Mayor George Harvie's motion to have city staff investigate installing more bus shelters in North Delta was narrowly defeated Monday evening, despite councillors unanimously agreeing that the need is there.
Harvie's motion on Nov, 19 asked that staff be directed to review transit routes in North Delta with the highest boarding numbers to identify "opportunities for the installation of bus shelters," and then report back outlining their findings and recommendations for budget consideration.
In his motion, Harvie cited TransLink data showing ridership in the southeast sub-region — which includes North Delta — increased 22 per cent from fall 2022 to fall 2023, the fastest growth in the Lower Mainland.
He further pointed out North Delta has a population already larger than Ladner and Tsawwassen combined, and growing at a faster rate, yet the community has fewer bus shelters (50) than are found in South Delta (66).
"The wait times on the bus routes in North Delta (excluding the Scott Road Rapid Bus Service) can be lengthy, in excess of 15 minutes, and current bus shelter locations on Scott Road, 72nd Avenue, 116th Street, 112th Street have a large number of transit riders waiting for transit services without the benefit of bus shelters," Harvie said in his motion.
He added that bus shelters can promote increased ridership by providing a place to sit, protection from weather, and safety with increased visibility and lighting.
Despite widespread support for the idea behind it, Harvie's motion was defeated, with councillors Dylan Kruger, Jennifer Johal, Rod Binder and Daniel Boisvert opposed.
The councillors' stated reasons for not supporting the mayor's motion boiled down to two points: that additional bus shelters should be considered only as part of a wider review of local infrastructure needs to support expected growth, and that focusing on North Delta rather than the city as whole would leave South Delta residents feeling excluded.
Coun. Kruger in his remarks acknowledged that Delta is growing as a whole, with the majority of that growth happening in North Delta where over 60 per cent of the city's population already resides, however said he did not support "chopping this up and dealing with the very specific topic of bus shelters."
"If the rationale is to do this because of the growing North Delta community, I think there is interest in a much larger program, a much more comprehensive audit of the services that are provided — be that transportation, parks and recreation, public safety, roads, etc.," Kruger said. "What we actually need here is a comprehensive study on how we’re going to accommodate growth in North Delta. Bus shelters are a very small part of that, but I bet you if you knocked on doors in North Delta, as I have, it wouldn’t crack the top-10 list."
Kruger said the city should be planning "holistically," with particular attention paid to expanding park and recreation centre capacity, including eventually building a third rec centre in North Delta.
“I don’t think anybody at this table [has] said anything against the need for more bus shelters and transportation in North Delta, but if we’re going to do this, we have to do this right and not on a whim, and plan out a fulsome infrastructure review that can be inclusive of bus shelters," Kruger said.
"This is about supporting transportation, but [also] supporting a much broader suite of needs in the growing community of North Delta.”
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Kruger later introduced his own motion, to be discussed and voted on by council on Dec. 2, directing staff to "undertake a comprehensive study to evaluate and address infrastructure and service needs in North Delta."
Kruger's motion would have staff pay specific attention to a trio of priorities: a feasibility study for the establishment of a new recreation centre in North Delta, including potential sites, projected costs and funding strategies; reviewing and identifying critical bus stops in North Delta that require immediate upgrades to improve accessibility, safety and overall convenience for public transit users, and providing an implementation timeline and budget for said improvements; and a review of current infrastructure in North Delta including roadways, parks, sidewalks and public spaces to identify areas where new investment is needed, prioritizing projects that address safety, mobility and long-term sustainability.
Harvie argued the comprehensive study pitched by Kruger could take one to two years to come before council. Further, he said, the planning Kruger is asking for is already being done as part of the 2025 budget process, which includes a five-year plan as required by law.
"I don’t see why we would want to wait to try to do something to improve [things for] the people that are riding the buses in North Delta," he told council. "You drive [116th] from 96th Street to 72nd Street and there’s just two bus shelters. Same on 112th. I don’t see why we can’t move forward and ask staff to start looking at a program to provide more shelters in those areas that don’t have any."
With a heavy sigh, Harvie said he was disappointed to see his motion treated differently than a similar one tabled by Coun. Johal in June that received unanimously supported from council.
Spurred by Johal's motion, council in September unanimously approved a multi-year improvement program that will see new bus shelters constructed in the Tilbury and Annacis Island industrial areas.
The plan calls for an expenditure of about $200,000 in 2025 to install shelters at five locations in close proximity to businesses such as distribution warehouses in Tilbury and BCIT's Annacis Island campus. Those locations are southbound on 72nd Street at River Road, eastbound on Progress Way at 72nd Street, eastbound on River Way at 80th Street, southbound in the 1600-block of Cliveden Avenue, and eastbound on Derwent Way at Audley Boulevard.
A report to council in September found found Tilbury and Annacis Island has a combined 73 bus stops between them, only 13 of which are service with bus shelters. The five new shelters planned for next year represent a roughly 40 per cent increase in the total number of shelters in those areas.
Of the 13 shelters currently in Tilbury and on Annacis Island, eight are supplied and maintained by Pattison Outdoor at no cost in exchange for allowing advertising on the shelters, while the rest are owned by the city.
The report notes that industrial areas generally have insufficient pass-by traffic to meet the required advertising threshold for Pattison to supply additional bus shelters, meaning they would need to be payed for by the city at a cost of around $35,000 for an illuminated shelter and between $2,000 and $3,000 for a bus bench — that's not including property acquisition costs in places where there is insufficient road dedication.
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Despite the success of her own bus shelter-related motion, Johal on Monday echoed Kruger's comments and voiced support for his motion over Harvie's, saying that "focusing solely on bus shelters would be a missed opportunity."
"I’ve always been in favour of a comprehensive plan and community assessment. I believe that they offer far more of an effective approach when it comes to managing growth, especially the growth that is anticipated in North Delta," she said.
"We have a unique opportunity here to get this right, to take a broader, more inclusive approach to planning and implementation. This future plan, if it does go through, can and should include bus shelters as part of the infrastructure component, but it also needs to incorporate other key elements that will enhance the overall North Delta community."
Coun. Binder said he appreciated the mayor drawing attention to the issue, however he felt that Harvie's motion was "maybe a little bit divisive."
"One of the things that I know we’re working very hard with this council and certainly with the support of yourself, mayor, is to have a ‘one Delta’ approach, and an assessment or evaluation of the North Delta bus shelters as opposed to all of our shelters in Delta I think is [less] of the approach that I would like to see."
Binder said highlighting one particular community creates a "sense of division or not acknowledging the other areas."
“There may be bus stops in Ladner that don’t have shelters right now, and why would [those riders] be excluded, standing in the rain, versus someone on 112th and 116th and 72nd. I think the need is there in all of our communities, and to just focus on North Delta could cause South Delta residents to also feel excluded.”
Despite this, Binder did not suggest amending Harvie's motion to include an analysis of bus shelter needs in South Delta.
Coun. Jessie Dosanjh, who voted in support of Harvie's motion, asked why, in light of Johal’s previous area-specific bus shelter-related motion, council wouldn't consider a similar one focused on North Delta.
Dosanjh said he agrees with Binder’s comment that council should treat the city as “one Delta,” however questioned whether motions need to be “of equal service to all over,” noting the need for shelters in North Delta specifically.
“I’ve seen it because I live in North Delta on 112th Street, and I see it every single day. There’s a lot of students [in the] early morning standing in the rain, and absolutely those shelters, there’s a need [for them] in North Delta at this moment.”
Coun. Alicia Guichon, who also voted in support of Harvie's motion, noted the apparent inequality in the number of shelters in North and South Delta, and said she would like to see that gap filled.
“If it’s a quick win, if it’s something we can do soon, that would be great if staff can look at budgets the same as we were able to do that with the industrial areas," she said, referring to support for Johal's motion.
Guichon said she also agrees with Kruger’s motion and the need for a "bigger, holistic look at infrastructure," but said it should be be done for all of Delta, not just North Delta.
"Honestly, I think it’s a huge question for all of Delta right now with the growth we’re seeing in Ladner and potentially in Tsawwassen, and of course North Delta, as we’ve already seen, is on the rise," she said.
Guichon said she would also be supporting Kruger's motion when it comes before council, but suggested Harvie's motion is "one that we can handle right now."
Coun. Boisvert was the only member of council not to speak to the mayor's motion.
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