Opinion: BC NDP overlooking public transit's role in easing cost-of-living pressures | Daily Hive

Highly conceptual artistic renderings only for illustrative purposes of UBC Station of the UBC SkyTrain extension (UBC).

Written for Daily Hive Urbanized by Michael Hall, the Lead for Government Relations at Movement: Metro Vancouver Transit Riders.

Public transit is the most powerful affordability tool within the provincial government’s control. Will it continue relying on short-term, stopgap funding, or will it finally introduce a strong, sustainable funding mechanism that enables meaningful expansion of transit service?

Many Metro Vancouver residents simply have to drive to work because public transit is either too slow, too overcrowded, or too unreliable. This is both an affordability problem, an economic problem, a social justice issue, and a problem in countless other ways. At the time of writing, gas prices are $2.10 per litre and the average used car in British Columbia is $38,000.

While the Premier of Ontario is committing to another multibillion dollar rapid transit line, the BC NDP-led provincial government is radio-silent on legislation for a new public transit funding tool or any future investment in public transit infrastructure — all at a time when Metro Vancouver mayors are committed to substantial property tax increases, and the federal government is looking to spur infrastructure projects.

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The fact that the BC NDP don’t seem prepared to implement a new revenue tool for TransLink shouldn’t be surprising — they invented stopgap funding for the public transit authority.

TransLink has been seeking stable funding and new revenue sources since its inception — almost as if the shortfall were built into its design. In 2001, just four years after TransLink was created, the BC ND-led government at the time promised a new funding source, only to reverse course almost immediately. A younger Mike Farnworth, then serving in a transportation role, backed away from the commitment.

When that planned vehicle levy in the 2000s was scrapped, the consequences went beyond maintaining the status quo. The public transit system faced significant cuts, including a major reduction to the NightBus network (a pared-down version still operates today) and the cancellation of bus orders intended to support expansion.

TransLink’s Mayors’ Council had also been aligned around some form of mobility pricing — until that effort was abruptly halted in 2017.

By 2025, TransLink was still searching for its long-promised new revenue source — only to be delayed once again, now told to wait until 2027, or perhaps even 2028. The timeline remains unclear and loosely defined. What is clear, however, is that the BC NDP risks failing to use one of its most powerful levers to ease the cost-of-living pressures facing British Columbians.

Today, with Mike Farnworth leading the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit, the BC NDP is at a crossroads. People are struggling with affordability and the provincial government is searching for an economic boost amid tariff struggles. The provincial budget is still expanding, and credit scores have been downgraded. While the provincial government digs deep in search of “internal efficiencies” and shrinks the public service to lower expenses, capital investment and policy decisions needed to enable the expansion of public transit systems seemingly remain an afterthought.

An economic stimulus that saves people money

Public transit needs to be viewed for what it is: a tool that can save someone up to $15,000 per year. There is no other cost saving tool at any government’s disposal as powerful as public transit.

To save an equivalent amount, rent or mortgage costs would need to decrease by more than $1,000 per month — an unlikely outcome. Public transit improvements can also be implemented quickly: a significant increase in bus service could be enacted almost overnight through better sources of operational funding, as the buses exist and the drivers are available, they just need to be paid.

Even more extensive projects like Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) or SkyTrain can provide affordability relief relatively quickly. Decisive planning and collaborative funding agreements with all levels of government could mean that rapid transit investments provide that life-changing $15,000 per year savings in just four to five years between planning, procurement, and execution of a project.

Public transit also acts as an economic stimulus for the region and the province. With Metro Vancouver producing 55 per cent of B.C.’s GDP, ensuring the job market in the region is functioning well is paramount. Any urbanized region exists as a concentration of people and jobs — people want to live where there is access to a large job market.

In a densely populated metropolis constrained by the ocean, a river, mountains, and an international border, public transit is critical in providing that access. It’s already responsible for hundreds of thousands of commutes every weekday, providing a fast, reliable, and much cheaper form of transportation to a significant portion of the region’s population.

An improved transportation network would give more people affordable access to a wider range of jobs. The proposed King George Boulevard BRT, which has remained unfunded for years, would connect residents along the corridor to an additional 100,000 jobs within a one-hour commute. Few — if any — initiatives within provincial control could match this level of cost savings or deliver such broad access to opportunity.

Not just a new tax, but a sustained expansion of the most powerful affordability measure available

A new funding source for TransLink won’t be just a new tax. It will be what allows the public transit system to address glaring gaps, whether that be lack of capacity in Surrey or long wait times in Maple Ridge. It will be what allows more people to save up to $15,000 per year, and it will be what enables our region to function well: providing people with affordable transportation options and access to more jobs, amenities, services, and leisure.

Regardless of what funding tool is chosen, there will be opposition to it. But we know that major public transit investments have been vote-winners across the continent, often in places one might not typically expect.

In 2024, residents across the political spectrum in Metro Nashville voted 66 per cent in favour of increasing taxes to fund more public transit. Similar ballot measures passed successfully in Seattle in 2024, Kansas City (MO) in 2023, and Atlanta in 2022. In Ontario, the ambitious GO Expansion plan — a regional rail improvement and expansion project — has upwards of $25 billion committed to it with Ontario premier Doug Ford wanting to expand it even further.

It’s the provincial government’s job to secure the long-term interests of British Columbians, not cave to short term whims like ones that resulted in referendums on the HST and public transit funding.

New York City saw through the opposition and pressed forward on a controversial policy measure in support of public transit, and they were rewarded in spades with incredibly supportive polls and public sentiment. Some of the policy’s staunchest critics are now its most vocal defenders.

While other policy measures will likely be pursued ahead of congestion pricing in Metro Vancouver, the principle still holds: tangible improvements in people’s lives — those that offer more affordable transportation options and save valuable time — even when they come with a modest upfront cost, are consistently supported by the public. In the United States, public referendums asking voters whether they are willing to tax themselves to fund clearly defined transit improvements (as set out in legislation upon approval) pass at remarkably high rates.

The BC NDP is once again at a crossroads. In the face of rising unaffordability and a struggling economy, will a provincial government known for stopgap funding find the resolve to establish a strong, sustainable funding tool for TransLink?

Doing so would mean investing in affordability while also stimulating economic growth — deploying one of the most powerful levers available to combat the rising cost of living. Conversely, by continuing the pattern of short-term fixes and limited vision, the government risks cementing a very different legacy.

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