Major TransLink funding plan approved to improve service and avoid cuts

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/translink-tax-fare-increase-funding-approved

Two Canadian cities rank among the world’s wealthiest

https://dailyhive.com/canada/cities-in-canada-among-worlds-wealthiest

While Toronto now has more people than Chicago, the GTA is still less populated than the Chicagoland Area. Toronto has yet to have a building with at least 100 floors like Chicago, NYC & Melbourne.

There is always a strong resistance to allow the Greater Vancouver Region to rival that of Greater Montreal or the Greater Seattle Area. Thus, the trains are shorter, most of the bridges are narrower & most of the buildings are like stumps. The keep it small & hold it back approach, is all part of the symbolism towards refusing to build proper big city size infrastructure. 

Of course the Vancouver Marathon will have closed major roadways

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-marathon-road-closures

Any event in which there is a crowd of people, always needs to have roadblocks and effective safety barriers in place.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-mental-health-crisis-tragedy 

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Lapu+Lapu+Festival+mass+killing

Senseless vehicular crash into a Vancouver festival

 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/lapu-lapu-attack-family-colombia-1.7522034

It shouldn't be this easy for anyone to drive and crash into a crowd of people. Proper safety barriers can make all the difference.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/accused-festuval-killing-mental-health-1.7521867

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Lapu+Lapu+Festival+mass+killing

50-storey tower with community hub and theatre proposed for Burnaby's Edmonds community

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/50-storey-tower-community-hub-edmonds-burnaby

Toronto Approves 'Union Park' Revision, Heights Up To 71 Storeys

 https://storeys.com/union-park-revision-approved-toronto/

https://urbantoronto.ca/news/2025/01/oxfords-union-park-swaps-office-tower-more-high-rise-residential.57719

Nothing over 100 stories in that development.

https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?cityID=12&status=15

https://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=106497 However, Toronto does have a building that is being built to rise above 100 stories.

There needs to be a lot more public transit in Canada’s future

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/canada-public-transit-investment-economy-jobs

Despite its vastness, Canada should gradually be able to build an intercity high speed passenger train network. It could be on the scale of something like the TGV & take decades to complete.

https://www.eurail.com/en/plan-your-trip/trip-ideas/trains-europe/high-speed-trains/tgv

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TGV#/media/File:Networks_of_Major_High_Speed_Rail_Operators_in_Europe.gif

432 Park Ave.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxGrQYBTklg

What $150,000,000 Buys You on Billionaire's Row in NYC https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7m_sJXZz8E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdrGfnqS2_I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wehsz38P74g

Suspect involved in Vancouver festival tragedy was known to police

 https://dailyhive.com/canada/suspect-involved-vancouver-festival-tragedy-known-to-police

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vehicle-hits-crowd-filipino-festival-lapu-lapu-day-block-party-1.7519778

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Lapu+Lapu+Festival+mass+killing

Vancouver Sun Run to go ahead after street festival tragedy

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-sun-run-lapu-lapu-day-block-party

Downtown Calgary and Downtown Seattle

 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/one-injured-one-dead-in-downtown-fight-calgary-1.7519545

There is always more potential for excitement and danger in the urban core.

https://www.postalley.org/2023/02/13/look-people-we-can-fix-downtown/

Does Portland HATE Freeways?

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qz1RZh7LB4U

The 1950s to 70s approach was to clear a swath right through neighborhoods. Sometimes a freeway neighborhood destruction agenda was disguised as Urban_Renewal. A lot of houses were destroyed for highway improvements and Urban_Renewal.

Metro Vancouver housing figures underscore massive gap in affordable units

 https://www.timescolonist.com/national-news/metro-vancouver-housing-figures-underscore-massive-gap-in-affordable-units-10572173

Metro Vancouver 'affordable' rental housing starts must increase 2,500%

 https://www.nsnews.com/real-estate/metro-vancouver-affordable-rental-housing-starts-must-increase-2500-says-report-10572142

There were several decades of keeping towers short & not encouraging more low-rise apartment buildings to be built as well. 

https://goodmanreport.com/market-insights/rental-housing-where-seattle-thrives-vancouver-stumbles/

https://www.sightline.org/2017/08/14/why-seattle-builds-apartments-but-vancouver-bc-builds-condos/

https://www.postalley.org/2024/02/05/tale-of-two-cities-why-vancouver-and-seattle-downtowns-look-so-different/

Even some Americans are afraid to cross the border after visiting B.C.

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-bellingham-border-traffic-drop

Metro Vancouver woman harassed in racist tirade on SkyTrain

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/metro-vancouver-woman-harassed-racist-tirade-skytrain

Unfortunatly, the European_colonialism mentality is still firmly entrenched in some people.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analysis_of_European_colonialism_and_colonization#Varieties_of_colonialism

Colonization is a big part of human history and it's always had a detrimental effect on the indigenous or the first people of any particular area.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_colonialism

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_colonialism#Colonialism_in_ancient_times_(3200_BC_%E2%80%93_7th_century_AD)

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Western-colonialism

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_colonialism#Portuguese_and_Spanish_colonial_hegemony:_the_Americas_(15th_century%E2%80%931770)

https://online.norwich.edu/colonization-new-world

Vancouver Island's largest shopping mall listed for sale

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/woodgrove-centre-mall-nanaimo-sale

https://www.timescolonist.com/business/woodgrove-centre-for-sale-after-billionaire-owner-announced-intention-to-buy-hudsons-bay-stores-10503386

hobart-council-report-on-stadium

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-25/hobart-council-report-on-stadium/105211932

First Nation could buy Central 1 Credit Union office building next to Senakw

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/central-1-credit-union-headquarters-building-1441-creekside-drive-vancouver-senawk-squamish-nation

It should be replace with a big black, blue or sandy tower, becoming the tallest in the city. Unfortunatly, the lower deck of the BB, which was intended for streetcars, was never completed. Of course backwards Vancouver would be one of the first cities to get rid of its streetcars & tram-trains & will likely be one of the last to ever bring them back.

Telus proposes 25-storey rental housing tower in Vancouver

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/2022-2212-west-10th-avenue-vancouver-kitsilano-telus-living-rental-housing-tower

Not 50 stories, but then again, it's the Kits part of town.

20 business and tourism organizations urge B.C. government to enable order of five new ferries

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-ferries-major-new-vessels-order-business-organization-support

There is such a multigenerational mentality of stubbornness in backwater BC. Of course any transportation improvements would be great, but BC seems to always take the congestive planning approach. Thus, having an abundance of ferries would actually help to improve mobility. Just look at how often people have to wait for the next ferry, or the next...

https://www.nsnews.com/highlights/chambers-of-commerce-call-on-province-to-overturn-ferry-commissioner-on-fifth-vessel-10568660

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-ferries-new-ships-expansion-vancouver-island-economy

The Canada (embarrassment) Line

Using the limited funds and low capacity argument is excrement! It's only because of inept urban planning that the Canada+Line is such a transportation embarrassment since 2009. Several other cities around the world are able to think big, they plan & build in a long-term way. Thus, if there are only enough funds to build a 2.5 car train, the stations could have been designed to eventually accomodate 5 car trains as demand increases. Plus, all the stations should have been designed with enough clearance to gradually be long enough for 10 car trains.

https://www.translink.ca/-/media/translink/documents/plans-and-projects/regional-transportation-strategy/transport-2050/backgrounders/transport_2050_backgrounder_action_2_rapid_transit_network.pdf

An ultimate capacity of 10 car trains connecting both ferry terminals with the airport & downtown Vancouver, would really have been properly planning for the future. 10 car trains running every 2 minutes during the busiest times of the day would efficiently allow a lot people to get around. Unfortunatly, it will be challenging enough just to eventually have 5 car trains.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/canada-line-skytrain

The absurdity to design the stations to only handle 2.5 car trains is a sad joke. The ultimate capacity of two 20m cars with a 10m filler car is so inadequate & pathetic, but this is the BC part of Canada. This backwards & backwater thinking must be challenged. 

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/skytrain-future-station-locations

With some modifications, three 20m cars could form a 60m train, despite the absurd platforms only having a clearance for 50m. A 60m walkthrough train makes this possible, its just that the doors at either end wouldn't reach the short station platform. Selective_door_operation could enable the Canada Line to go from a 2 car & 2.5 car joke, to a 3 car & ultimately, a 5 car train. That's still a far cry from cities with 10 car trains running every 2 minutes. However, a 5 car train running every minute could make all the difference for Greater Vancouver.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/what-you-need-to-know-north-shore-wastewater-treatment-plant-1.7235368# Aparently, there is enough money to overpay for a $HIT-PIPE and a $HIT-BOX, but not enough funds to build a proper high capacity train over a couple of decades.  

The Canada_Line opened in 2009 with its short 2 car trains & in 2025, there still aren't any 2.5 car trains. By now, it really should have been running 5 car trains, connecting the 2 ferry terminals & the airport. Fortunately, most real cities are able to do proper long range planning for their infrastructure, unlike backwards Vancouver.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SkyTrain_(Vancouver)_rolling_stock#Canada_Line_fleet

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Canada+Line

TransLink and the Taxing “Tug-of-War”

 https://www.coastalfront.ca/read/translink-and-the-taxing-tug-of-war

Oakridge Park mall free parking and train station

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/oakridge-park-mall-free-parking-vancouver

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakridge-41st_Avenue_station

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/Oakridge%E2%80%9341st_Avenue_station_Platform_2018.jpg Its almost painful to see how small these stations are. The Montreal Metro stations are 152.5m or 500 feet long & can accommodate a 9 car train. All of the underground stations of the Canada (embarrassment) Line are only 50m. Anyone in engineering or construction knows, that if designed properly, a structure can eventually be lengthened or widened.

Therefore, all the stations should have been doubled in length by now to be 100m. Then in another decade the stations should have become 160m & in another decade, 200m. Unfortunatly, the Canada Line was only designed to ultimately accomodate a 2.5 car train, not 8-10 car trains.

As of 2025, the 2009 Canada Line operators are still only running a 2 car joke of a train.

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Oakridge

Record number of oil tankers enter Vancouver harbour

 https://ca.news.yahoo.com/record-number-oil-tankers-enter-011706070.html

Greater Vancouver is suppose to be a growing port, but its in a vast country that doesn't even have half of 1% of the world's population.

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/record-number-of-oil-tankers-enter-vancouver-harbour-in-march

Singapore & even Brisbane have been able to substantially expand their ports & related infrastructure over the years. Thats, because they don't have anything like the Vancouver restrictions or the backwater BC mentality to thwart them.

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/number-oil-tankers-entering-vancouver-harbour-jumps-from-two-to-20-a-month

Broken BC Ferry leaves passengers stranded for hours in water off Horseshoe Bay

 https://globalnews.ca/news/11142040/broken-bc-ferry-passengers-stranded-horseshoe-bay/

https://vancouversun.com/news/tugboat-bc-ferry-mechanical-failure-easter-horseshoe-bay

Construction on Jericho Lands' first 4,000 homes could begin in 2028

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/jericho-lands-vancouver-development-timeline

Oak Street and Granville Street

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_Street_(Vancouver) , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXbUb7TMj6k

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granville_Street , https://storeys.com/vancouver-granville-street-entertainment-district-history-renewal-planning-program/

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Oak+Street+and+Granville+Street

The narrow bridges of Vancouver, Canada

https://montecristomagazine.com/community/forgotten-bridges-vancouver

The LGB just wasn't designed with any future capacity in mind. 

History of the Lions Gate Bridge https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHqi7Kijedw 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lions_Gate_Bridge#History

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Lions_Gate.jpg 

The inadequate 3 lane LGB is currently the most narrow road bridge in backwards & stubborn Vancouver. It's been in that category since the removal of the 2 lane Fraser Street Bridge in the 1970s. There was a refusal to twin the absurdly narrow LGB between the 1950s & 1970s. By the 1980s there should have been a subway tunnel and an 8 lane tunnel. Then two of the lanes could have been for buses. Georgia Street is 7 lanes wide as it gets closer to Stanley Park. Thus, the main part of a tunnel through the park could have provided 3 general lanes each way & a bus lane each way. Instead, the 7 lanes of the westernmost part of Georgia Street are funneled into a 3 lane causeway & a 3 lane bridge. The LGB would be fantastic as just a bike & foot crossing, with train, bus & road tunnels well beneath & beside it.    

The Burrard_Bridge, BB or BSB opened with 6 lanes, but now it only has 4 lanes. There are 2 bike lanes & 2 sidewalks. Had a parallel bike-bridge been built, the BB could have still had 6 lanes. While the BB has a lower level provision for streetcars or tram-trains, Vancouver did its damndest to phase out streetcars well before the 1960s. 

The Ironworkers_Memorial_Bridge has 6 lanes, but should also have had 2 wide shoulders & 2 very wide sidewalks. Unfortunatly, there was no provision for a lower deck, as is also the case with all of the other Vancouver  bridges. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ironworkers_Memorial_Second_Narrows_Crossing

Any replacement of the inadequate Ironworkers+Memorial+Bridge should be on the scale of what Perth, Seattle and Montreal have done.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granville_Street_Bridge#Third_bridge_(1954)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=vPSdF0jRTC4 The Granville-Bridge or GSB is the widest bridge in the city limits. It opened with 8 lanes, but is being transformed into a 6 lane bridge with 2 bike lanes & 2 sidewalks. Had there been a paralel bike & foot bride, the GSB could have still been 8 lanes wide. Then there could have been 2 exclusive bus lanes.

https://vancouver.ca/streets-transportation/granville-bridge-connector.aspx

The Oak Street Bridge should have been 8 lanes wide, with 2 wide sidewalks.

The Knight+Street+Bridge should have been 8 lanes with 2 wide sidewalks. Instead, its a 4 lane chokepoint.

The Arthur+Laing+Bridge should have been at least 6 lanes with 2 proper bike lanes & 2 sidewalks.

If the Cambie_Street_Bridge had 2 very wide sidewalks, then its likely that it would still have 6 lanes instead of 5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambie_Bridge#The_present_bridge

Unfortunatly, bottleneck or chokepoint planning is part of the Vancouver & BC mentality.

Of course BC & the Metro+Vancouver Region just hasn't put enough funds towards proper big-city planning & infrastructure development. 

Voters united on 'never 51' as Vancouver advance polls experience long lineups

 https://vancouversun.com/news/federal_election/canada-election-2025-vancouver-advance-voting

The Inadequate BC Ferries Delema

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-ferries-new-ships-expansion-vancouver-island-economy

Manhattan’s Penn Station

 https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-penn-station-renovation-new-york-b2735528.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/nyregion/trump-penn-station-nyc.html

https://nypost.com/2025/04/17/us-news/trump-fires-mta-from-long-awaited-penn-station-revamp-puts-feds-in-charge-blank-checks-are-over/

https://www.mta.info/project/penn-station-reconstruction

Churchill: From a discarded depot to important seaport?

 https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2025/04/17/from-discarded-depot-to-important-port

There is no valid reason as to why Churchill can't someday be a major seaport & airport like Anchorage-Alaska is.

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Churchill-Manitoba

Churchill, Manitoba

 https://www.arcticgateway.com/port-of-churchill

Churchill really has the potential to become a major freight-rail, seaport & even a cargo airport.

https://www.arcticgateway.com/about

https://www.arcticgateway.com/arctic-gateway-freight-services

https://www.portofchurchill.ca/2019/08/04/port-of-churchill-ready-for-its-first-grain-shipments/

https://www.arcticgateway.com/hudson-bay-railway

https://www.emotrans-global.com/blog/cargo-vs-freight/

https://www.translogisticsinc.com/blog/cargo-vs-freight

Vancouver councillor sounds alarm over Granville hotel deal, low-income housing loss

 https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2025/04/17/vancouver-low-income-housing-sros-granville-hotel/

BC Ferries warns of busy long weekend with two out-of-service ships

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-ferries-busy-long-weekend

A Chateau-style home in West Vancouver, but...

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/west-vancouver-home-sale-2188-westhill-wynd

A person can pay out all that money, but you don't get a French standard of transportation options, or even a Québec-Montreal quality of transportation. You are just stuck with a ridiculous 3 lane LGB  and there are no plans to have any bus & train tunnels under that horrible chokepoint.

Any replacement for the Ironworkers+Memorial+Bridge should be at least as wide as the Samuel-De_Champlain_Bridge in Montreal. It's very difficult in BC to have crossings that have at least 4 lanes each way.

Far away from backwards Vancouver & backwater BC, the Narrows_Bridge_in_Perth-WA was part of a multi-section Bridge plan. 5 lanes each way, plus a Railway_bridge section, which has much longer trains than backwards Vancouver.

City of North Vancouver studying new Lonsdale Avenue public park deck over Highway 1

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/lonsdale-avenue-highway-1-land-bridge-park-north-vancouver-study

The Merotower Office Complex

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/paid-parking-metropolis-metrotown

https://www.metrotowerofficecomplex.com/

https://www.metrotowerofficecomplex.com/metrotower-1 28 stories since 1989. It should have been the first 40 story office tower in BC.

https://www.metrotowerofficecomplex.com/metrotower-2 First 30 story (1991) office tower in BC, outside of the city limits of Vancouver. It could have been the first 50 story office tower in BC.

MT3 could have & should have been the first 60 story office tower in BC.

https://www.rjc.ca/project-details/metrotower-iii-.html Not 60, 50, or 40 stories. Techncally, not even 30 stories.

https://www.ivanhoecambridge.com/en/news/2015/12/metro-vancouver-relocates-to-metrotower-iii-to-better-serve-the-region/

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/metro-vancouver-looks-to-sign-2-6-million-property-management-contract

Vancouver-BC new-hotel-development-policy-approved

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-new-hotel-development-policy-approved

New Hilton hotel and Stong's Market to open in Surrey City Centre

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/homewood-suites-by-hilton-surrey-city-centre-4-tower-stongs-market

B.C. film industry exempt from push to cancel American contracts

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-film-industry-american-contracts-trade-war

Manitoba’s northern port could strengthen Canada’s trade

 https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/manitobas-northern-port-could-strengthen-canadas-trade

https://thestarphoenix.com/news/national/port-churchill-gives-more-access-international-markets

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Churchill-Manitoba

What this massive West Vancouver home offers for $25 million

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/west-vancouver-home-25-million-835-farmleigh-rd

ubc-wesbrook-place-south-master-plan-update

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/ubc-wesbrook-place-south-master-plan-update

sfu-burnaby-mountain-gondola-translink-delays

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/sfu-burnaby-mountain-gondola-translink-delays

Metro Vancouver defers $1.1Billion in spending

 https://www.biv.com/news/economy-law-politics/metro-vancouver-defers-11b-in-spending-warns-of-tighter-water-use-10507478

So much money has be wasted over the years and a good part of it should have gone towards proper regional transportation planning & development.

https://globalnews.ca/news/11123828/metro-vancouver-cost-savings/

Crucial funds that could have gone towards a train tunnel by the LGB and the new D Island Tunnel. 

https://vancouversun.com/news/metro-vancouver-board-begins-spending-review

A regional network of bus-bridges still isn't part of any official transit plan. Apparently, its better to just funnel buses onto the existing narrow bridges in the region.

https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2025/02/21/metro-vancouver-regional-district-22m-budget-cuts

Despite most of the bridges being too narrow & inefficient for public transit, the SkyTrain was deliberately built to have stations that are much shorter than the Montreal Metro & TTC Subway stations.  

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/metro-vancouver-governance-review-provincial-government-1.7447724

BC has such a reluctant mentality towards thinking big. Thus, a chokepoint or congestive planning mentality has been firmly entrenched.

https://www.coastalfront.ca/read/metro-vancouver-freezes-staff-travel-amid-outrage-over-spending-and-tax-hike

Long trains & bridges wide enough to properly accommodate bus lanes & HOV lanes would actually help to reduce transportation congestion. 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/metro-vancouver-public-engagement-2025-budget-nswwtp-1.7308921

Who knows where all the billions of dollars went over the past several decades, because not enough funds went towards a proper level of transportation infrastructure.

https://metrovancouver.org/about-us/budgets-and-financial-plans

Of course Greater Vancouver was one of the first urban regions to get rid of its streetcars & interurban tram-trains & it will likely be to be one of the last cities to bring them back.

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Metro+Vancouver

vancouver-granville-bridge-social-housing-tower or stump?

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/1395-rolston-street-vancouver-granville-bridge-social-housing-tower

Woodgrove Centre for sale after billionaire owner announced intention to buy Hudson's Bay stores

 https://www.timescolonist.com/business/woodgrove-centre-for-sale-after-billionaire-owner-announced-intention-to-buy-hudsons-bay-stores-10503386

1780-east-broadway-commercial-and-broadway-safeway-rezoning-public-hearing

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/1780-east-broadway-vancouver-commercial-broadway-safeway-rezoning-public-hearing

bc-government-translink-subsidy-new-revenue-sources

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-government-translink-subsidy-new-revenue-sources

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/translink-funding-plan-avoid-cuts-improve-services-fiscal-cliff

overnight-closures-front-street-new-westminster-pattullo-bridge

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/overnight-closures-front-street-new-westminster-pattullo-bridge

new-port-moody-pci-rental-towers-approved

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/60-williams-street-3006-3022-spring-street-port-moody-pci-rental-towers-approved

Crosstown LRT in Toronto

 https://urbantoronto.ca/database/projects/crosstown-lrt.47725

Eglinton Crosstown West Extension in Toronto

 https://urbantoronto.ca/news/2025/04/final-tunnelling-eglinton-crosstown-west-extension-begins.58352

https://urbantoronto.ca/database/projects/eglinton-line-5-crosstown-west-extension.47679

The HUB tower in Toronto

 https://urbantoronto.ca/database/projects/hub.15059

Height 848 ft / 258.46 m

Storeys 59

The Hub could be equivalent to having 65 floors.

An Unusually Painful Process: City Council Votes For SoDo Housing

 https://www.postalley.org/2025/04/08/an-unusually-painful-process-city-council-votes-for-sodo-housing/

https://www.postalley.org/category/cities/

London, Ontario

https://urbantoronto.ca/database/projects/50-king-street.52273

https://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=138409

https://www.zeddarchitecture.com/19-045

 https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?cityID=61&status=15

translink-coquitlam-central-station-park-and-ride-transit-oriented-development

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/translink-coquitlam-central-station-park-and-ride-transit-oriented-development-update

Things before and after Vancouver's Incorporation in 1886

The Edge of the World: BC's Early Years | Knowledge Network https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mco6Z-6xCk

Not from a First Nations perspective, but from the European expansion perspective, BC has been a provincial backwater for a very long time. Unfortunatly, this BC backwater mentality has partially remained through the past several generations. 

History of Vancouver, BC https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqNMp3GHKyw

Despite Vancouver being the main economic city of BC, several things are kept half-size, especially the infrastructure.

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver#Incorporation

Just getting plumbing & then eventually electricity, was challenging enough before 1900. Then from 1950 to 2000 was a series of overlapping restrictions. Almost everything had to be watered down or scaled back, compared to what most cities around the world allow. 

Vancouver, Canada in 1907 (New Version) in Color with simulated sounds added https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTE0OTVOnZU

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia_Electric_Railway#Interurban_rail_lines Fortunatly, Melbourne, SF, Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia & New Orleans never got rid of all of their tram-trains or streetcars, but backwards Vancouver sure did. Despite what is supposed to be a major port city & region, Vancouver opted to have mostly narrow bridges and very short trains. As of 2025, a 2 car joke of a train is still apparently adequate for growing Coquitlam. The Expo_Line just started testing for 5 car trains. Unfortunatly, the Canada_Line to Richmond wasn't designed to accomodate 5 car trains. Only a 2.5 car joke of a Half-A$$ED train is what the short stations can handle. As of 2025, the Canada_Line is still only running 2 car trains.

From 2000 to 2025, several Vancouver & BC restrictions remain in place. Even the NO FUN VANCOUVER mentality hasn't been dissolved enough.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver#Demographics In 2025 Vancouver might have approximately 725,000 people.

The Greater_Vancouver Region and the BC Lower_Mainland might have approximately 3,300,000 people.

Vancouver Whitecaps in talks on building a new PNE stadium

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-whitecaps-stadium-pne-hastings-park

Fewer local residents visiting downtown Vancouver

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/downtown-vancouver-visitation-real-estate-market-statistics

https://vancouversun.com/business/fewer-shoppers-more-vacancies-whats-behind-downtown-vancouver-slump

Bridges over the Bow River in Calgary

https://everydaytourist.ca/calgary-visitor-information/2015/3/2/bridges-over-the-bow

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_bridges_in_Calgary#Crossings

The 4 lane Louise_Bridge has a 2 track counterpart. 

https://calgary.skyrisecities.com/news/2017/04/two-louise-bridges.26322

The Louise+Bridge & its LRT bridge is a good example of how a road & passenger rail corridor can work well.

The 4 lane Cushing+Bridge wasn't widened for buses, so the next best thing was done. A 2 lane bus bridge was built next to the Cushing+Bridge. What is easy & straightforward for Calgary to do seems to be very difficult for Vancouver & BC to achieve. Several bridges in Greater Vancouver should have bus & bike bridges built next to them.

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Cushing+Bridge

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=BRT

The 5 or 6 lane Cambie Bridge

Unfortunatly, backwards Vancouver planning didn't allow for 2 very wide sidewalks on the Cambie_Bridge.

https://vancouver.ca/streets-transportation/cambie-street-bridge-upgrades.aspx

While the current bridge is a great improvement from the previous Cambie_Bridge, there still wasn't enough interest or motivation to really have an adequate bridge. A 5 lane bridge with only 1 wide sidewalk is too half-assed. Due to Vancouver's inability to properly plan & build for the future, the once 6 lane Cambie_Bridge only has 5 lanes & still has a narrow sidewalk on its west side. 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Cambie_Br_in_1986%2C_street-level_view.jpg

If this western sidewalk can ever be built out to be much wider, then the bridge could have 2 proper bike lanes, as well as 2 sidewalks. Then the bridge might have all 6 lanes again. A 6 lane bridge would make it easier to accomodate 2 bus lanes. 

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Cambie+Street+Bridge

The inadequate Arthur Laing Bridge

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Laing_Bridge Another fine example of how Vancouver doesn't allow for proper big city infrastructure planning. The ALB has no sidewalks, no proper bike lanes, & especially, no bus lanes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Laing_Bridge#Since_opening

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Arther_Lang_Bridge_and_Fraser_River%2C_Vancouver_%28504734%29_%2823678427633%29.jpg The 4 lane BC bottlenek mentality is so firmy entreched. There just wasn't any proper concept to have 2 bus lanes, in addition to 4 general lanes. There is no good reason as to why the Arthur+Laing+Bridge wasn't designed to have 2 sidewalks & 2 bike lanes. 

Unless the bridge can slightly be widened on each side, safe & properly separated bike lanes will be unlikely. 

https://bikehub.ca/about-us/news/arthur-laing-bridge-bike-lane-widening

• Arthur Laing Bridge (Richmond-Vancouver): As there are no sidewalks on the bridge, cyclists ride on the shoulders of the roadway. Northbound cyclists can get to the bridge via Russ Baker Way or an off-street pathway that can be accessed from the Airport Station bus loop or from the Airport Connector bridge.

https://www.richmond.ca/parks-recreation/parks-trails-cycling/cycling/cycling_maps.htm

https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/transportation/bicycles-and-cycling

https://evelazarus.com/?s=the+Arthur+Laing+Bridge

This bridge & the Knight+Street+Bridge & the Queensborough_Bridge are so narrow, that there should be bus & bike bridges built next to each of them. 

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Arthur+Laing+Bridge

The BC Coquihalla Highway

 https://www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/article/pedestrian-killed-in-crash-that-closed-coquihalla-highway-near-merritt-bc/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia_Highway_5#Accidents_and_weather

https://www.dangerousroads.org/north-america/canada/4008-coquihalla-highway.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia_Highway_5

https://images.drivebc.ca/bchighwaycam/pub/html/www/380.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia_Highway_5#Coquihalla_Highway

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/coquihalla-highway

https://transcanadahighway.com/british-columbia/bc-tch-history/highway-history-coquihalla-highway-5

https://www.wilsonvilletoyota.com/blog/uncategorized/10-most-treacherous-roads-in-north-america/

Downtown Vancouver sees drop in visitors and an increase in storefront vacancies

 https://www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/article/downtown-vancouver-sees-drop-in-visitors-increase-in-storefront-vacancies/

From the old and inadequate Fraser Street Bridge to the inadequate KSB

Somewhere in between 1950 & 1960, the old Fraser_Street_Bridge should have been replaced with a new 4 lane bridge, with 2 very wide sidewalks for bikes & a future provision for 2 bus lanes. Unfortunatly, backwards Vancouver has always been a city without a proper big city vision.

https://evelazarus.com/the-fraser-street-swing-span-bridge

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraser_Street_Bridge_(1894)#Provincial_government_headache

https://www.richmond-news.com/local-news/photos-and-video-was-this-the-unluckiest-bridge-between-richmond-and-vancouver-4475444

https://search.nbca.unbc.ca/index.php/fraser-st-road-bridge-in-vancouver-bc-1 In the late 1800s, just being able to have a bridge roadway width of 2 wagon-roads in backwater BC was amazing. Then, decades & even several generations later, any BC bridge that could provide 2 wagon-roads each way was even more amazing. 

https://structurae.net/en/structures/fraser-avenue-street-bridge

As usual, Vancouver & BC lost & messed up an opportunity to have 2 great new bridges.

https://structurae.net/en/structures/knight-street-bridge

https://evelazarus.com/the-knight-street-bridge-part-2

Once again, the lack of a proper big city vision resulted in the inadequate design for the 4 lane Knight+Street+Bridge. However, it makes sense from a bottleneck planing mentality. Despite Vancouver being part of what is suppose to be a major port region and in need of proper transportation corridors, the Knight_Street_Bridge is a classic chokepoint.

https://www.richmond-news.com/local-news/work-on-knight-street-bridge-in-richmond-below-deck-as-well-7319230

Just because the Knight_Street_Bridge started out as a 4 lane joke, there immediately should have been 2 wide shoulders, which could have eventually become 2 extra lanes. Plus, there should have been a future provision to add 2 bus & HOV lanes. Two wide sidewalks & 2 wide bike lanes. However, that would go against the congestive planning mentality.

Downtown Vancouver visitors and sales down, vacant stores and costs up

 https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2025/04/03/downtown-vancouver-visitors-sales-drop-report-bia/

https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2025/04/03/vancouver-retail-theft-task-force/

B.C.’s fast-growing cities getting hammered by rapidly rising property taxes

 https://vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/b-c-s-fast-growing-cities-getting-hammered-by-rapidly-rising-property-taxes

Report details challenges vs. opportunities facing downtown Vancouver

 https://globalnews.ca/news/11114359/state-of-downtown-report/

Canary Wharf, London

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canary_Wharf

https://canarywharf.com/living/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isle_of_Dogs#Society

https://offices.canarywharf.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Borough_of_Tower_Hamlets#Geography

https://canarywharf.com/the-estate/

https://www.propertyinsidelondon.com/chinese-get-greenlight-for-67-floor-canary-wharf-resi-tower/

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/londons-canary-wharf-sees-15-bln-slashed-property-values-2024-04-25/

https://www.propertyinsidelondon.com/buying-uk-residential-property-a-brief-guide-for-overseas-investors/

Just another stump in Swiss Cottage, London, UK

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Cottage#Urban_development

https://www.hamhigh.co.uk/news/24198051.new-owner-pledges-finish-swiss-cottage-tower-block/

https://www.constructionenquirer.com/2022/08/07/stalled-100m-north-london-build-to-rent-tower-to-start/

https://www.housingtoday.co.uk/news/regal-to-increase-numbers-of-homes-in-proposed-24-storey-block-to-make-scheme-viable/5131568.article Not 48, only 24 floors.

https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/government-approves-contentious-grid-tower

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalcots_Estate Only 23 stories, not 46.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Cottage#Transport

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Cottage_(ward)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primrose_Hill

Tallest buildings in Switzerland

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Switzerland#Completed_buildings

https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/country/switzerland

No office tower in Vancouver or BC in general, is as tall as the Roche_Tower, at 178 metres (584 ft). No building in strict Vancouver, whatsoever, is permitted to be as tall as Roche_Tower_2. However, some buildings outside of small Vancouver are being allowed to be taller than the tallest building in Basel.

Metro Vancouver's population climbs to over three million residents

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/metro-vancouver-population-growth-three-million

view of pattullo-bridge-replacement

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/pattullo-bridge-replacement-footage

Power outages persist in hard-hit areas after Ontario ice storm

 https://www.cp24.com/news/2025/04/01/power-outages-persist-in-hard-hit-areas-after-ontario-ice-storm/

Its suppose to be spring.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/barrie/article/central-ontario-power-restoration-timelines/

Unfortunatly, not everyone has a home power generator.

https://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/freezing-rain-downed-trees-leave-more-than-400-000-without-power-across-ontario-following-ice/article_7675b34c-ff59-4eb4-a2d5-5200ecdac014.html

https://poweroutage.com/ca/province/ontario

https://weather.gc.ca/data/wxoimages/wocanmap0_e.jpg There is nothing like being stuck in a freezing part of Canada without any electric power.

https://weather.gc.ca/canada_e.html

30-storey rental housing tower proposed for Cambie Street Bridges' south end

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/2219-2285-cambie-street-vancouver-rental-housing-tower-nicola

Long Trains and Stations 150m +

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_(New_York_City_Subway_service)#Rolling_stock , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Subway_rolling_stock

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montreal_Metro#Rolling_stock

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_%22L%22#Rolling_stock

Medium Length Trains and Stations 100m +

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome_Metro#Rolling_stock

metro and subway

Short Trains and Stations 40-100m

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitachi_Rail_Italy_Driverless_Metro#Rolling_stock

The line uses 256 ft (78 m) four-car train sets, each with the capacity to carry nearly 800 passengers,^[213] similar in weight to heavy rail systems elsewhere in the United States (such as the Chicago 'L' in Chicago, Illinois). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_(Honolulu)#Rolling_stock

The articulated, four-car trains are 50 metres (160 ft) long. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thessaloniki_Metro#Stations,_depot_and_rolling_stock

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_Light_Rail#Current_fleet LRT

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MetroLink_(St._Louis)#Rolling_stock

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_Trolley#Fleet

Tallest buildings in Chicago

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Chicago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Chicago#Tallest_buildings

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Chicago#Under_construction

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Chicago#Approved_and_proposed

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Chicago#Timeline_of_tallest_buildings

Tallest buildings in NYC

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_New_York_City

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_New_York_City#Tallest_buildings

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_New_York_City#Tallest_under_construction_or_proposed

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_New_York_City#Approved

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_New_York_City#Proposed

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_New_York_City#Timeline_of_tallest_buildings