Big expansion of Brentwood SkyTrain station with more escalators opens | Daily Hive

Major expansion of Brentwood Town Centre SkyTrain station with more escalators opens

Completed upgrades of SkyTrain's Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station has undergone a major upgrade, enhancing accessibility, capacity, and passenger flow.

After nearly three years of construction, the project is now fully complete and will be ready for passengers starting Monday, March 24, 2025, when temporary fencing and other barriers will be removed.

There has been a phased progression with this project, with the south entrance (on the south side of Lougheed Highway) reopening in January 2024 with a new glass enclosure for the stairwell for better weather protection — replacing the previous metal mesh panels — and the introduction of an elevator between the street and mezzanine levels.

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Double the number of escalators

On Monday, all remaining station upgrades will be open to the public, including two new down escalators from the platforms to the mezzanine level.

These escalators were installed near the east end of the platforms, adding capacity and redistributing passengers to a wider area of the station. The new escalators significantly improve station circulation, complementing the existing staircases, up escalators, and elevators.

skytrain brentwood town centre station upgrades march 2025

New additional down escalator for the eastbound platform; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

New additional down escalator for the westbound platform; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

New steel and concrete structure for the mezzanine level expansion and additional escalators; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

To provide passenger access and circulation to the new escalators, the mezzanine level between the platforms and Lougheed Highway saw a 6,000 sq. ft. expansion.

As this eastward mezzanine expansion was built for the new down escalators from the platforms, it has no platform entry, as indicated by overhead signage. Additionally, the exits out of the mezzanine expansion have low headroom due to the concrete beam supporting the station structure.

As well, a reconfiguration of the original mezzanine space has allowed for a doubling of fare gates at the station, increasing from three to six.

The new escalators and expanded fare gates help ease congestion by reducing key chokepoints, improving passenger flow for existing ridership and better enabling future ridership growth.

New mezzanine level expansion beyond the temporary fencing; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

New mezzanine level expansion; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

Doubling of fare gates from three to six fare gates; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

Furthermore, the project has now completed an overhaul of the north entrance (north side of Lougheed Highway), with a new glass enclosure for the stairwell between the street and mezzanine levels.

Similar to the upgrades for the previously completed south entrance, this work provides the north entrance with better weather protection.

The north entrance has been closed for the past year due to construction.

Other completed upgrades include improved lighting and wayfinding.

New glass enclosure for the north entrance; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

New glass enclosure for the north entrance; Completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

Caffè Artigiano opening at Brentwood Town Centre Station

As an added amenity and to generate more ancillary revenue from leasing, TransLink has also created a small commercial retail unit at the station. It is strategically located outside of the fare paid zone (outside of the fare gates), immediately next to the north entrance and pedestrian bridge to reach The Amazing Brentwood mall’s Brentwood Plaza.

This retail unit was created from the indoor enclosure and conversion of what was previously a covered outdoor space on the mezzanine.

Signage on this retail unit shows this will be a new Caffè Artigiano location.

This adds a third cafe to the immediate area, joining Starbucks and McDonald’s McCafe, which are located across the pedestrian bridge in a stacked pavilion on mall property at the plaza.

Completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

High-density, transit-oriented developments propelling ridership growth

The entire station upgrade project carried a total cost of $32 million, covered by the federal government and TransLink. Construction first began in April 2022.

The award-winning station was originally designed by Perkins&Will over two decades ago, while Arcadis was contracted to establish the design for the upgrade project. PCL Constructors Westcoast is the construction contractor for the upgrade.

“Completion of the Brentwood Town Centre Station upgrades mark a major milestone in enhancing accessibility, safety, and comfort for our customers,” said Kevin Quinn, CEO of TransLink, in a statement on Saturday.

“These improvements will ensure we continue providing efficient and reliable transit services as the Brentwood community grows. We’re proud to deliver this project, in partnership with the Government of Canada, to meet the needs of transit users for years to come.”

Currently, Brentwood Town Centre Station is the only SkyTrain station built on a roadway median. That will change with the new Green Timbers Station on the Expo Line’s Surrey-Langley extension, which is now under construction and slated to open in late 2029. Green Timbers Station is being built on the median of Fraser Highway.

New additional down escalator for the westbound platform; completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

Completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

Apart from Commercial-Broadway Station’s widened overpass across the Grandview Cut in 2019 and the Lougheed Town Centre Station expansion for the Evergreen extension in 2016, the upgrades at Brentwood Town Centre Station are the first standalone improvements to a Millennium Line station since the line originally opened in 2002.

According to TransLink, Brentwood Town Centre Station is the third busiest station on the Millennium Line station, and this is driven by continued rapid high-density residential and commercial development within the City of Burnaby’s designated Brentwood Town Centre district.

It saw over 2.2 million boardings in 2024. This is up from 2.11 million in 2023 and 1.79 million in pre-pandemic 2019.

For the most recent year with full statistics, in 2023, the station saw an average of 6,600 boardings per weekday, 4,900 per Saturday, and 3,700 per Sunday/holiday.

Brentwood Town Centre Station is also a transfer point for a number of bus routes, including the No. 25 to UBC, No. 123 to New Westminster Station, No. 130 Kootenay Loop/Phibbs Exchange, No. 134 to Lake City Station, No. 136 to Lougheed Town Centre Station, and No. 222 Phibbs Exchange/Metrotown, as well as the N9 NightBus.

translink articulated bus brentwood town centre station 25 king edward f1

TransLink’s articulated buses for the No. 25 UBC/Brentwood route at SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station. (Kenneth Chan)

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The Burnaby Metrotown skyline from the lounge at Cineplex VIP Cinemas Brentwood at The Amazing Brentwood. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

The Amazing Brentwood and SkyTrain Brentwood Town Centre Station. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

According to the public transit authority, approximately 23,000 residents and 15,000 workers are currently within a 10-minute walk of this station.

These figures are expected to grow exponentially as Brentwood Town Centre continues to densify, with notable projects not only for the sites immediately around the station but also within walking distance further out.

Some of the future major projects immediately adjacent to the station are the Brentwood West parcels at the northwest corner of the intersection of Lougheed Highway and Willingdon Avenue, the continued redevelopment of the old Brentwood Town Centre mall into The Amazing Brentwood to the north, and Grosvenor’s Brentwood Block to the southeast.

Brentwood West, which includes the redevelopment of the Petro Canada gas station, will entail over 1,400 homes and 650,000 sq. ft. of office, retail, and restaurant space. There will be four towers up to about 60 storeys, containing about two million sq. ft. of floor space. One of the lead proponents is Bosa Development, which is advancing the redevelopment of the parcels it owns.

Brentwood West master plan, March 2022. (Chris Dikeakos Architects/Bosa Development)

2023 rezoning artistic rendering of 4430-4488 Halifax Street and 1801 Willingdon Avenue, Burnaby. (Chris Dikeakos Architects/Bosa Development)

When the first phase of The Amazing Brentwood mall opened in 2021 at the southwest corner of the site, it provided the station with a ridership bump. The development also funded the construction of the new pedestrian bridge that links Brentwood Plaza directly with the station’s mezzanine level.

Shape Properties’ ongoing building project of The Amazing Brentwood mall will soon reach the next phases that involve the demolition of the old indoor mall for its redevelopment into high-density, mixed-use residential towers. The developer is planning far higher densities and tower heights of up to 80 storeys for the remaining parcels of the mall property, exceeding the 2013 master plan.

There will be 4.7 million sq. ft. in additional residential uses, growing The Amazing Brentwood’s total building floor area to 12.63 million sq. ft. upon full buildout. Some of the already permitted commercial density yet to be built could also be converted into secured purpose-built market rental housing.

Site preparation work is now underway on Brentwood Block by Grosvenor. There will be six towers up to 65 storeys, including a 60-storey tower that will be Western Canada’s tallest 100% secured purpose-built rental housing building. In total, upon full buildout, Brentwood Block will generate 3,500 homes and 650,000 sq. ft. of office, retail, and restaurant, including a 44,000 sq. ft. grocery store.

In partnership with the City of Burnaby, Grosvenor is also integrating the $146 million new Brentwood Community Centre into its complex.

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January 2024 revised preliminary master plan concept for The Amazing Brentwood. (Shape Properties)

brentwood block brentwood community centre grosvenor burnaby 2024

2024 artistic rendering of the towers of Brentwood Block in Burnaby. (Perkins&Will/Grosvenor)

Other major projects in the vicinity include Anthem Properties’ South Yards to the south, where 2,500 homes are now being built, as well as additional phases of Concord Pacific’s Concord Brentwood to the east.

“Brentwood is one of the fastest-growing neighbourhoods in Burnaby and these SkyTrain station improvements play a crucial role in making this a vibrant and connected community,” said Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley.

“Whether you live in Brentwood or are coming to visit, upgrades like this make it easier and more enjoyable.”

While train-carrying capacity often garners the most public attention, the ability of stations to efficiently handle the increasing flow of passengers is just as critical.

As urban areas densify and ridership grows, stations need to be designed to accommodate seamless ingress, egress, and circulation. TransLink has recently made major station capacity improvements to a number of Expo Line stations, and construction is underway now on upgrades that address such issues at Oakridge-41st Avenue Station the Canada Line.

Congested platforms, narrow passageways, and inadequate entry and exit points can create bottlenecks, reducing overall system efficiency and passenger experience. Expanding station infrastructure, improving wayfinding, and optimizing passenger flow management are essential to ensuring that transit networks can support growing demand, not just on trains but throughout the entire station environment.

Like many other SkyTrain stations on the network, Brentwood Town Centre Station is likely to see a big overnight ridership jump in Fall 2027, when the Millennium Line’s Broadway extension to Arbutus opens. The increase in ridership will be supported by the operation of longer and/or more frequent trains on the Millennium Line.

Upon the subway’s opening, the Millennium Line’s overall train-carrying capacity between the new Arbutus Station in Vancouver and Lafarge Lake-Douglas Station in Coquitlam will nearly double to about 7,500 passengers per hour per direction. This is also more than three times the capacity of the existing 99 B-Line express bus.

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