Urban Tech Links: UTL: Search results for B.C.

A Skytrain branch to Newton would be a good thing, but BC has a problem with getting enough funding to build proper big city size infrastructure. When things are finally built in BC, the trains are short and most of the bridges are still too narrow.

As usual, Greater Vancouver has been very slow to improve on a regional express bus network. A regional BRT system is still so Half-A$$ED, because there hasn't been a series of proper bus-bridges built over the Inlet and rivers for the past several decades.

B.C. judge rules Abbotsford killers' Charter rights were breached

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-judge-abbotsford-homicide-faint-hope-9.7387506

Its so unfortunate and tragic that they weren't able to call police, or even have an emergency help button that they could press. Some people might not only have a guard dog, but a special personal security drone on their house.

Family frustrated as sentencing delayed for men who killed Abbotsford couple

A B.C. judge ruled that restricting people who commit multiple murders from applying for early parole under the 'faint-hope' clause is unconstitutional https://vancouversun.com/news/family-frustrated-sentencing-delayed-for-men-who-killed-abbotsford-couple

Isn't it also unconstitutional to invade someone's home, tie them up, torture them, rob and then murder the occupants? Anyone who uses the argument that they need to rob people, and even kill them if they deem it so, but should still expect to eventually be on parole, has a strange perception of punishment for violent crime.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/lawyers-for-killers-of-abbotsford-couple-argue-for-earlier-parole-eligibility-9.7330406

Monday, October 19, 2026

B.C. judge says parole rules for multiple murderers unconstitutional

https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/10/19/bc-judge-says-parole-rules-for-murderers-unconstitutional/

Even if the defense can argue that the home invaders only wanted to rob them, something doesn't make sense. If the objective was to rob a house at night when the occupants were in bed, but then the thugs thought that it was necessary to tie them up, that might be considered to be a form of torture, especially during such a traumatic situation. Then, instead of just tying them up and leave, they thought that it was necessary to tape up an elderly mans face until he sufficated. Then it was also necessary to stab the tied up elderly woman.

So, somehow this is just supposed to be just a botched robbery and not cold blooded murder. Are hoodlums, thugs and robbers to expect that if a victim dies during the commission of a crime like a home invasion, they can still expect to eventually be out on parole someday?

Hopefully, enough family survivors and friends of such victims can get the law changed. To invade and rob people in their own home and then kill them, but not expect to get a life sentence is absurd.
In some countries such criminals are executed, but in Canada they can expect to be on parole even after committing cold blooded murder.

Doug McCallum's victory in Surrey

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/surrey-doug-mccallum-mayor-2026-voters

Unlike Québec, Ontario and Alberta, BC has no individual city with at least a million people. However, the Greater_Vancouver Metropolitan Regional_District has over 2.6 million people and the BC Lower_Mainland has over 3 million residents.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/metro-vancouver-civic-election-mayoral-winners-results-2026

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_census_metropolitan_areas_and_agglomerations_in_Canada#List

Long-term care dilemma in BC

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-hospital-crisis-long-term-care-investments

Saturday, October 17, 2026

Doug McCallum dethrones Brenda Locke and reclaims position as Surrey’s mayor

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/doug-mccallum-elected-surrey-mayor-2026-election

Surrey is still set to become the biggest city in BC and Vancouver can't stop it. However, provincial NW stopped Surrey from having a new 6 lane bridge. The stal̕əw̓asəm Bridge should have opened with 2 bus lanes and 2 emergency lanes, or at least 2 wide shoulders. Instead, the stal̕əw̓asəm Bridge only opened with 2 general lanes each way, with no provision for LRT and BRT on a lower deck.

Friday, October 16, 2026

City of Surrey in BC

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/surrey-civic-election-advance-voting-2026-turnout

Canada Is Building a Mega Port That Could Change Global Shipping

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0pN2GcIw1o

When all the usual BC restrictions kick in and thwart the scale and progress, it remains to be seen as to how much will be built.

Wednesday, October 14, 2026

B.C. Court blocks demolition of Vancouver Aquatic Centre until Nov 3 (after civic election)

https://cityhallwatch.wordpress.com/tag/vancouver-aquatic-centre-2

The go backwards mentality really wants to have a 25 m pool, because a 50 m pool is big city infrastructure. Just like a 3 lane Lion Bridge, which still has no bus and LRT tunnel next to it. Of course Vancouver just had to have the shortest train in Canada and is still only running a 2 car joke of a train between Richmond, YVR and downtown Vancouver.

A 25 m pool, a 3 lane bridge and a 2 car train, are all fine examples of the KEEP VANCOUVER SMALL AND BACKWARDS MENTALITY. Classic stunted infrastructure thats right in line with the Vancouver Mind Virus VMV

Is Skytrain just a basic Airport People Mover?

https://cityhallwatch.wordpress.com/2026/10/13/skytrain-the-people-mover-that-could-by-lewis-villegas/

The biggest mistake about the Skytrain is not allowing enough future level clearance for proper long, big city trains and stations.

The Montreal Metro has a level station clearance of 152.5 m, or 500 feet. It would have costed a lot more in the long run if the stations were only about 66% or 33% of that length. Thus, it was better to build proper big city stations right from the start. Fortunately, the BC Mind Virus (BCMV) never made it to Quebec.

The first 2 Skytrain lines only have 80 m stations, when there should have been enough level clearance for twice that length. Unfortunately, the YVR-Canada Line is still running 2 car trains. All of the YVR-C-Line stations should have been built to accommodate at least 5 car trains. Unfortunately, the 80 m level station clearance can only accommodate a 2.5 car train.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_International_Airport#Rail

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AirTrain_JFK#Rolling_stock No one in any normal big city would even pretend that a short airport people mover could also do the job of a big city subway or metro system. Of course backwards Vancouver had to be different.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_airport_people_mover_systems#Americas

Appeal court pauses Vancouver Aquatic Centre demolition until early November

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-aquatic-centre-demolition-pause-bc-appeal-court-decision

BC is 23 ties the size of Switzerland, but has less population. Greater Vancouver and especially the Lower Mainland of BC has the potential to be a properly planned big urban area. Despite the city of Vancouver having a slightly smaller area than Boston and SF, the size or scale of things in Vancouver are still significantly small than what's in Boston and SF. The city of Paris is only slightly smaller than the area of Vancouver, yet Paris has been able to have longer trains, wider roads and taller buildings.

Unfortunately, the VMV with its propensity to keep things small, hold things back, or just take a backwards approach, is trying to prevent a new big city version of the Vancouver+Aquatic+Centre. While a 25 m pool might be impressive for PR, PG, Kamloops, Kelowna and Victoria, Vancouver should always have at least a 50 m pool complex, especially in the growing downtown area.

Tuesday, October 13, 2026

Pattullo Bridge Steel Arch Removed After Nearly 90 Years

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1oU-08MxHA