Is it time to bring back the streetcar to Vancouver?
Vancouver-based online consultation platform PlaceSpeak* launched a survey today asking if city residents support the reintroduction of streetcars to our neighbourhoods.
Vancouver is currently exploring the use of streetcars as a key element of our transition to more sustainable transportation modes. With this in mind, PlaceSpeak teamed up with Patrick Condon at the University of British Columbia (UBC) to gauge the public’s interest in restoring streetcars—and associated amenities—to our city.
Historically, Vancouver began as a streetcar city with electric trams connecting neighbourhoods and the downtown core. By the 1920s, however, the introduction of the car proved so powerful that they quickly became the preferred mode of transportation. In fact, Vancouver’s original streetcar grid left such a strong imprint that many arterial streets continue to thrive.
In Vancouver, we have also been figuring out how to incorporate ‘livable density’ as we plan a sustainable, affordable, and livable future for our residents. Streetcars may be able to help with both.
For Vancouver to meet its environmental goals while accommodating forecasted population growth it is crucial that we diversify our transit options. Streetcars are the missing link in our transportation infrastructure.”
Find out more and take the short survey at www.placespeak.com/streetcarcity2050
* PlaceSpeak connects people’s online identities with their residential addresses so that they can voice their opinions electronically in a wide variety of forums and provide policy-makers with confidence that they are receiving feedback from the right places.
I just took the survey, which is obvious streetcar boosterism. The comments below are interesting, only two comments both in favor of expanding the trolley bus network rather than spending the big bucks for rail. Seems like Jarrett Walker has had some influence.
This cuts at part of why I don’t get streetcar boosterism. We already have all this trolley bus infrastructure, which is green, environmentally friendly transit. The only logical reasons to have streetcars is to go where buses can’t go (olympic line), or to increase capacity beyond what is reasonable in a bus (maybe some corridors will demand this eventually). But in most cases trolley buses will provide just as good if not better service with much less expenditure.
It’s too bad they require you to register, however, as that deterred me from taking the survey as well.
I did not take the survey because I did not feel the need to register, but I would have loved better timing for the survey. I like riding trams but definitly would not want to pay for trams now when projects that improve mobility more are likely to be cut.