TransLink City of Surrey ditches Cloverdalians
Call it what you might, but I live here. I chose to live here (with some negotiating!), and as long as my commute may be, I pay a pretty low rent for a nice, big new space. Cloverdale — the little town in Surrey that could.
Well, it could until next week.
TransLink is rolling out yet more “improvements” to the 502 bus that runs from Surrey Central to the boonies (Aldergrove) and back. Yes, improvements: it will be every 15 minutes most of the time, if not more frequent (peak times), which rocks my socks. Unfortunately, their little footnote to their “improvements” message is thus: the 502 is moving back to Fraser Highway, as of Monday, June 25.
Two years ago they rerouted it to 64th Avenue with a turn up 168th St. It’s been a popular route — unsurprising, since people actually live along the entirety of the 64th Avenue route. There are two new shopping hubs, a popular athletic park, and new housing constantly in development. Fraser Hwy, meanwhile, has been widened to deal with excessive traffic which clusters up around 176 St. (highway 1 access), etc. (There’s a significantly more modest, quieter shopping centre up there, too).
While I’ve heard complaints from some Langley-bound commuters (I sympathize completely, honestly) that the ride takes so much longer when it reroutes through Cloverdale, it’s a difference of 3 minutes, according to a study a driver told me about. Regardless of these facts, there are at least twice as many stops along 64 Avenue, and these stops serve PEOPLE. The majority of the route along Fraser Hwy in that section is farmland: nobody lives or goes there. The reroute has been popular for a reason: people live there, people go there, they use it. It’s convenient, quick, accessible (in more ways than one), and gets them to the best locations in generally good time. But what does the City want to do? The City wants to move the bus back — because they decide where buses run. For what purpose? To serve whom? Perhaps a tiny handful of people versus dozens? To punish Cloverdale? The 502 serves a chunk of Cloverdale that is older and less privileged than the neighbourhood on the other side to where the bus will be returning.
Yes there are two other buses, 3 if you count the Cloverdale-originated 340. These buses, however, do not travel along 64th Avenue east of 176th St. and are considerably less frequent than the 502. Two only operate in rush hour, and one takes 10+ minutes longer to get to/from Surrey Central as it winds through Surrey first. Moreover, it’s a downright inconvenience to have to switch buses partway. For those who can, it’s either that or walk several blocks to Fraser Hwy.
So why? What for? For whom?
If you give a hoot, email or call the City, tell them they’re making a very poor decision. What do they expect us to do since there are no plans as yet for extending alternatives? (Doing so will put an unnecessary strain on TransLink.)
And ask them to put up some signs telling us they’re going to do this instead of hiding it as a footnote to a secondary message in the Buzzer and on their website. Signage is now up. If the City pulls through with this, they will be leaving many, many people behind.
Contact numbers for Surrey City Council
gvtaboard [at] translink.bc.ca
TransLink board members
*Update*
From TransLink’s news release
The #502 Surrey Central/Langley/Brookswood/Aldergrove will run more often along the Fraser Highway, and after being detoured by road construction for the past several months, the #502 will return to its regular route along Fraser Highway. Service will also increase to 15-minute intervals throughout the weekend, including early mornings, helping meet the desires of area residents for more bus service.
Several months = about 22 months. Yes, we need more bus service… MORE bus service, not less!
