How TransLink compares to other major Canadian public transit agencies

The geographical size of Metro Vancouver (TransLink jurisdiction) compared with the City of Toronto (TTC jurisdiction). (TransLink)

Ahead of this week’s TransLink’s Mayors’ Council meeting, TransLink staff have provided the region’s elected municipal leaders with a breakdown of how Canada’s largest public transit authorities compare with Metro Vancouver’s public transit agency.

This comparison, outlined in a report, was produced following a request by the Mayors’ Council for more information earlier this year.

TransLink notes its mandate is larger than its counterparts in the metropolitan regions of Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal, as it is responsible for not just the public transit system but also major roads — known in Metro Vancouver as the Major Road Network (MRN), which includes select arterial roads and major bridges such as the Knight Street Bridge, Golden Ears Bridge, and the existing Pattullo Bridge. The MRN spans 2,600 lane km across the region.

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Under the umbrella of TransLink, Metro Vancouver enjoys having a single unified public transit system, as opposed to the fractured public transit networks of Greater Toronto and Greater Montreal, which can make regional travel across modes and services more challenging.

The Toronto region’s public transit services are provided by nine local operators, including the City of Toronto’s Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) and the Ontario provincial government’s Metrolinx agency, which operates the GO Transit commuter rail system. Metrolinx also serves to coordinate and integrate all modes in Greater Toronto and Hamilton, and oversees the regional transit PRESTO fare system.

Greater Montreal’s public transit system is operated by three agencies, including the STL in Laval, RTL in Longueuil, and STM in Montreal, while regional bus and commuter rail services are operated by Exo. All of these services, include fares, are coordinated through the regional umbrella of ARTM.

Similar to the TTC, Calgary’s municipal government funds and operates Calgary Transit and its various services.

Metro Vancouver is noted for being unique, as TransLink oversees public transit services for the 23 local and municipal jurisdictions found in the region, with each jurisdiction being relatively small geographically. Moreover, the region as a whole has a substantially smaller land area than the regions of Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal.

The geographical size of Metro Vancouver (TransLink jurisdiction) compared with the City of Montreal. This does not account for actual significantly larger size of Greater Montreal as a whole. (TransLink)

The geographical size of Metro Vancouver (TransLink jurisdiction) compared with the City of Toronto (TTC jurisdiction). This does not account for actual significantly larger size of Greater Toronto as a whole. (TransLink)

TransLink is also the only public transit authority in Canada that funds and operates its own Transit Police department, which patrols the public transit system and supplements the work of local police departments. It is noted that most other cities use a combination of special constables and a transit division of their local police force, but this is more challenging to achieve in Metro Vancouver where there are about two dozen jurisdictions within a small geographical area. In 2022, the Transit Police had a budget of about $46 million, and its force comprises around 183 sworn officers.

Metro Vancouver is noted to have relatively high ridership compared to the major counterparts, with 101 boardings per resident generated from 2.04 service hours per resident.

In contrast, Greater Toronto sees 109 boardings per resident from 2.79 service hours per resident, the TTC on its own sees 173 boardings per resident from 3.94 service hours per resident, Greater Montreal sees 132 boardings per resident from 2.33 service hours per resident, and Calgary sees 83 boardings per resident from 2.08 service hours per resident.

More of TransLink’s revenues are also locally sourced and far more diversified, with vehicle-driven revenues, transit-driven revenues (such as fares), and property-driven revenues (such as property taxes) more evenly distributed. Calgary and Metrolinx see zero revenues from vehicles, while Greater Toronto, TTC, and Greater Montreal each see vehicle-driven revenue account for a single-digit percentage of their total operating revenues.

TransLink’s operating revenue sources entail about 30% from properties, about 40% from transit, and about 30% from vehicles, with regional $0.185 TransLink tax on every litre of gas contributing to Metro Vancouver having some of North America’s highest gas prices.

ARTM comes closest, with an annual $30.00 registration levy per vehicle and a $0.03 tax per litre of gas, which helps fund Greater Montreal’s various transit operators.

Comparison of Canada’s largest public transit authorities. (TransLink)

The public transit portion of the property tax paid for a $1 million home in 2023 is just over $200 in Metro Vancouver, over $500 in the City of Calgary, about $650 in the City of Toronto, and over $500 in Greater Montreal.

“Metro Vancouver benefits from relatively high levels of service and commensurate funding compared to peer regions. The levels of service also translate into ridership, and system productivity outcomes despite density and scale of larger peer metros in eastern Canada,” reads the report.

“Property-based contributions in Metro Vancouver are proportionally smaller as compared to peer regions. Importantly this is because residents contribute through other means such as the regional fuel tax, Hydro Levy, and farebox. It is these regional revenue contributions that make the TTC and TransLink unique in that they provide high levels of self-funded service.”

The Mayors’ Council is currently in the process of lobbying the federal government to accelerate the start of its permanent federal transit fund to public transit systems across the country. Earlier this month, a delegation of Metro Vancouver mayors travelled to Ottawa to meet with federal officials.

According to TransLink, public transit ridership in Metro Vancouver in March 2023 recovered to 84% of pre-pandemic 2019 levels, marking one of the highest recoveries in ridership for major Canadian and American systems.

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