The Surrey Light Rail system was a planned network in
Surrey, British Columbia
Surrey is a city in British Columbia, Canada. It is located south of the Fraser River on the Canada–United States border. It is a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver regional district and metropolitan area. Mainly a suburban city, Surr ...
containing one
light rail
Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...
line radiating from the
SkyTrain station and transit hub. First proposed in 2012 by Surrey mayor
Dianne Watts
Dianne Lynn Watts (born October 30, 1959) is a former politician in British Columbia, Canada. She won her first federal election campaign in October 2015 to become a federal Member of Parliament for South Surrey—White Rock. In 2017 she resign ...
, construction on the project was planned to start in 2019 with an opening date set for 2024.
At the inauguration of the new Surrey City Council on November 5, 2018, and after a change of municipal leadership, the newly installed council unanimously voted to "indefinitely suspend" the project in favour of an extension of the
SkyTrain Expo Line to Langley Centre.
Timeline
This project—among others, including the extension of
the Millennium Line west to Arbutus—was included as one of the initiatives in need of funding that was proposed to be raised by the imposition of a regional sales tax which was put forward for voter approval in a
2015 plebiscite. The electorate voted against the tax increase to fund regional projects and provide a long term sustainable funding model;
however, Surrey Mayor
Linda Hepner said, after the sales tax was voted down, that the city still planned to build the light rail project as it was the main component in her election campaign.
The Surrey–Newton–Guildford Line was expected to be in service by 2024 while the Surrey–Langley Line on the Fraser Highway would be completed at a later date.
A report outlining the economic benefits of the project was produced by a consulting firm in May 2015.
[ ]
In 2017, the federal government budget included funding contributions to this project.
Prior to the provincial election in 2017, the BC Liberals confirmed they would match the federal contribution if they were re-elected.
On March 16, 2018, the provincial government approved the construction of this project. Construction was slated to begin in 2019 and was expected to be completed by 2024.
The LRT line would have run from Guildford through Surrey Central and terminated in Newton with 11 new stops.
On September 4, 2018, during a visit to Surrey,
Prime Minister of Canada
The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...
Justin Trudeau
Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...
reiterated the Federal government's financial commitment to helping to build the route.
[ On November 5, 2018, during newly elected Mayor Doug McCallum's first council meeting, the council voted unanimously to cancel the LRT line in favour of extending the existing SkyTrain line to Langley. The plan was supported by the regional Mayors' Council on November 15.]
LRT network
Surrey–Newton–Guildford Line
Phase 1 of the Surrey LRT was the Surrey–Newton–Guildford Line which was to replace the 96 B-Line express bus service once completed and would have connected Surrey City Centre with Newton Town Centre via King George Boulevard and Guildford Town Centre via 104 Avenue.
Proposed stops
* 152 Street Guildford Town Centre: serves the Guildford Mall and connects to the existing transit exchange
* 148 Street
* 144 Street
* 140 Street
* City Parkway: connects to the SkyTrain at Surrey Central station, Simon Fraser University, the planned Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Central City Shopping Centre and Surrey City Hall
* King George: connects to the SkyTrain at King George station
King George is an elevated station on the Expo Line of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system. The station is located in the south end of the Surrey City Centre district of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, and is one of the outbound ...
and the King George Hub development complex
* 96 Avenue: serves Surrey Memorial Hospital, the wider hospital district and the Canada Revenue site
* 88 Avenue: serves Bear Creek Park and the Surrey Arts Centre
* 80 Avenue
* 76 Avenue
* 72 Avenue: serves Newton Town Centre, connecting to a new planned transit exchange and higher-density developments
Proposed expansion
A Surrey–Langley Line was proposed as a future phase after the completion of the Surrey–Newton–Guildford Line and was expected to travel on Fraser Highway and connecting Surrey City Centre, Fleetwood Town Centre and Langley with expected travel time of 24.5 minutes.
Reaction
The Surrey LRT project had been criticized by some local residents, and an advocacy group, who have raised concerns suggesting a lack of travel time improvement, large annual operating deficits, vulnerability to accidents and a lower comparative business case benefits documented in the 2012 TransLink joint analysis.
Kevin Desmond, CEO of TransLink at the time, indicated in 2016 that SkyTrain along the second phase of the project (Fraser Highway Line) was also a possibility instead of LRT; however, the Mayor of Surrey claimed that a SkyTrain solution along Fraser Highway would cost $950 million more than LRT.
In July 2018, a poll sponsored by municipal party Safe Surrey Coalition, headed by Doug McCallum—then a mayoral candidate in the 2018 Surrey municipal election who was campaigning against LRT—indicated 85% of Surrey residents were opposed to the LRT project.
See also
* Light rail in Canada
Urban rail transit in Canada encompasses a broad range of rail mass transit systems, including commuter rail, rapid transit, light rail, and streetcar systems.
Terminology
* "Commuter rail" refers to urban passenger train service between a c ...
* SkyTrain
References
External links
Surrey Light Rail
Surrey LRT Project
– City of Surrey
Surrey–Newton–Guildford LRT Project
– TransLink
SkyTrain for Surrey
{{Canadian passenger rail systems
TransLink (British Columbia)
Transport in Surrey, British Columbia
Rapid transit in Canada
Proposed railway lines in Canada
Cancelled rapid transit lines and systems
Cancelled projects in Canada