Downtown Vancouver and the surrounding Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) have a good public transportation system. Like the city itself, the transportation system is not directly comparable to some of the world’s major cities like New York, Paris, London, or Tokyo; however, for a medium-sized city, getting around without a personal vehicle is not bad. Of course, there are areas in the city that are more remote or difficult to access on the transit system, but in general, the SkyTrain and bus network will get you where you need to go.
The SkyTrain is Vancouver’s equivalent to the New York subway, Paris subway, or London subway… Again, the scale or complexity isn’t there, but the concept of fast line transit is the same. The Vancouver Skytrain began operation in 1986 while the city was hosting the World’s Fair Expo. It is the oldest and longest fully automated driverless transit system in the world. It currently serves around 250,000 passengers per business day and has an on-time service delivery performance of almost 96%.
Don’t let the fact that literally no one is behind the wheel bother you, as the safety record during its time in service has been impeccable. Just think that there is no room for human error and the computers that control the system never need coffee in the morning to stay awake. The exceptional timeliness of delivery should indicate the level of precision with which the SkyTrain operates.
There are 3 main lines to the SkyTrain in Vancouver: Expo, Millennium and Canada Lines. The Expo and Millennium lines connect downtown Vancouver with the surrounding GVRD cities of Burnaby, New Westminster and Surrey, while Canada’s newest line connects downtown with Vancouver International Airport (YVR) and the city of Richmond.
In general, the tracks of the SkyTrain are on elevated guide tracks that rise above the city streets; however, there are some stations and portions of lines that run underground. The tracks in the sky gave way to the aptly named SkyTrain when the first trips were made on the original Expo line. The elevated viewpoint gives us an efficient and comfortable point of view of many parts of the city spread over a wide geographical space.
As a tourist, it’s worth the day fee to ride the system and wait when you arrive in an area you’d like to visit. Unfortunately, you can’t easily access the North Shore, the University of British Columbia, Steveston, or some of the other beautiful areas of GVRD easily from the SkyTrain. To access the rest of the network beyond the SkyTrain, you’ll need to take a bus or the always fun Seabus in the case of the North Shore.
The SkyTrain in Vancouver is very good, but the most convenient and efficient way to get around the city and its surroundings is by car. If you’re visiting from out of town, definitely consider getting in a rental vehicle. The Skytrain has its limitations in terms of the areas it serves and the hours of operation that can often leave you a bit stranded. Hoping in a rental car will give you all the freedom and flexibility to see Vancouver’s many beautiful sights and also take you outside the city limits and into the spectacular surrounding areas.
