Poor Evergreen Line. You've been talked about for so long that we thought you'd already been built. But no, here it is 2011 and all we have is a project office. Let's back up a bit. The Evergreen Line was originally supposed to have been the second phase of the Millennium Line, which now stretches from VCC-Clark station in Vancouver to Columbia station in suburban New Westminster. Phase two was supposed to push east, connecting the 11 kilometres between Lougheed Town Centre and Coquitlam, but due to a change in government and higher than anticipated construction costs, it was never built, save for a portion of a station at Lougheed. The 97 B-Line express bus service was put into place at the time of the completion of the Millennium Line, but with 17 stops along the way at a travel time of about 30 minutes (double the time of an automobile trip), it hardly qualifies as an express service.

[caption id="attachment_11639" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Vancouver's first streetcar line under construction"][/caption] We kick off Vancouver's quasquicentennial year with a look back at the opening of Vancouver's first public transit system, a mere four years after its incorporation. Historic information is from Henry Ewert's 'The Story of the B.C. Electric Company'. By John Calimente, re:place magazine

Transit systems always want to paint their buses in matching colours so that riders can spot them easily. But what if different bus colours could tell you roughly where they are going? Seoul, Korea has done just that. By John Calimente, re:place magazine

October 16th was my first opportunity to ride the direct Amtrak Cascades train from Vancouver to Portland. Part one is here, read on for part two. by John Calimente, re:place Magazine

My October 16th trip to Portland for the Railvolution conference was going to be my last chance to ride the Amtrak Cascades train direct from Vancouver to Portland. Luckily, a last-minute reprieve means that we have at least another year to enjoy it. A short travelogue of the 8-hour trip. by John Calimente, re:place Magazine

[caption id="attachment_9871" align="alignleft" width="290" caption="Trolley on Granville. Photo by John Calimente. (Click to enlarge)"][/caption] After years of construction, hordes of Olympic visitors, and a number of chainsawed trees, Vancouver's beloved trolley buses returned to Granville Street on September 7th. It was a beautiful sight. By John Calimente, re:place Magazine

[caption id="attachment_9780" align="alignleft" width="289" caption="Photo by skonen_blades"][/caption] Like many cities in North America in the latter half of the 20th century, Vancouver converted a number of its streets to one way streets to allow commuters to escape the downtown core faster. But with a downtown core that has added over 25,000 people over the last 10 years, faster moving cars is not something we should be encouraging. It's time to convert those one way streets back. By John Calimente, re:place Magazine

Has it been only a year since the Canada Line opened? Indeed, it was just last August that this major infrastructure project was completed, connecting downtown Vancouver with City Hall, Cambie Street, Richmond, and the Airport. It's time to take a look back at the first year of operation. By John Calimente, re:place Magazine

This week we look at another transit plan for Vancouver in the context of the freeway debates of the 1960s. Created by the British Columbia Research Council for the Department of Highways, Rail-Rapid Transit for Metropolitan Vancouver examined the feasibility of including a rail-rapid transit system as part of its plan for a freeway and bus rapid transit system. By John Calimente, re:place Magazine

Well I spoke too soon! At the end of my last column I said "...life has returned to 'normal' in the region..." after the Winter Olympics. Well the 'normal' in Vancouver may have shifted ever so slightly. Transit use was up 19.3% in March! Now how does Vancouver hold onto those riders? By John Calimente, re:place Magazine