- The westbound bus lane from Commercial Drive to Prince Edward Street during 7am to 10am will be extended to include 3pm to 7pm on weekdays. Parking and loading is restricted during these hours.
- No changes westbound, west of Prince Edward Street (existing bus lane on weekdays 7am to 10am and 3pm to 7pm).
- No changes eastbound, up to Prince Albert Street (existing bus lane on weekdays 7am to 10am and 3pm to 7pm).
- No changes eastbound, from Prince Albert Street to McLean Drive (existing bus lane on weekdays 3pm to 7pm).
This is the busiest section of the most delayed corridor in the region, and most of the planned change is no change.
We’re calling on the city to go all the way. Broadway is one of North America’s busiest bus corridors, and Broadway’s riders deserve all-day bus lanes, every day. Congestion isn’t confined to the old 9-to-5 commute anymore, and these bus lanes shouldn’t be either.
Map of Person-Hours of Delay per km from Translink’s Bus Speed and Reliability Report
(basically, a measure of how much transit users’ time is spent stuck in traffic)
Our Ask: 7-7-7 and Signal Priority
The transit riders at Movement think the city should be a lot more ambitious! But council and staff need to hear from you to know that there’s support for a 7am-7pm bus lane in both directions, 7 days per week from Prince Edward St to Commercial Dr. They are already planning on switching out the signs, so instead of “7am-10am and 3pm-7pm” they could easily put “7am-7pm” at no extra cost. If we can’t have bus lanes on the busiest section of the busiest route in the country, where the heck can we have them?
We’re also calling on the city to adjust traffic signals and turns to ensure that they don’t create unnecessary delay for transit users. For example, buses can get stuck trying to turn left from Broadway to Commercial Drive, where the route is often at its fullest.
Take Action Now by Sending an Email to Vancouver Council and Staff:
This list includes: mayor and council, a city inbox for bus priority projects, the general manager and director responsible for transportation, and us – so we can track the response.
- Write your own subject line in the e-mail
- Explain why you believe Broadway’s transit riders deserve 7am-7pm bus lanes every day and signal priority. Specifically on this segment that already has a sign update planned in the coming months (but if you want to ask for more, we support it)
- If you’re a Vancouver resident, write your street address because politicians sometimes ignore comments from people who don’t live in their area. If you live directly on Broadway, please say so!
- If you have personal experience taking the 99 or any of the other buses along Broadway, we encourage you to share your personal story – especially if you’ve ever taken it between 10am and 3pm on weekdays, or anytime on weekends
We haven’t provided a pre-written email because they’re more likely to be filtered and ignored. A short, simple, email is great.
Here are a few more information points in case they are helpful:
- The 99 is the busiest bus route in Canada or the US
- 9 Commercial-Broadway Station / Boundary – 11,600 boardings per weekday, 3.9m/year
- 99 UBC B-Line – 35,900 boardings per weekday, 11.3m/year
- For comparison, here are the busiest routes in some selected other cities:
- Toronto – 36 Finch West – 35,500
- San Francisco – 49 Van Ness – 33,700
- New York – M15 1st & 2nd Ave – 32,300 (local and express are combined)
- Montreal – 165 – Côte-des-Neiges – 20,700
- Los Angeles – 720 – Wilshire – 19,700
- Chicago – 66 – Chicago – 16,800
- Seattle – RapidRide E – 13,600
- Portland – Killingsworth – 9,400
- The 99 B-Line moves:
- About 6 times as many people as the West Coast Express
- More people than any of the light rail lines in Portland, OR
- As many people as Detroit or Tampa’s entire bus network
- Broadway is the most delayed bus corridor in the region with 1,500 hours of person delay every day! It’s the perfect place for 7-7-7 bus lanes
- The Broadway subway has been delayed until 2027 at the earliest, but there are over 47,500 transit trips (and growing!) on Broadway by people who have places to go today
- Even after the Broadway subway opens, buses will continue to be important for local trips since this is a dense area with lots of residents who use the bus
- Broadway is on the list of transit priority corridors established by Vancouver City Council this past July, so there’s already a directive from the city to implement dedicated bus lanes on this stretch. Translink has also identified Broadway as a key corridor that could benefit from bus lanes
- Up to 57% of the travellers on Broadway are on the bus
- There are tons of potential benefits to bus lanes, including making the street safer, saving Translink money, inducing mode shift, improving affordability, and increasing accessibility
- Google traffic shows congestion on this segment on Saturday from 11:30am all the way to 6:30pm
Jan 2025