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Bus Stop Balancing

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    About the Project

    Bus stop balancing involves the thoughtful removal and/or relocation of bus stops along a corridor to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service for our customers.

    Fewer bus stops along a route means:

    Faster and More Reliable Commutes

    • Improved overall trip times with more reliable buses and fewer delays

    • Maintain convenient access with five minutes or less of walking or rolling between most bus stops

    Safer and Smoother Rides

    • More space on buses for physical distancing due to evenly distributed passenger loads

    • More comfortable rides with less stopping, starting, and lane changing

    Benefits to Non-Riders

    • More curb space for parking, patios, or other uses

    • More sidewalk space to enhance physical distancing and accessibility

    • Improved traffic flow

    While bus customers may sometimes walk a little bit further to their stop, their trip on the bus will be much shorter. On routes where we rebalanced bus stops, we achieved an average travel time savings ranging from approximately 4% to 14% throughout the day, translating to 3 to 6 minutes of saved travel time for our customers! Even more exciting, the savings achieved from bus stop balancing are reinvested into other high-traffic corridors within the municipality.

    In addition to bus stop balancing, there are other bus-priority measures that TransLink implements in collaboration with municipalities to improve the speed and reliability of our buses and improve your experience.

    Completed Routes

    Route 2 had some of the closest bus stop spacing in the region. Half of the bus stops were less than 205 metres apart (about two blocks), which is shorter than the distance between the SeaBus and Expo Line platform at Waterfront Station.

    Following a successful bus stop balancing pilot project, we permanently removed some bus stops on Route 2 to improve travel times and reliability, effective November 9, 2020.

    For Route 2 customers, this means:

    • Faster and more reliable commutes

    • Round trip savings of up to 4 minutes

    • Safer and smoother rides, more space for physical distancing, and more sidewalk space

    We thank everyone who provided feedback. As a result, we have not removed two of the bus stops that we had initially proposed to remove.

    The results of this pilot will help inform the roll out of our bus stop balancing program on other corridors across the region. To find out more about the Route 2 pilot project, read the Report on Line 2.

    As a result of bus stop balancing completed on Route 2, customers can now save up to 6 minutes per round trip. During the busiest times of day, we’re saving up to 10 minutes on your journey.

    • SB BURRARD ST AT W GEORGIA ST – Stop # 50044

      • This bus stop will no longer serve Routes 2, 5, 32, and N22. However, it will continue to serve Route 44, which is temporarily suspended due to COVID-19. This means the stop will not be in use until route 44 is re-instated.

    • NB MACKENZIE ST AT W 36 AVE – Stop # 51260

    • NB MACKENZIE ST AT W 32 AVE – Stop # 51262

    • NB MACKENZIE ST AT W 28 AVE – Stop # 51264

    • NB MACDONALD ST AT W 24 AVE – Stop # 51268

    • NB MACDONALD ST AT W 20 AVE – Stop # 51270

    • NB MACDONALD ST AT W 18 AVE – Stop # 51271

    • NB MACDONALD ST AT W 13 AVE – Stop # 60359

    • NB MACDONALD ST AT W 10 AVE – Stop # 50059

    • NB MACDONALD ST AT W 5 AVE – Stop # 50062

    • EB CORNWALL AVE AT LARCH ST – Stop # 50066

    • EB CORNWALL AVE AT VINE ST – Stop # 50068

    • EB CORNWALL AVE AT MAPLE ST – Stop # 50071

    • WB CORNWALL AVE AT MAPLE ST – Stop # 50102

    • SB MACDONALD ST AT W 3 AVE – Stop # 50108

    • SB MACDONALD ST AT W 13 AVE – Stop # 50112

    • SB MACDONALD ST AT W 19 AVE – Stop # 50118

    • SB MACDONALD ST AT W 23 AVE – Stop # 50120

    • SB QUESNEL DR AT W 27 AVE – Stop # 50125

    • SB MACKENZIE ST AT W 31 AVE – Stop # 50127

    • SB MACKENZIE ST AT W 35 AVE – Stop # 50129

    • SB MACKENZIE ST AT W 39 AVE – Stop # 50131

    • WB W 41 AVE AT BALACLAVA ST – Stop # 50295

    Map displaying the consolidated and removed stops on the 2 Macdonald Downtown

    Route map of the #2 showing consolidated and removed stops

    We’ve balanced bus stop spacing on Route 4 to improve travel times and reliability. Bus bulbs and other transit priority measures are coming to Kitsilano in Summer 2022.

    Route 4 had some of the closest stops in the region. Two out of three stops (65%) were less than 300 metres apart (less than 2 blocks).

    Following a successful bus stop balancing pilot project, we permanently removed some bus stops on Route 4 to improve travel times and reliability, effective Jan. 17, 2022. To minimize impacts on customers, we made changes to approximately one in six bus stops along Route 4.

    When bus stops are too close or too far away, it's inconvenient for our customers. Removing, adding, and consolidating some bus stops means:

    • 93% of customers do not need to adjust their journey,

    • savings of over 5 minutes per round trip in the busiest times of day,

    • bus stop balancing on Route 4 and 7 combined is expected to save $173,000 or 1,400 weekday service hours annually, which could be reinvested and reallocated to the routes that need it most.

    We thank everyone who provided feedback. Having assessed public comments and feedback, all changes trialed on Jan. 17, 2022 will be made permanent.

    Some other routes are affected by changes to Route 4. Please check the list of stop changes below.

    Stop Name Stop Action Other routes using stop
    NB Blanca St at W 8 Ave 50344 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Dieppe Lane 59298 Remove 42
    EB W 4 Ave at Highbury St 50353 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Waterloo St 50390 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Blenheim St Add
    EB W 4 Ave at Trutch St 50391 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Balaclava St Add
    EB W 4 Ave at Bayswater St 50392 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Larch St 50395 Remove 14
    EB W 4 Ave at Vine St 50397 Remove 14, 44, 84
    EB W 4 Ave at Yew St Add 14, 44, 84
    EB W 4 Ave at Arbutus St 50398 Remove 14
    EB W 4 Ave at Maple St Add 14
    EB W 4 Ave at Cypress St 50399 Remove 14
    EB Powell St at Mclean Dr 50432 Remove 209
    NB N Nanaimo St at Cambridge St 50439 Remove 209
    EB McGill St at N Kamloops St 50441 Remove 209
    EB McGill St at N Renfrew St 50444 Remove
    Stop Name Stop Action Other routes using stop
    WB Powell St at Woodland Dr 50509 Remove 209
    WB W 4 Ave at Arbutus St 50581 Remove 14
    WB W 4 Ave at Yew St Add 14, 44, 84
    WB W 4 Ave at Vine St 58299 Remove 14, 44, 84
    WB W 4 Ave at Bayswater St 50586 Remove
    WB W 4 Ave at 4000 Block 50592 Remove 42
    WB W 4 Ave at Tolmie St 50597 Remove
    SB Blanca St at W 6 Ave 50599 Remove

    Click on the stop to see more details about why we recommended keeping, moving, or removing the bus stops.


    Route map of the #4 showing consolidated and removed stops

    Blue checkmark Keeping Bus Stop Green checkmark New Bus Stop Remove Removing Bus Stop

    Interactive Map Key

    • Meets/Below spacing guidelines: TransLink’s Transit Service Guidelines, based on international best practises recommends an average spacing of 300 to 800 metres for all-day frequent routes.

    • Low ridership: Stop is used by less than 0.5% of the route’s riders.

    • No twin stop: There is not a bus stop across the road, which is used by that same bus in the opposite direction. This means customers alighting at a destination, may not be able to board the same bus to go back the way they came.

    • No crosswalk: A crosswalk ensures the safety of pedestrians and customers. It is especially important to have crosswalks close to bus stops.

    • Transfer point: This is a bus stop that attends to multiple different routes, or modes, allowing customers to transfer between them.

    • Terminus: This is the last stop on a bus route.

    • Serves a major destination: We have taken care to avoid removing bus stops near major destinations such as schools, hospitals, places of worship, seniors’ facilities, community centres etc.

    • Customer amenities: This could include a bus shelter, benches or lighting. We have avoided removing bus stops with multiple amenities to ensure our customers have a good transit experience.

    We’ve balanced the bus stop spacing and will be constructing bus bulbs at select stops on Route 7 to improve travel times and reliability. Bus bulbs and other transit priority measures are coming to Kitsilano in Summer 2022.

    Route 7 had some of the closest stops in the region. Three out of four stops (77%) were less than 300 metres apart (less than 2 blocks).

    Following a successful bus stop balancing pilot project, we permanently removed some bus stops on Route 4 to improve travel times and reliability, effective Jan. 17, 2022. To minimize impacts on customers, we made changes to approximately one in six bus stops along Route 7.

    When bus stops are too close or too far away, it's inconvenient for our customers. Removing, adding, and consolidating some bus stops means:

    • 92% of customers will not need to adjust their journey,

    • savings of over 5 minutes per round trip in the busiest times of day,

    • bus stop balancing on Route 4 and 7 combined is expected to save $173,000 or 1,400 weekday service hours annually, which could be reinvested and reallocated to the routes that need it most.

    Thank You for Your Feedback

    TWe thank everyone who provided feedback. Having assessed public comments and feedback, all changes trialed on Jan. 17, 2022 will be made permanent.

    Some other routes may be affected by changes to Route 7. Please check the list of stop changes below.

    Stop Name Stop Action Other routes using stop
    NB Dunbar St at W 26 Ave 50306 Remove
    NB Dunbar St at W 16 Ave 50311 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Waterloo St 50390 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Blenheim St Add
    EB W 4 Ave at Trutch St 50391 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Balaclava St Add
    EB W 4 Ave at Bayswater St 50392 Remove
    EB W 4 Ave at Larch St 50395 Remove 14
    EB W 4 Ave at Vine St 50397 Remove 14, 44, 84
    EB W 4 Ave at Yew St Add 14, 44, 84
    EB W 4 Ave at Arbutus St 50398 Remove 14
    EB W 4 Ave at Maple St Add 14
    EB W 4 Ave at Cypress St 50399 Remove 14
    EB Powell St at Mclean Dr 50432 Remove 209
    SB Nanaimo St at Franklin St 50670 Remove
    SB Nanaimo St at Turner St 50672 Remove
    SB Nanaimo St at Parker St 50674 Remove
    SB Nanaimo St at Grant St 60439 Remove
    SB Nanaimo St at E 7 Ave 50681 Remove
    SB Nanaimo St at E 12 Ave 50684 Remove
    Stop Name Stop Action Other routes using stop
    NB Nanaimo St at N Grandview Hwy 50719 Remove
    NB Nanaimo St at Grant St 50725 Remove
    NB Nanaimo St at Napier St 50727 Remove
    NB Nanaimo St at E Pender St 50729 Remove
    NB Nanaimo St at Pandora St 50736 Remove
    WB Powell St at Woodland Dr 50509 Remove 209
    WB W 4 Ave at Arbutus St 50581 Remove 14
    WB W 4 Ave at Yew St Add 14, 44, 84
    WB W 4 Ave at Vine St 58299 Remove 14, 44, 84
    WB W 4 Ave at Bayswater St 50586 Remove
    SB Alma St at W 10 Ave (Nearside)
    Note: Only Route 7 will be moved from this stop to the farside location     		50357 Remove 9, 14, 42, 99, N17
    SB Alma St at W 10 Ave (Farside) Add

    Click on the stop to see more details about why we recommended keeping, moving, or removing the bus stops.


    Route map of the #7 showing consolidated and removed stops

    Blue checkmark Keeping Bus Stop Green checkmark New Bus Stop Remove Removing Bus Stop

    Interactive Map Key

    • Meets/Below spacing guidelines: TransLink’s Transit Service Guidelines, based on international best practises recommends an average spacing of 300 to 800 metres for all-day frequent routes.

    • Low ridership: Stop is used by less than 0.5% of the route’s riders.

    • No twin stop: There is not a bus stop across the road, which is used by that same bus in the opposite direction. This means customers alighting at a destination, may not be able to board the same bus to go back the way they came.

    • No crosswalk: A crosswalk ensures the safety of pedestrians and customers. It is especially important to have crosswalks close to bus stops.

    • Transfer point: This is a bus stop that attends to multiple different routes, or modes, allowing customers to transfer between them.

    • Terminus: This is the last stop on a bus route.

    • Serves a major destination: We have taken care to avoid removing bus stops near major destinations such as schools, hospitals, places of worship, seniors’ facilities, community centres etc.

    • Customer amenities: This could include a bus shelter, benches or lighting. We have avoided removing bus stops with multiple amenities to ensure our customers have a good transit experience.

    Route 17 had some of the closest stops in the region. 75% of the stops were less than 300 metres apart (about 2 blocks). Some bus stops were directly across the street from one another, less than 75 metres apart!

    To minimize impacts on customers, we proposed changes to approximately one in six bus stops along Route 17. This means:

    • 94 per cent of customers will not need to adjust their journey,

    • savings of over 4 minutes per round trip for each customer and,

    • the region is expected to save $90,000 or 800 weekday service hours annually, which could be reinvested and reallocated to the routes that need it most.

    We thank everyone who provided feedback. As a result we have reinstated six bus stops on Route 17 that we had initially proposed to remove.

    As a result of bus stop balancing completed on Route 17, customers can now save up to 5 minutes per round trip on weekdays, and up to 8 minutes per round trip on weekends.

    • NB Oak St at W 71 Ave – Stop # 50741

    • NB Oak St at W 64 Ave – Stop # 50744

    • NB Oak St at W 53 Ave – Stop # 50749

    • NB Oak St at W 51 Ave – Stop # 50750

    • NB Oak St at W 43 Ave – Stop # 50753

    • NB Oak St Nearside W 41 Ave – Stop # 50754

    • NB Oak St at  5100 Block – Stop # 50452 

    • NB Oak St at W 14 Ave – Stop # 50460

    • SB Oak St at W 14 Ave – Stop # 50332 

    • SB Oak St at  5600 Block – Stop # 50343

    • SB Oak St at W 43 Ave – Stop # 50806

    • SB Oak St at W 52 Ave – Stop # 50809

    • SB Oak St at W 64 Ave – Stop # 50814 

    Which other Routes will be impacted by Bus stop Balancing on Route 17?

    Route 10 and 100 will all be impacted by bus stop balancing on Route 17. See below for specific stop information.

    • EB SW Marine Dr at Laurel St – Stop # 52125

      • Also affects routes 10 and 100 

    • EB SW Marine Dr at Ash St – Stop # 52128

      • Also affects routes 10 and 100


    Click on the stop to see more details about why we recommend keeping or removing the bus stops.


    Blue checkmark Keeping Bus Stop Orange checkmark Reinstated Bus Stop Remove Removing Bus Stop

    Interactive Map Key

    • Meets/Below spacing guidelines: TransLink’s Transit Service Guidelines, based on international best practises recommends an average spacing of 300 to 800 metres for all-day frequent routes.

    • Low ridership: Stop is used by less than 0.5% of the route’s riders.

    • No twin stop: There is not a bus stop across the road, which is used by that same bus in the opposite direction. This means customers alighting at a destination, may not be able to board the same bus to go back the way they came.

    • No crosswalk: A crosswalk ensures the safety of pedestrians and customers. It is especially important to have crosswalks close to bus stops.

    • Transfer point: This is a bus stop that attends to multiple different routes, or modes, allowing customers to transfer between them.

    • Terminus: This is the last stop on a bus route.

    • Serves a major destination: We have taken care to avoid removing bus stops near major destinations such as schools, hospitals, places of worship, seniors’ facilities, community centres etc.

    • Customer amenities: This could include a bus shelter, benches or lighting. We have avoided removing bus stops with multiple amenities to ensure our customers have a good transit experience.

     
    Route map of the 17 Oak/Downtown showing consolidated and removed stops

    In a single round-trip from UBC to Brentwood Town Centre, Route 25 made 150 stops. For the 8.5 million customers who used this route in 2019, this meant longer travel times.

    To minimize impacts on customers, we proposed changes to approximately one in eight bus stops along Route 25. This means:

    • 98 per cent of customers will not need to adjust their journey,

    • savings of over 4 minutes per round trip for each customer, and

    • the region is expected to save $150,000 or 1,400 weekday service hours annually, which could be reinvested and reallocated to the routes that need it most.

    We thank everyone who provided feedback. As a result we have reinstated two bus stops on Route 25 that we had initially proposed to remove.

    As a result of bus stop balancing completed on Route 25, customers can now save up to 10 minutes per round trip on weekdays, and up to 8 minutes per round trip on weekends.

    • SB Dunbar St at W 19 Ave – Stop # 50363 

    • EB W King Edward Ave at Collingwood St – Stop # 51494

    • EB W King Edward Ave at Balaclava St – Stop # 51496

    • EB W King Edward Ave at Alexandra St – Stop # 51506

    • EB W King Edward Ave at Osler St – Stop # 51509

    • EB W King Edward Ave at Ash St – Stop # 51512

    • EB E King Edward Ave at Clark Dr – Stop # 51524

    • NB Nanaimo St at E 27 Ave – Stop # 51528

    • EB E 22 Ave at Penticton St – Stop # 50691

    • EB E 22 Ave at Kaslo St – Stop # 51531 

    • WB E 22 Ave at Nootka St – Stop # 51557

    • WB E 22 Ave at Kaslo St – Stop # 51559

    • WB E 22 Ave at Kamloops St – Stop # 50666

    • WB W King Edward Ave at Cartier St – Stop # 51579

    • WB W King Edward Ave at Brakenridge St – Stop # 51587

    • WB W King Edward Ave at Collingwood St – Stop # 50309 

    Which other Routes will be impacted by Bus stop Balancing on Route 25?

    Route 33 and 7 will all be impacted by bus stop balancing on Route 25. See below for specific stop information.

    • EB W 16 Ave at Courtenay St – Stop # 51489

      • Also affects route 33

    • SB Dunbar St at W 19 Ave – Stop # 50363

      • Also affects route 7

    • SB Dunbar St at W 23 Ave – Stop # 50365

      • Also affects route 7

    • NB Dunbar St at W 20 Ave – Stop # 50814

      • Also affects route 7 


    Click on the stop to see more details about why we recommend keeping or removing the bus stops.


    Blue checkmark Keeping Bus Stop Orange checkmark Reinstated Bus Stop Remove Removing Bus Stop

    Interactive Map Key

    • Meets/Below spacing guidelines: TransLink’s Transit Service Guidelines, based on international best practises recommends an average spacing of 300 to 800 metres for all-day frequent routes.

    • Low ridership: Stop is used by less than 0.5% of the route’s riders.

    • No twin stop: There is not a bus stop across the road, which is used by that same bus in the opposite direction. This means customers alighting at a destination, may not be able to board the same bus to go back the way they came.

    • No crosswalk: A crosswalk ensures the safety of pedestrians and customers. It is especially important to have crosswalks close to bus stops.

    • Transfer point: This is a bus stop that attends to multiple different routes, or modes, allowing customers to transfer between them.

    • Terminus: This is the last stop on a bus route.

    • Serves a major destination: We have taken care to avoid removing bus stops near major destinations such as schools, hospitals, places of worship, seniors’ facilities, community centres etc.

    • Customer amenities: This could include a bus shelter, benches or lighting. We have avoided removing bus stops with multiple amenities to ensure our customers have a good transit experience.

     
    Route map of the 25 Brentwood Station/UBC showing consolidated and removed stops

    FAQs

    As part of our bus priority projects program, we are planning for and implementing four measures that will support ridership recovery during and after the pandemic, which in turn will support regional recovery.

    These three priority measures together could save customers time on each round-trip. If all these projects were implemented, they could generate an estimated $1 million to $2 million per year in operating savings for the region.

    These proposed measures include:

    • Bus stop balancing

    • Extending curbs or constructing bus bulbs to reduce the need for buses to enter and exit traffic and increase sidewalk space

    • Bus priority lanes focused on locations outside of retail precincts

    Approximately two-thirds of TransLink bus stops are too close together, based on the Transit Service Guidelines, which recommends average spacing of 300 to 800 metres for all-day frequent routes.

    On Route 4, 65% of bus stops are below the range of TransLink’s recommended guidelines and are less than 300m apart and on Route 7, 77% of the bus stops are below the range.

    TransLink buses spend one-sixth of their time waiting at bus stops. Each year, that adds up to over 700,000 hours, or approximately $73 million in operating costs. Making even small changes to this number can save customers time and improve regional transit.

    Our region has a unique opportunity to rethink how our roadways and cities can work better for everyone. Changing the region’s roads to improve the reliability of buses makes transit a more attractive transportation option, both during and after the pandemic.

    To minimize impacts on customers, we carefully considered many factors when evaluating each bus stop. This included accessibility, ridership, transfer points, nearby destinations, physical constraints (e.g., hills), spacing between stops on the route, and impacts on other routes.

    We also looked at whether it had a twin stop in the opposite direction, nearby crosswalks, or stop amenities (e.g., shelters, benches).

    Finally, we considered locations where customers may benefit from the addition of a new stop, such as areas with higher populations of seniors or people with reduced mobility, as well as areas with larger spacing between current stops.

    TransLink has successfully balanced bus stop spacing on Routes 2, N22, 17 and 25 to improve travel times and reliability. The feedback we received from customers has helped inform bus stop balancing initiatives on other corridors across the region.

    Feedback from customers, residents, businesses, and operators will be analyzed to determine which changes will be made permanent. This analysis will help refine how the bus stop balancing program is rolled out on other routes across the region.

    Engagement and consultation for bus stop balancing on Route 4 and 7 followed a rigorous planning process, informed by an analysis of which stops to consolidate, remove, or add. During this initial phase, we worked with municipal partners, bus operators, senior leadership, and key community stakeholders. We then took an initial proposal to key advisory committees, and amended our proposal based on their feedback.

    In November 2021, the amended proposal was taken public! We shared our draft proposal with the community in several ways, including:

    • Signs at every bus stop—including translated signs;

    • Partnership with Canadian National Institute of the Blind (CNIB) to send emails and voicemails to members in surrounding postal codes;

    • Letters and phone calls to hundreds of stakeholders along both routes;

    • Details on our website, including an interactive map with information about why we did or did not propose changes to a bus stop;

    • Virtual and in-person meetings with specific stakeholders where changes were proposed nearby, as needed; and

    • Community feedback collected through an online survey.

    We collected feedback during this 6-week public notification period and modified our proposal, as needed.

    In January, we implemented bus stop balancing for a trial period. Throughout this period, we have continued to take feedback (by phone, online) and conduct individual meetings with stakeholders.

    After each bus stop balancing trial period ends and the survey closes, the project team analyses all the feedback collected throughout the program. Based on this feedback, we make a final recommendation about which stops should be permanently added or removed.

    Through an iterative process, we arrive at a proposal that balances providing people with close, convenient access to transit, and having faster, more reliable service.

    Related Documents

    Questions

    For questions related the bus stop balancing program, email busstopbalancing@translink.ca.