https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perth_Zoo
https://www.wanowandthen.com/perth-zoo.html Since 1898.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perth_Zoo#Exhibits
https://junctionjournalism.com/2023/10/17/perth-zoo-aging-with-grace/
Saturday, May 31, 2025
Perth Zoo
Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodland_Park_Zoo
https://www.citypass.com/articles/seattle/guide-woodland-park-zoo
https://www.zoo.org Since 1899. https://www.zoo.org/about
Seattle just like Calgary, has a nice Zoo within its city limits.
Dinotown was a prehistoric theme park in the BC part of Canada
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/remembering-dinotown-bc
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinotown
While the BC facility faded away, the Alberta version is still thriving.
https://www.calgaryzoo.com/plan-your-visit/animal-zones/prehistoric-park , https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=lWXtrftSBWE&t=70s
https://newsroom.calgary.ca/dinosaurs-dancing-and-the-birth-of-a-prehistoric-park/
https://calgaryheritage.org/wp/the-calgary-zoo-past-and-present/
Then there is the Greater+Vancouver+Mezosoic+Adventure (Park), but it's quite a way east of Vancouver.
Cold and Rainy Vancouver, BC
While the winter Climate_of_Vancouver is mild when compared to Edmonton, Winnipeg & Montreal, it's still cold & damp for at least half of the year.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Vancouver#Temperatures
Some people do build private swimming+pools in Vancouver & SW BC, but unless they are heated & covered, it's pointless. That's because there are only a few months of the year when it's warm enough to be in an outdoor, unheated pool.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Vancouver#Rain
Summer is the best 3 months out of the 12, but even during the summer the crappy, cold & damp weather can still drop by.
The Greater Vancouver Zoo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Vancouver_Zoo
While the Greater+Vancouver+Zoo seems to have a lot of space for future growth, there doesn't seem to be that much there now.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Vancouver_Zoo#21st_century
Unlike Perth, Seattle, Calgary & Edmonton, the Greater+Vancouver+Zoo is quite far away from the city of Vancouver.
https://604now.com/stanley-park-zoo-vancouver-british-columbia-history/
https://vancouverguardian.com/old-photographs-stanley-park-zoo/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_Park#Zoo_and_Children's_Farmyard
Friday, May 30, 2025
Metro Vancouver weather: A Rainstorm before a long streak of sunny days
Just another cold, crappy rainy Saturday for Vancouver.
https://vancouver.ca/parks-recreation-culture/swimming-pools.aspx
While there are some outside pools, there are only a few months of the year when it's warm enough to be swilling outside.
https://activifinder.com/blog/69/best-swimming-pools-in-vancouver
While summer could and should be at least 90, or even 100 days, sometimes a quarter to a 3rd of the summer can be like autumn.
https://healthyfamilyliving.com/outdoor-pools-metro-vancouver/
https://www.yelp.ca/search?cflt=swimmingpools&find_loc=Vancouver%2C+BC
Thursday, May 29, 2025
Wednesday, May 28, 2025
Why Nobody Wants To Live In Upstate New York
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtlGzVZjf2k
There just isn't enough bricks, steel & concrete upstate.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upstate_New_York
Most of New_York_State is wilderness.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_New_York_(state)
Most of the population prefers to live in NYC or the New_York_metropolitan_area, because that's where most of the people, employment, bricks, steel & concrete is.
Downstate Illinois
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downstate_Illinois
Most of Illinois isnt urban.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois#Geography
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_metropolitan_area
Most of the population prefers to reside in Chicagoland, because that's where most of the people, employment, bricks, steel & concrete are.
Saturday, May 24, 2025
Is the Tsawwassen Mills (mall) set for an expansion?
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/tsawwassen-mills-expansion-dining-entertainment-upgrades
https://www.destinationvancouver.com/things-to-do/tsawwassen-mills-central-walk-tsawwassen-mills-inc
https://vancouversun.com/news/bc-billionaire-mall-owner-seeks-hudsons-bay-leases
https://centralwalk.com/tsawwassen-mills/
https://www.stantec.com/en/projects/canada-projects/t/tsawwassen-mills
https://www.tsawwassenmills.com/
Its mindboggling that there doesn't seem to be a proper regional rail transportation plan to connect Tsawwassen+Mills with the Tsawwassen+ferry+terminal, Richmond and YVR. Of course there doesn't seem to be a proper regional rail plan to connect Vancouver with the Park_Royal_Shopping_Centre and the Horseshoe+Bay+ferry+terminal, as well.
The lack of vision to link both ferry terminals with the airport is a fine example of inept transportation planning in BC.
The future of Hudson's Bay
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/hudsons-bay-central-walk-store-leases-acquisition-agreement
If The Bay can only live on through a new owner, so be it.
Friday, May 23, 2025
Metro Vancouver Regional District to pursue major governance reforms
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/metro-vancouver-regional-district-governance-reform-deloitte-report
Why put an adequate amount of funds towards the regional transportation infrastructure, when it can be wasted on other things? That's what inept regional planning is suppose to do. Fortunately, most urban areas around the world try to avoid such a foolish approach.
There should be a 40-60 year audit to determine why Metro Vancouver doesn't have long, high capacity trains that real proper cities have.
https://globalnews.ca/news/11194788/metro-vancouver-board-changes-report/
There would also have to be an audit of the mismanagement over the past several decades to determine why Metro Vancouver doesn't have a regional network of bus & HOV bridges.
https://vancouversun.com/news/metro-vancouver-vows-change-consultants-report
https://www.nsnews.com/opinion/editorial-metro-vancouver-is-more-than-the-wastewater-boondoggle-10176971 So much extra money went towards a shit-box & a shit-pipe, that should have gone towards an express bus & high capacity train tunnel between Vancouver & Park Royal & the ferry terminal.
https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/consultant-releases-damning-report-on-metro-vancouver-governance This is shit-box planning & funding at its best. Apparently, all this regional B$ was to just keep going on until enough people started to realize that something is wrong in Vancouver & BC.
Metrotown to Park Royal
Of course an express bus route from Metrotown+to+Park+Royal should have been established before the 1990s. Unfortunatly, Vancouver & BC mover very slowly towards getting various things done.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RapidBus_(TransLink)#Metrotown_to_North_Shore
Metro Vancouver weather: Record-breaking heat, highs up to 28 C soon
https://www.nsnews.com/weatherhood-local/metro-vancouver-weather-record-breaking-heat-may-2025-10702418 I almost thought that this article was a joke at first.
After a cold, rainy & gloomy spring, there might be a chance of a nice, warm summer. Hardly hot though, when Vancouver usually has a tough time breaking 30C. Most of the spring days never even reached, let alone exceeded 20C.
Canada's cost of living is so damn high!
UBC tower in Kelowna, BC
https://ok.ubc.ca/about/ubco-downtown , https://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=147739
https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?cityID=48&status=15
https://ok.ubc.ca/about/ubco-downtown/why-ubco-downtown/
https://www.kelownadailycourier.ca/news/article_2957e4e0-d7f1-11ee-84d4-fb12b9ae9269.html
There should be a UBC tower in or around Vancouver that's at least 65 stories.
https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?stateID=1&status=15
401 West Georgia Street
https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/vancouver/401-west-georgia/25079 This could have been a nice slender 50 story tower, but instead its just a 22 story stump.
https://www.biv.com/news/real-estate/institutions-flirt-with-premium-offices-in-vancouver-10691979
BC Government orders West Vancouver to expand community plans for more housing
There should have been an official plan to extend the Canada embarrassment Line to the Park+Royal+Shopping+Centre and the Horseshoe+Bay ferry terminal. Unfortunatly, Vancouver and the metropolitan region isn't a normal city with proper urban transportation planning.
While a rapid bus line connecting Metrotown+to+Park+Royal is a good idea, a rapid rail transit line between the Horseshoe+Bay+ferry+terminal and downtown Vancouver must be considered an essential link, someday.
Thursday, May 22, 2025
Does Metro Vancouver’s bloated bureaucracy need a reality check?
The region has been ineptly managed for decades. Instead of planning for proper long trains, short SkyTrain stations were built instead. Too many narrow bridges that make it difficult, if not impossible to have an efficient network of bus & HOV lanes.
While a half-assed, BC version of RapidBus can sort of work, but there needs to be a system of bus-bridges for it to be a very efficient system.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RapidBus_(TransLink)#RapidBus_routes
The Proposed complex at 501-595 W. Georgia St, which would be 315m / 1,033 ft. on the Skyline of Vancouver
https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.redd.it%2F55x0wipoy72f1.jpeg
Due to the multigenerational strict height limits in Vancouver, the city has been prevented from having anything as tall as the Sky_Tower_in_Auckland, which is 328 metres (1,076 ft) tall. It would only be slightly taller than the Sydney_Tower, which is 309 m (1,014 ft). Both of these cities are just as scenic, if not more so than damp Vancouver. Plus, they are in warmer climates.
Wednesday, May 21, 2025
Metro Vancouver's public transit ridership growth
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/translink-ridership-statistics-2024
A longer train helps to reduce the under capacity issue. SkyTrain should be called, SHORT-TRAIN.
No matter how many bus routes, unless there is a series of bus-bridges for the region, everything gets funneled on-to mostly narrow, inadequate bridges.
SkyTrain is overwhelmingly used
Just because it's an LRT train, there still should have been a proper provision to have at least 152.5m or 500 foot long trains, like the Montreal Metro. However, a 500 ft. long train goes against the backwards, KEEP IT SMALL symbolism & mentality that permeates throughout Vancouver & backwater BC. Allowing for a proper big-city train isn't just symbolically BIG, but necessary for any city that tries to reduce congestion. Unfortunatly, Vancouver & BC keeps opting for the reduced capacity option, because it fits in with the congestive planning agenda.
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
TransLink to extend North Shore RapidBus route to Metrotown starting in 2027
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/r2-rapidbus-north-shore-metrotown-burnaby-route-extension
https://aquilinidevelopment.com/community/kwasen-village
The Kwasen Village & BCIT area is becoming a new intersection of housing & shopping, as well as education. So, hopefully starting in 2027, there will be an express bus from Metrotown_to_West-
Perth, WA built a 10 lane bridge with double train tracks in the middle of it.
https://www.skyperth.com/
Seattle, WA did something similar, but their 3 section bridge or crossing has 4 lanes each way & a double track middle section.
https://www.mi-reporter.com/
Montreal also did something similar to Seattle & Perth.
https://rem.info/en/albums/
Being from backwards Vancouver & backwater BC, it's always amazing to see what other places can do, simply because they aren't in BC.
Fortunately, Perth, Seattle & Montreal don't have to contend with anything like the inept Vancouver & BC transportation mentality. It's mindboggeling that in 2025, Vancouver is still only running 4 car trains to Surrey & only 2 car trains to Coquitlam & Richmond. This, combined with several narrow bridges, makes it one of the most congested cities in the world. It's a sad & pathetic situation, because things in BC should be designed for proper future capacity expansion.
A ‘Bus priority system’ at traffic signals reduces delays in Dubai, but not in Vancouver
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai Unlike Vancouver, when there are extra lanes, it's so much easier to have proper bus lanes & even HOV lanes. It's just a matter of efficiently using that wider road-space. The backwards Vancouver & backwater BC approach is to try to funnel everything into 2 lanes each way whenever possible.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emirate_of_Dubai Whether its a hot climate or a cold climate, people aren't going to be walking or biking around in 40 to 45C or in -30 to -40C weather.
https://www.dubai.ae/web/dubai.ae/city-of-future
Unless backwards Vancouver & backwater BC build a proper system of bus & HOV bridges & have longer SkyTrain station, it all remains a sad joke. The Iron Bridge replacement, if it ever happens, must not only have 3 general lanes each way, but an extra 2 lanes each way for Rapid Bus Transit & HOV. A 10 lane bridge with a provision for a lower deck, is what a proper big city would do, but Vancouver only wants to be a toy city or a movie set full of fake props.
Could the Site C dam’s massive worker camp end up in a B.C. landfill?
https://globalnews.ca/news/11188195/site-c-dam-housing-landfill/
More backwards BC foolishness! These housing units could be relocated & reassemble into an affordable housing facility. If someone has been living on the street for several months or years, they would be happy to have their own safe living unit.
Long waits a ‘defining aspect’ of Vancouver byelection, report finds
https://globalnews.ca/news/11188313/vancouver-council-byelection-long-waits/
Not properly preparing for the amount of people voting is all part of the multigenerational backwards Vancouver & BC mentality.
With so many narrow bridges in Greater Vancouver, there should have been a system of bus & HOV bridges built, instead of funneling everything into such narrow crossings.
Proper long-range urban planning would have allowed for easy future clearance to double the length of the first 2 skytrain stations & triple the length of the Canada (embasesment) Line. The first 2 lines only have about 80m for platform length & the 3rd line only has absurd 50m stations. In contrast, the high capacity Montreal Metro has 152.5m long stations, as does the TTC Subway.
Thinking big & building big has always been a problem for backwards Vancouver & backwater BC.
Toronto could experience coldest May stretch this week since 1967
https://toronto.citynews.ca/2025/05/20/toronto-weather-this-week-may-forecast/
This is totally depressing. Apparently, as more places get hotter around the world, Canada has a colder spring. If the summers start to become truncated, some people just might give up and move to Australia.
There already have been some Australian cities that are warmer during their winters than some Canadian cities during their summers.
Burnaby’s municipal government is looking to put a greater emphasis on catalyzing economic and business growth
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/burnaby-task-force-economic-growth
Burnaby might eventually have a taller office tower than what's allowed in stumpy Vancouver. In the meantime, taller residential towers exist in Burnaby, because Burnaby isn't under the the extrem Vancouver restrictions.
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/concord-metrotown-metropolis-at-metrotown-construction-redevelopment
Stumpy Vancouver wont permit any residential tower to have 65 stories. No office tower in Vancouver has been allowed to have a 40th floor.
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-new-tallest-building-bc-gilmore-place
New hotels in Montreal
https://blog.mtl.org/en/new-hotels
https://www.newhotelsopening.com/new-hotels-in-montreal.html
Unlike Montreal, Vancouver keeps falling behind, because of its provincial backwater mentality.
https://www.biv.com/news/real-estate/vancouver-needs-10k-more-hotel-rooms-says-report-10508458
Vancouver’s Tiniest Movie Theatre?
https://scoutmagazine.ca/you-should-know-about-vancouvers-tiniest-movie-theatre/
So many things are kept small and backwards in Vancouver & backwater BC. Hower, a nice small theater prop in this case, is very quaint & interesting.
The Mount Royal Tunnel in Montreal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Royal_Tunnel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Royal_Tunnel#REM
https://rem.info/en/news/first-passage-rem-through-mount-royal-tunnel-and-start-dynamic-testing-area
https://www.montrealgazette.com/news/article144286.html
Even the REM train stations should be expandable to eventually accomodate 6-8 car trains.
The Dunsmuir_Tunnel was rebuilt to become a double deck tunnel providing a split_platform station configuration. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Split_platform#North_America
Unfortunatly, the Burrard_station & Granville_station platforms were only built to be 80m, when they should have been 155m-160m. This would have helped to eventually have 9 car SkyTrains, just like 9 car Montreal Metro trains.
With proper long-range planning in mind, the SkyTrain should have been planned to eventually be a double length LRT system. Instead, its been challenging enough just to establish 5 car trains on the first 2 lines.
Unfortunatly, the 3rd line or Canada_Line was built to only have 50m, whereas the Montreal Metro has 152.5m long stations.
The Canada_Line_Stations have platforms that are only 50 metres (160 ft) long, when all the stations should have been built with a future clearance of 160m. That would have allowed for a future provision to eventually accommodate at least 8 car trains at each station.
The Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downtown_Seattle_Transit_Tunnel
Unlike in backwards Vancouver, a bus tunnel, a bus bridge, or a HOV crossing that is designed to eventually become part of a LRT conduit, makes sense.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downtown_Seattle_Transit_Tunnel#Bus_tunnel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downtown_Seattle_Transit_Tunnel#Opening_and_bus-only_operation
An express bus tunnel from downtown Vancouver to W. Vancouver & H. Bay would make sense. Especially, if it was designed to eventually be for a LRT crossing. Unfortunatly, backwards Vancouver & BC usually opt for the congestive planning choice.
Monday, May 19, 2025
Sunday, May 18, 2025
Former Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson’s appointment as housing minister
"The one thing, from this corner anyway, that it feels fair to rake him over the coals for, is using ending homelessness by 2015 as an election campaign item in 2008.
Hindsight is 20/20, of course. But not only didn’t happen and the problem got a whole lot worse—it seems, at least now, like an incredibly irresponsible thing to put in the pamphlets of an election campaign. It was a callous, cheap promise to make and one that showed a lack of understanding of the complexity of the issues at play. The other levels of government didn’t force Robertson to make that promise." https://www.straight.com/city-culture/5-ways-of-looking-at-former-vancouver-mayor-gregor-robertsons-appointment-as-housing
Saturday, May 17, 2025
The TTC streetcar to the CNE
https://www.ttc.ca/news/2022/August/Take-the-TTC-to-the-CNE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exhibition_Loop
https://www.ttc.ca/news/2024/August/TTC-increasing-service-to-The-Ex-for-CNE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exhibition_Loop#Future
https://www.theex.com/getting-here/#public-transit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterfront_West_LRT#Route_layout
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toronto_streetcar_system
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toronto_streetcar_system#Routes
It would have been devastating if Vancouver's backwards mentality had convinced Toronto, SF & Melbourn to get rid of their streetcars & trams.
https://transittoronto.ca/archives/weblog/2024/08/14-lets_go_--.shtml
Playland and the PNE
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/playland-weekend-opening-wild-mouse
https://kumtuks.ca/streetcars-and-metro-vancouver/
https://scoutmagazine.ca/how-to-find-the-old-streetcar-scars-of-east-van/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/256850977796478/posts/3032980890183459/
https://montecristomagazine.com/community/vancouvers-forgotten-streetcars
https://stephenrees.blog/2008/03/11/vancouver-to-rebuild-granville-island-streetcar-route/
https://stephenrees.blog/2010/03/22/vancouver-says-goodbye-to-olympic-streetcar/
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-olympic-line-streetcar-future
While backwards Vancouver was so quick to get rid of its streetcars & tram-trains, Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, New Orleans, SF, Portland, Seattle & especially Melbourne, retained or revived some of their lines.
https://transittoronto.ca/archives/weblog/2024/08/14-lets_go_--.shtml
Friday, May 16, 2025
The Prudential Center (Boston)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prudential_Center_(Boston)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prudential_station
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_Bay,_Boston#Transportation
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Boston_Back_Bay.jpg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_Bay,_Boston#Other_prominent_buildings
Vancouver city council decision on controversial towers development delayed
https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/vancouver-council-decision-towers-delayed-june-10
There is a good argument to have more affordable housing in these towers.
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-housing-city-hall-polka
Thus, if a developer was allowed to build 10-20 floors higher by including more affordable units, then there would be more vertical space to work with.
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/1780-east-broadway-commercial-vancouver-safeway-proposal-public-hearing While these would be consider to be MEGATOWERS by Victoria, Prince George & Kamloops, they wouldn't be in Burnaby or eventually Surrey & Coquitlam.
The Safeway, parking lot & the Commercial-Broadway_station area is all a prime high-rise development zone.
Edmonton's high level bridge streetcar
https://exploreedmonton.com/attractions-and-experiences/high-level-bridge-streetcar
Even though it's a small attempt, Edmonton was able to reactivate a portion of its old streetcar system.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Level_Bridge_Streetcar
https://www.edmontonstreetcars.ca/about/history
https://www.edmontonstreetcars.ca/highlevelbridge
"It was designed from the outset to accommodate rail, streetcar, two-way automobile, and pedestrian traffic.[2] The original bridge design included three tracks on the upper deck: The middle track was for CPR trains, and the two outer tracks were for streetcars." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Level_Bridge_(Edmonton)
The High_Level_Bridge opened in 1913 & had 1 heavy rail track in the middle & a streetcar track on either side. Even by 2013, backwards Vancouver didn't have a triple track railway bridge within its city limits. Indeed, by 2025, its been tough enough to have a double track freight train bridge & a double track commuter rail bridge within the Greater Vancouver Region. Fortunately, the SkyTrain is at least double tracked, except for the end of the line in Richmond.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Level_Bridge_(Edmonton)#Modifications
Vancouver was one of the first cities to get rid of them and will likely be one of the last cities to bring them back. Things are more possible in Alberta, simply because its a separate jurisdiction & mentality than backwater BC.
Thursday, May 15, 2025
Pattullo Bridge closed over Victoria Day weekend
The shutdown to motor vehicles is needed as part of the replacement project on the span between Surrey and New West https://vancouversun.com/news/traffic-alert-pattullo-bridge-closed-victoria-day-weekend
Why Chicago's Express Train Isn't Really Express
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8gDlolaqZQ
What's Left of Chicago's Lost "L" Stations? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0hKL9b_OBE
What Lies Beneath Chicago? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBVF-CMSORo
Wednesday, May 14, 2025
YVR receives unique accolade among the world's best airports
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/yvr-worlds-best-airports-accessibility
Unfortunatly, the YVR-Airport_station has one of the shortest & narrowest stations of any major airport.
In true lack of a big vision for BC, the YVR-Airport_station_Platform is so narrow & short that only 1 train at a time can stop on the very short single track station. While such small-scale train infrastructure would be impressive for Victoria, Kelowna, Prince George & Kamloops, it's hardly impressive to Seattle, WA and Perth, WA.
https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/transportation/public-transportation
https://thecanadaline.com/station-guides/yvr-airport/
https://www.translink.ca/schedules-and-maps/station/yvr-airport/schedule
Being from backwards BC, it's amazing to see how several major airports will have at least a double track airport train station. The Portland_Airport_MAX_station is another one of them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland_Airport_station , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MAX_Red_Line
Ideally, the+airport+train should be more than a 2 car joke. Even 4 car trains should be able to stop at stations with enough future clearance to accomodate 6 car trains.
B.C. considers a vehicle levy to help fund Translink
While a better funding approach would be good, its sad that all the Vancouver SkyTrain stations were designed to be so short. Apparently, it was to save money, but it will cost a lot more to try to gradually lengthen those very short SkyTrain stations.
Martello Tower in Vancouver, BC
| Height | 91 m (298 ft) |
| Floors | 32 |
| Construction Year | 1968 |
https://www.skydb.net/building/271949875/martello-tower-vancouver
Only 32 stories, not 64.
https://www.apartments.com/martello-tower-vancouver-bc/844fnx3/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/3321188921434592/posts/3959736840913127/
Tuesday, May 13, 2025
BC continues a go-slow approach to the Massey tunnel replacement as fears of a price rise grow
This is the epitome of multigenerational BC transportation planning ineptness & B$!
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Massey+Tunnel+replacement
Marina City in Chicago
Marina_City (MC) "The complex consists of two 587-foot (179 m), 65-story apartment towers, opened in 1963" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marina_City#Architecture
https://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=107021 The 57 story Butterfly tower in Vancouver is 586 feet, so its only 1 foot shorter than Marina_City. MC was able to fit in 65 floors into the same height.
https://reveryarchitecture.com/projects/butterfly/
https://westbankcorp.com/body-of-work/the-butterfly
https://www.canadianarchitect.com/revery-unveils-design-of-the-butterfly
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Chicago
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Chicago-00.jpg Marina City is in the top, middle part of this picture and is hardly noticeable on the Chicago skyline.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Chicago#Tallest_buildings
Being from smallminded Vancouver, its always amazing to see how so many cities are allowed to be on a big scale.
Monday, May 12, 2025
Mountains cover 75 per cent of British Columbia
https://www.welcomebc.ca/choose-b-c/explore-british-columbia/geography-of-b-c
Yet, somehow if Vancouver was allowed to have real big city tall buildings, the mountains of BC would be blocked out.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_British_Columbia
The stumpy building limits are part of the agenda to keep BC small.
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/geography-of-british-columbia
The Greater Vancouver region & lower mainland is the only part of backwater BC that has a few million people.
https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-10-highest-mountains-in-british-columbia.html
Greater Victoria & Nanaimo are far from having a million people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_British_Columbia#Mountains_and_mountain_ranges
Even Kelowna, Penticton & Vernon are nowhere near half a million residents.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_British_Columbia#Western_System
https://www.britannica.com/place/British-Columbia
Switzerland can fit into BC almost 24 times, yet BC doesnt have the population of one CH.
The rise and fall of the BC inter-urban railway
"The BC Electric Inter-Urban Railway ran trams from New Westminster to Chilliwack from 1912 to 1950" https://www.surreynowleader.com/community/north-delta-history-the-rise-and-fall-of-the-inter-urban-railway-2947692
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia_Electric_Railway#Interurban_rail_lines
https://maps.nicholsonroad.com/bcer/
https://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=3498
https://www.chilliwack.com/main/page.cfm?id=3111
https://buildchilliwack.com/a-rail-idea-that-wont-quit-revisiting-fraser-valley-rail-proposals/
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/fraser-valley-metro-vancouver-regional-rail-west-coast-express
Pattullo Bridge fully closing to traffic for multiple days
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/pattullo-bridge-full-closure-long-weekend
Backwards BC has always had a problem with proper planning for future infrastructure capacity. In the 1930s, NW was the remnant of a small backwater provincial capital. In the late 1800s or the early 1900s, NW could have absorbed what is today known as the Tri-Cities. There could have been better cooperation with Surrey to become a proper river metropolis region.
Unfortunatly, in the 1930s it was still amazing just to have plumbing & electricity in Surrey. So to have a Pattullo-Bridge (PB) with 4 wagon roads on it, was also amazing. Apparently, there was only enough funds to have one sidewalk. The PB should have been on a similar scale as the Burrard_St._Bridge, with 6 lanes & 2 sidewalks & even a provision for a lower tram-train deck. But in backwards BC such forward planning is difficult.
Of course the Burrard+Street+Bridge was reduced to 4 lanes and the replacement of the 4 lane Pattullo+Bridge will only open with 4 lanes. Of course there is no provision for a rail transit line on it.
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Pattullo+Bridge
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=the+BC+inter-urban+railway
The Richmond-Delta Tunnel
It was first called, the Deas Island Tunnel and then the George_Massey_Tunnel. Perhaps the new tunnel will be given a different name. This narrow tunnel has been a serious chokepoint for several decades. Apparently, there wasn't any proper big city planning, despite there being a ferry terminal & the Delta Port facilities.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Massey_Tunnel#Replacement
Even the new tunnel will be symbolic or indicative of not having a train between the Delta ferry terminal and YVR. The new tunnel or crossing should have been built in 2 phases.
First, the two 4 lane sections for general traffic & buses. Then, as port & truck traffic increases, a train & truck tunnel or bridge should be built.
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Massey+Tunnel+replacement
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Richmond+and+Delta
Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal
Why have a proper high capacity rail line connecting the Horseshoe_Bay_ferry_terminal to YVR, when so much traffic is funneled into the narrow 3 lane Lions+Gate+Bridge and the inadequate 4 lane Oak Street Bridge?
https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.6578199
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Horseshoe+Bay+ferry+terminal
Tsawwassen ferry terminal and Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal
Backwards BC has been under a multigenerational lack of vision planning trap. A primary example of this is the lack of an official plan to have a high capacity rail link connecting the Tsawwassen_ferry_terminal and the Horseshoe_Bay_ferry_terminal to YVR.
https://www.bcferries.com/travel-boarding/terminal-directions-parking-food/vancouver-tsawwassen/TSA
https://www.bcferries.com/routes-fares/schedules/daily/TSA-SWB
https://www.bcferries.com/routes-fares/schedules/daily/TSA-DUK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6EaFGz9zXA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsawwassen_ferry_terminal#History
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Tsawwassen+ferry+terminal
https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Horseshoe+Bay+ferry+terminal