Transit options are expanding this fall for Chilliwack bus riders.
The uber-popular Fraser Valley Express will see the addition of Sunday and holiday bus service.
The FVX #66 will see four round trips on Sundays and holidays starting Sept. 3, with the first trip leaving downtown Chilliwack at 9 a.m., arriving at Carvolth in Langley at 10:09 a.m., and the last one leaving Carvolth at 6:30 p.m. and arriving in Chilliwack at 7:38 p.m.
“This (FVX) service expansion comes in response to customer feedback and to growing ridership, which increased by 58 per cent last year,” said Jonathon Dyck, BC Transit communications manager.
Chilliwack Coun. Sam Waddington who chairs the Transportation Advisory Committee said the FVX “continues to exceed expectations” in terms of ridership and revenues.
“The ability to connect with regional transit this way is key,” he said.
But it’s the local transit plan that’s really got him fired up.
“The service expansion planned for Chilliwack is the one that excites me the most,” said Coun. Waddington.
“This is where we will see some massive changes. It’s a huge shift coming over the next three years.”
This fall will see the introduction of a new route, the #9 Industrial, and for the first time ever, weekday service on route #5 to Yarrow/Greendale.
Other improvements include expansion during peak times on routes #1 Vedder and #3 Chilliwack, and extending route #8 Tyson to Lindys Drive.
A brand-new service to connect Chilliwack and Agassiz with Hope will also roll out on September 5.
FVRD chair Jason Lum said the success of the FVX is “proof” that people are actively seeking out regional transit options. It provides a whole raft of optinos for weekend tourist-related visits and day trips to Chilliwack as well.
“I think these are really good transit improvements,” said Lum. “We’ve been able to consistently build out the FVX service and I look forward to further expansion.”
The FVX was first launched in April of 2015, connecting BC Transit’s Chilliwack and Central Fraser Valley transit systems to TransLink in Metro Vancouver (Langley). It came out of Transit Future Plans for Mission-Abbotsford and Chilliwack, and from the Strategic Review of Transit in the Fraser Valley.
The #66 route is 65 km from start to finish. Last year the service cost $1.6 million to operate. Chilliwack and Abbotsford pay about half that cost, with the province picking up the rest of the tab. FVRD’s corporate services committee recently gave the go-ahead to look at costs for a three-year plan.
That plan would see weekend and holiday FVX service further doubled in 2018/19, increased FVX weekday frequency in 2019/20, year-round service to Cultus Lake in 2019/20, and Sunday and Holiday expansions to Hope service in 2019/20.
@chwkjourno
jfeinberg@theprogress.com
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