Imagine party vows to bring commuter rail to Surrey

The Imagine Surrey party says that if elected on Oct. 17 it will work to convince various levels of government to add West Coast Express commuter rail in Surrey. 

Currently, West Coast Express trains travel between Mission and downtown Vancouver. Imagine Surrey mayoral candidate Mike Starchuk wants to see these trains running from Scott Road to the Fraser Valley through Newton and Cloverdale.

“I sat on the committee that decides what the province can afford. The money for rail exists. The question is who asks for it with a plan,” said Starchuk. “A city this size with no commuter rail is not a fact of geography. It’s a City Hall that never made the case.”

Starchuk said if Imagine Surrey is elected then the City of Surrey would start lobbying within the first 100 days in office.

Also on the issue of transportation, Starchuk committed to synchronizing Surrey’s traffic lights into one citywide system that responds to traffic in real time, and to expand seven roads that choke every rush hour: 124 Street, 144 Street, 148 Street, 168 Street, 80 Avenue, Colebrook Road, and 40 Avenue. 

Starchuk also pledged to look into ways to build the roads faster, including looking into 24/7 roadbuilding in areas without residents

Surrey’s lights run on a timetable. The city has tested adaptive signals on 72 Avenue and reported in 2013 that they worked.