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Letter: TransLink plan is 'unambitious' and will set transit 'further back'

Writer also says TransLink's Mayors Council needs to be more accessible.
bus
Burnaby transit users deserve more investment, says letter writer. Glacier Media file photo

Editor:

An open letter to TransLink’s Mayors Council:

No opportunity for the public and many elected officials to comment on various reports. The reports are either oral and/or not available until just before the meeting. This has been going on for years as most business is done in closed meetings. Out of 40-plus meetings in 2021, only 14 were open to the public. This is because of the bad SCBCTA, which does not have the same open rules that municipalities operate under.

All municipalities have hybrid meetings, but not TransLink. Meetings should be held in Metrotown as it is a very central location. TransLink used to be in Metrotown until 2013.

Why hide in Sapperton?

Metro Vancouver is the “father” of TransLink but half the directors are not on the Mayors Council and are not given any information.

Very few municipal councils discuss the major transportation issues our region is facing.

Transport 2050 has not been approved by any municipal council. It is a very unambitious plan that would set us further back.

The author of the plan … has already left TransLink with three other senior executives in the past year.

The proposed 10-year investment plan overlaps with the previous 10-year plan and nothing much will be done.

B.C. will continue to be way behind Quebec and Ontario in public transit.

Nathan Davidowicz, Burnaby