There will be growing pains with LRT, says Surrey’s mayor

SURREY (NEWS 1130) – There will be growing pains for Surrey in the coming years as the city implements its Light Rail Transit lines. The mayor is admitting that today, as she shows off what the new cars could look like.

The LRT cars look sleek, and you would expect a smooth ride, but given the implementation problems other cities have had, Mayor Linda Hepner says Surrey will have its own challenges — it’s just a matter of how the city handles them.

“I think that anytime you have a significant transportation project, you’re going to have disruption. So, I’m not going stand here and say that there will not be growing pains, because I believe there certainly will be.”

She acknowledges some of the traffic struggles Edmonton has dealt with on its own LRT system, which is what Surrey will have built by TransLink, the province, and the feds — possibly as soon as 2024.

WATCH: NEWS 1130’s Martin MacMahon took a run through the inside of an LRT car on display. This is not an exact model of what will be seen in Surrey, but is similar.

Those in Surrey will have an opportunity to explore the vehicles over the next nine weeks.

“By having a Light Rail Transit Vehicle for our residents to explore will allow them to see firsthand the urban-style LRT that is coming soon to Surrey,” Hepner says. “Light Rail Transit is the technology of choice for cities in Canada and around the world looking to modernize its urban transit network. This sneak peak of what is to come in Surrey will allow our residents to learn more about LRT and how it is an integral component of Surrey’s city building vision.”

However, not everyone is thrilled with the plan. Daryl Dela Cruz with the group SkyTrain for Surrey crashed Hepner’s event this morning. He says LRT is not what the city should be pursuing.

“It’s a system that runs at street level. It will deliver far less of what other rapid transit projects in the region will have. We don’t think it’s a good value for money. It’s an expensive mistake. It’s a horrible value project that won’t give Surrey citizens what they expect,” he explains.

“At $1.65 billion, the current system cost will be higher per kilometre than the SkyTrain Evergreen extension and the Coquitlam extension. My group wants SkyTrains extend from King George to Langley and bus rapid transit to run from Newton to Guilford,” he adds.

Dela Cruz believes the new line will disrupt traffic, and LRT delivers less than a SkyTrain has to offer.

“It will cross major intersections and run at the speed of traffic. It will be prone to delays, blockages, and collisions. The travel time savings are going to be much lower. And we’ve been saying for awhile that light rail supporters have severely overstated the cost savings.”

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