All about SkyTrain expansion: Interview with TransLink's head of SkyTrain

By 2028, if all goes as planned, the region’s SkyTrain system will grow to a combined network size of 102 km.

This will be a substantial increase from the current network size of 80 km across all three lines, representing a 28% growth — accounting for the 5.7-km-long Millennium Line Broadway Extension between VCC-Clark Station and Arbutus Street in Vancouver opening in 2026, and the 16-km-long Expo Line Surrey-Langley Extension between King George Station and Langley Centre opening in 2028.

The number of stations will grow from the existing 53 to 68, including the 2024 opening of the Canada Line’s additional Capstan Station, the six new stations on the Broadway Extension, and the eight new stations on the Surrey-Langley Extension.

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Then there is also the influx of a new generation SkyTrain car fleet for the Expo and Millennium lines, with a total of 205 Mark V cars — 41 five-car trains — arriving on the system between 2023 and 2027. These Mark V trains will be used to serve the Broadway Extension, provide general added capacity on the Expo and Millennium lines, and completely replace the original Mark I cars from the 1980s and early 1990s.

And to support the expansion of the network and train fleet size, there are major new train yard, operational, and maintenance facilities in the works. This includes the current construction projects of a brand new state-of-the-art SkyTrain control centre building and expanded maintenance facilities in the existing Edmonds hub, and the new Coquitlam operations and maintenance centre (OMC4) near Braid Station, as well as the future OMC5 near the Langley end of the Surrey-Langley Extension.

“I believe we are embarking on the most exciting time for public transit expansion in this region,” said Sany Zein during an interview and tour of the Edmonds operations and maintenance centre (OMC1) with Daily Hive Urbanized this week.

Zein, a longtime constant of TransLink’s leadership and management team, recently returned to the public transit authority as its new President and General Manager of BC Rapid Transit Company (BCRTC), which is the TransLink subsidiary responsible for operating SkyTrain’s Expo and Millennium lines and the West Coast Express commuter rail. Up until 2021, he was TransLink’s Vice President of Infrastructure Management and Engineering.

While the Canada Line is considered a part of the SkyTrain network in terms of branding, it is separately operated and maintained by SNC Lavalin’s ProTrans BC under contract with TransLink.

The current multi-faceted SkyTrain expansion and improvement project of overhauling the SkyTrain car fleet, upgrading station platforms for longer trains, and building new maintenance and control centre facilities is now aptly named STEP, short for “SkyTrain Expansion Program.”

By 2029, during the busiest times of the day, these upgrades will increase capacity by 20% on the Expo Line and by 50% on the Millennium Line.

“It’s the first time in our history where we’re doing more extensions at the same time. It’s the first time we’re moving beyond OMC1… We’re going from one big home to three big homes,” said Zein.

“All of this is happening in the next six or seven years. It is by the far the most exciting time we’ve had in transit expansion,” he continued, when asked why he returned to TransLink to take on the lead role at BCRTC.

Daily Hive Urbanized asked Zein about not only the projects under STEP, but also future planned station renovations, the feasibility of platform screen doors, and operational matters, such as cleanliness standards, escalator downtime, and what it takes to become a SkyTrain control room operator.

For brevity and clarity, this is an edited and condensed version of the questions and answers:

1. How will BCRTC operations change with SkyTrain’s forthcoming Broadway Extension and Surrey-Langley Extension, and the growth from the new fleet and facilities? How many more people will be working for BCRTC by 2028?

We’re currently at about 1,300 staff at BCRTC. When you look at our metrics of growth — in terms of SkyTrain line track km, and the number of stations, escalators, and elevators — we’re growing by 40% to 60% in all of these metrics. In terms of operations and maintenance control centres, we’re growing by 200%.

In real terms, we’re looking at a workforce growth of that same order, 40% to 60%, by 2028/2029. That’s about 400 to 600 more staff.

We are very privileged to be a good employer, and we have a good reputation. We are getting really good interest in applications whenever we go out and advertise jobs. We’re holding job fairs, and we get terrific attendance. Several hundred people showed up to each of our most recent events.

We’ve had applicants from maintenance, automotive, aeronautics, and general labour, so people see us as a good employer and want to work here. We also recently had a great turnout for a hiring event for SkyTrain attendants.

2. Are there any concerns about reliable train operations once the Expo Line extends all the way to Langley Centre? For example, how will you compartmentalize system disruptions so that an issue in Langley doesn’t affect service all the way in Vancouver? How will frequency on the Expo Line’s trunk section be affected? Will some trains from Langley short-turn at King George Station?

This points to the evolution of BCRTC from being a single node company — the node is here at OMC1 in Edmonds — to being a multi-node company. This is one of our big transformations with the future OMC4 in Coquitlam and OMC5 in the South of the Fraser. We’ll begin to have different centres of operations where we can be much more nimble in our response to any issues that show up on the line.

In terms of service patterns, specifically getting to Langley, we will definitely protect the core service on the Expo Line.

As the system extends, we’ll look at several things. The continued recovery in ridership from COVID is still be playing out, and we’ll keep a very close eye on that. Population growth is another factor. Where is the ridership? Where is the land use developing? We still have about six years to go before opening the extension to Langley, but we expect to see a lot more density in the South of Fraser.

Of course, we would expect ridership to be a little less the further east you go on the train, so the ability to do turnbacks between here and Langley is there for us. With the help of our colleagues in the provincial government, we’ve designed into Surrey-Langley SkyTrain crossover track switches, which allows us to do that. We have the flexibility of the service in the plan, and we’ll probably know more by 2027.

3. What are some of the identified needs for improving Columbia Station? Is the planned Columbia Station upgrade related to the expected increase in volume due to the Surrey-Langley Extension?

That’s a great example of how the growth of the system keeps us on our toes. Columbia Station needs an upgrade regardless of Surrey-Langley SkyTrain. Given that it’s now the absolute hub for transfers to/from Surrey and the transfers between the two branches of the Expo Line, it needs an upgrade. Whether or not we’re doing Surrey-Langley SkyTrain, that is something in the plan. It’s an example for us of changing one thing, creating the split at Columbia, which then has created interesting challenges for us to solve.

Of course, Surrey-Langley SkyTrain’s additional ridership, the growth in the South of Fraser, just emphasizes the need to make Columbia a better station than it is now.

4. Are there any special winter weather design/operational considerations for the Surrey-Langley Extension? Eastern areas of the region like Langley are known for seeing more severe snowfall, and more extreme arctic outflows.

Every winter, we learn more and new things about our winters. With climate change, we’re seeing changes in the severity, intensity, frequency, and actually timing of our storms. Last year we had a big storm in November, which was a bit unexpected. We had another big storm in Christmas. We had the flooding in the Fraser Valley. So we used these learnings in the design of our extensions.

We fully expect that we will have interesting new weather challenges South of the Fraser, which emphasizes the need for an operations centre South of the Fraser, and that is of course something we’re planning for at the moment.

Every year, we’re taking the lessons of the previous winter, and we apply them on how we can be better. This year we’re focusing on the deployment of our resources, such as what we get the maintenance folks to do when we have a storm. We’re all hands on deck, and we’re trying to make sure the necessary hands are looking after the trains. We don’t want to lose our ability to turn the trains around, and get different folks out on the line where we need help for snow clearance. This year, we’re fine tuning that piece. And as we learn more about the storms South of the Fraser, we will continue to improve from being on that learning curve.

5. In addition to the new OMC4 in Coquitlam, what is the timing for the OMC5 facility in Langley? How necessary is it to have it ready in time for the opening of the Surrey-Langley Extension?

OMC5 is under planning now. We obviously want this facility ready as close as possible in terms of opening the line and facility. The timing depends on the site needs, how big the site is, and how much we need to do on it.

This is one of the first times when we’re ahead of the game, where we’ve identified the need and are working with our provincial colleagues on getting the site identified, planned, and designed.

We extended the Expo Line to Surrey in the late 1980s and early 1990s, we built the Millennium Line, and we built the Evergreen Extension, but we never thought anything  more about maintenance facilities, except for OMC3 as a small facility near Inlet Centre Station in Coquitlam. OMC2 in Edmonds was built to assemble trains.

This is the first time we’re thinking ahead. With 16 km of new SkyTrain route in the South of the Fraser, we need something down there. I don’t know what the specific timing looks like, but we want it as close as possible. We can manage a little bit by having the extension open before the facility opens, but we want the facility to open as quickly as possible after the line opens.

OMC4 and OMC5 will more or less be the size of the original OMC1 in Edmonds. OMC4 is our catch-up depot. That’s the one we should’ve had when we previously grew the Expo Line and opened the Millennium Line and its Evergreen Extension.

6. Given that Production Way-University Station will likely see a ridership increase when the SFU Burnaby Mountain Gondola opens, are you looking to upgrade the circulation capacity at that station, such as more escalators between the ground and platform levels?

Production Way-University Station has been designated as the transfer hub, so I believe the planning folks at TransLink are looking at what that interface will look like. Chances are we’re looking at the most seamless experience we can provide given the realities at this station, and that work is ongoing.

7. Is there sufficient capacity at Commercial-Broadway Station for the extra volumes expected transferring between the Expo and Millennium lines after the Broadway Extension opens? Are you looking for another wave of upgrades at this station, such as building an additional Broadway overpass and platform for the outbound direction of the Expo Line? Will you mirror the 2019-built upgrades?

Our projections show the upgrades that we completed at the station in 2019 should be sufficient. We’re not planning anything big additionally at that station.

A lot of the transfers now are jumping onto the 99 B-Line, but that won’t be a thing in the future. So in some ways, there will be less transfers and activity, and people can stay on the train longer.

There will also be a second transfer point on the Canada Line along the Broadway Extension, so you can jump on a system-to-system transfer at Broadway-City Hall Station. Travel patterns will change, and chances are going to the new Arbutus Station we’ll see more ridership at Commercial-Broadway Station. But so far, we think that this station, as it is now, although it is quite busy, will continue to serve riders well.

8. Are there any plans to build a second entrance for Broadway-City Hall to serve the station’s evolution as a major regional interchange between the Canada Line and Millennium Line? The current Broadway Extension project will use the same existing Canada Line entrance building for its station entrance.

The design allows for a future entrances as part of the developments in the area. It’s part of the plan in the future, so we do have provisions made.

9. Do you have anything to share about the possible upgrades to Stadium-Chinatown Station?

To me, Stadium-Chinatown Station is an example of the challenges we face when what we offer is popular and the demand is there. Thinking back to 1984, 1985, and 1986, there was no Yaletown community. Living in downtown was not really a thing.

But look at where we are today with the thriving Yaletown and Coal Harbour neighbourhoods. People wanting to live downtown. We had BC Place Stadium when the Expo Line was being planned, but we didn’t have the hockey arena. So all of these things have happened around the station, and obviously it needs a facelift. One of its entrances is also not accessible for people with mobility challenges, and we know that needs change.

Currently, our planners are looking at options, obviously working on how that whole area will be developing, and providing the maximum flexibility and accessibility for that station.

10. When will the new SkyTrain control centre at Edmonds be ready? How is it different from the current facility? Can it handle long-term system expansion far beyond the current two extensions?

We’re very excited about that! Upstairs in this building we’re in right now, it’s the same control centre room we opened in 1985 when SkyTrain was just from Waterfront to New Westminster, not even Columbia. We’re still in that room.

We have issues with ergonomics, and challenges with simple spaces and elbow room for our operators, so we’re very excited to finally move into a new home for our operators.

They will have more comfortable space, more comfortable furniture and amenities, up and down desks, computer and display screens fit for the purpose, and optimal ergonomics. Right now the configuration is all patched up.

Our operators are under high pressure, they need breaks, and we need to respect the type of mental health breaks they need. We will be providing them with a much better environment.

11. What does it take to sit behind the desk in the SkyTrain control room?

In terms of the characteristics, they need to be able to concentrate for long periods of time, withstand routine status quo operations, and stay alert, so that the second something goes wrong, they can immediately act based on their training. Of course, there’s also the ability to work for 12 hour shifts, while staying focused. Not everyone can do all these things.

On our end, we have a very unique system in the sense that there are no other SkyTrain-like systems out there in North America where people can get that training, as our automated driverless system is still very modern by most transit standards. We do our own training, so people apply, we put them through three years, and they can start being in the room after a year and a half. But in total it is about a three-year program for them to become proficient and experienced as control room operators.

Many control room operators start their work with BCRTC as SkyTrain attendants, so they interact with the control room because they’re in constant communication. Some start as guideway technicians or vehicle technicians, but the most common starting point is from becoming a SkyTrain attendant as they get to learn operations from the field perspective. They get through the training and become control operators.

12. Will the new Mark V trains be longer than the 80-metre-long station platforms on the Expo and Millennium lines? How are some of the station platforms currently being upgraded to accommodate these future longest trains? What are the passenger capacity figures for this new train?

The Mark V will be right on the limit of the platform length, so they will fit the platforms from end to end. But being right at the limit, it means we have some work to do. So we need to make sure the platform edges will work with the new trains. We’re addressing things like signs, maintenance facilities, where the maintenance technicians cross the tracks, how the guideway folks do their work… we’re just making sure all of these measurements work at all stations.

Each new five-car Mark V train will be able to carry about 25% more customers than the existing four-car Mark III train.

The five-car Mark V train will be able to hold 672 passengers regularly, both seated and standing, while the four-car Mark III train can currently hold 533 passengers. This is an increase of 139 people per train compared to the current largest train, which is the four-car Mark III train.

In terms of crush capacity, the Mark V train can potentially hold up to 1,207 passengers, and the Mark III train can handle up to 940 passengers.

13. What would need to be done if you were to go one car longer by adding a sixth car to the future Mark V model? That would far exceed the 80-metre-long platform.

That would become a major project. We haven’t actually looked at those details, and every station is a little bit different. But if we go one more car length to a six-car train, we’ll need to look at each station and see what we’d need to do.

14. TransLink’s Transport 2050 strategy notes the Expo Line is forecast to potentially reach capacity by 2050, and it identifies a need to examine relief capacity. What can TransLink do in terms of adding capacity beyond maximizing frequencies with full-length trains?

That brings us into the realm of how do we plan for a much bigger future. Is it worthwhile twinning the tracks of the Expo Line? Do we build redundancy? Do we build something completely different? Do we start creating loops? The planners at TransLink are always thinking ahead.

Those are really big questions in the sense that if we become double the size in this region, what does that mean for SkyTrain? These are really big expensive projects as you can imagine.

15. One of the main challenges for adding platform screen doors on the Expo and Millennium lines are the different train door spacings of the various generations of SkyTrain cars. Will the retirement of the entire Mark I car fleet make it easier to incorporate platform screen doors for improved safety and reliability ? How often do you get track intrusion alarms at the station platforms?

Unfortunately, no. The Mark I cars will go away, but the Mark V cars coming in are entirely different train. So we’re swapping one Mark for another Mark, and it doesn’t make our situation with the platforms any easier.

We do get a lot of track intrusion alarms. We get about 6,000 track intrusion alarms a year, and most of them are garbage, birds, and tree branches, and simple things that we can clear in a matter of minutes or even second if we have a SkyTrain attendant there. Alternatively, we can just look through the camera and if we see something like a bird landing there, there’s no issue.

But we do get the more serious incidents of self-harm or other things that trigger the intrusion alarm, so platform screen doors are part of the solution. We are currently conducting a feasibility study led by TransLink planners, and we’re helping them on this analysis.

For considering platform screen doors, it’s not just the train configuration and train door spacings. We have many underground stations that were built with a certain ventilation system to clear smoke. If we introduce even a half-height platform screen door, it changes air circulation, how we do maintenance, and how we access the far side of the platform. How do we evacuate in a situation, such as in the case of power failure? All of these things, we have to think about, so it’s not easy. But we’re looking at it.

There are also concerns about the number of people we can hold on a platform if we need to allocate some space to the platform screen doors. At some stations, it may be easier, but at others it may be a lot more complicated.

16. Were there any design and engineering considerations for the future stations on the Broadway Extension and Surrey-Langley Extension to enable the potential future installation of platform screen doors?

It wasn’t part of our specifications, so it’s not something that we’re planning to introduce. What we’re currently doing is looking at it from a very high-level planning level. A big part of the answer is obviously going to be what are the region’s priorities. The Mayors’ Council say they want the expansion of transit. What’s the trade off in terms of spending millions on existing infrastructure or spending on service expansion?

17. As most of the new generation Mark V cars will be used to retire the old Mark I cars, it begs the following question: What are your plans for getting rid of 150 Mark I cars?

The Mark I trains are iconic. For most people, it’s almost the first image people have in their heads when they think of SkyTrain. And we’re treating it as an opportunity to look at what we can we do with the retirements. Obviously, we can always scrap them, but what does the community want? We are thinking through that now to ask the region for ideas, such as for museums, displays, and the features for parks. We know they carry a lot of nostalgic and emotional weight with the region, so we want to do the right thing. We’re looking at what can we do and who would like to have one.

18. The Expo and Millennium lines, benefiting from the use of driverless trains and a fully grade-separated route, are fast and frequent. But they’re not known for their interior cleanliness, when compared to busier subways elsewhere in North America or even the separately maintained Canada Line. What is BCRTC’s strategy for maintaining the Expo and Millennium lines? Are you looking to improve the standard for cleanliness?

Our stations are also a place where they become a community hub. With housing and density around the station, it becomes a landmark. And our stations are also a place of work. So I want our stations to be respectful of the people that we are employing at our stations, where our SkyTrain attendants spend their day.

So this is a very active file. We are looking at upping our cleanliness standards to make sure we can take pride in our stations.

We did a lot during COVID to maintain cleanliness. But then when our customers returned… it was like, whoa! We do need to catch up with the cleanliness in the stations and onboard the trains. So, we are on it.

With the big return of customers on the trains, we need to catch up better with cleanliness. We now have three layers of cleanliness — daily, weekly, and annual. So that’s something we will be keeping an eye on.

For the exterior of the trains, I will say many of our trains are white, particularly the Mark I and Mark II trains. With our new trains, we’re going with a blue coating, so it may look different. We do a car wash when we can when the weather allows, and we do hand cleaning.

I want us to always be class leading, so I will compete with the Canada Line.

19. As an almost daily SkyTrain rider, I can’t help but notice I frequently encounter an escalator that is not operational. Are such operational disruptions related to an escalator malfunction or preventative maintenance? Could preventative maintenance be conducted during off-hours to reduce the impacts to passengers?

Most of the downtime is preventative maintenance and inspections. It is disruptive to our customers. I know, I’m a customer, and when both elevators and escalators are down, it’s frustrating and reduces accessibility.

We are looking at doing more work during off-hours and quieter hours. Our crews are willing, but we have to look at the logistics, as the stations are closed overnight. So we have to think about keeping a station open for a crew, and that has implications on security.

We also have to think about the supply chain of the parts and materials. The crews need to pick up parts and do their jobs, so we need to make sure they can get that if they’re working off-hours.

But it’s on the agenda on how we can minimize the disruption by doing more work off-hours. It’s a very active file.

20. What is TransLink’s current retail expansion strategy within SkyTrain stations?

There is a focused effort to expand TransLink’s revenue sources. As stations become more of a hub in a community, we want the stations to provide more amenities. So we’re very active in terms of encouraging, first of all, the design of retail opportunities into new stations, as much as we can, and then making sure those opportunities are occupied, and with good tenants.

TransLink has a dedicated retail planning team. They have been ramping up their work with the return of customers onto SkyTrain, and we know customers are now expecting to be able to find a small shop and grab something at our stations. In the design of the Surrey-Langley Extension and Broadway Extension stations, we have designed those opportunities in strategic locations.

21. The growing noise on some sections of the Expo and Millennium lines has been identified as an issue by both TransLink and residents who live near the elevated guideway. What are some of the latest measures to mitigate track-induced noise?

We have some really good news on that front. This past summer, we secured two brand new grinders. They are incredibly complicated machines. We got them recently, tested them, commissioned them, and they’re now in service. This is allowing us to catch up on the rail grinding to reduce our noise emissions, plus the contracted services that have been helping us. So, we expect to catch up on this issue.

But steel-on-steel will always be noisy to a certain extent, and we are very aware that we are neighbours. As density comes around us, we have an obligation to reduce the noise as much as possible. There are other things we can do, like experimenting with dampers around the rails to reduce vibration, and wheel treatments.

We’re working with municipalities on design standards for new housing built around our stations — how can they make their housing as resilient as possible to noise. It’s something we always want to be managing, but we cannot promise that we will be a silent system. We understand the responsibility.

22. TransLink is experiencing some challenges with infill building Capstan Station onto the Canada Line in Richmond, and the scheduled service disruptions to SkyTrain service within Richmond to accommodate the project’s construction have been far longer and more intense than originally planned. Given the apparent challenges with adding a station to an elevated track, what does this say about potential projects to add underground stations, such as the Canada Line’s potential future 57th Avenue Station in Vancouver?

I think our project team working with the Canada Line and TransLink teams did the best possible job. You saw the disruption at Capstan Station and the service, and that was a relatively easy one in the sense that it’s above ground and pre-planned when the Canada Line was initially designed and built.

It is never easy to disrupt operations on an existing system, keep the service rolling, and build a new station around it. It becomes double or triple in difficulty for an underground station. It’s doable, but it is disruptive. It needs pre-planning and it’s not something we do lightly, as those are very expensive projects.

We need to look after safety, and we need to look at what could go wrong. A lot would need to be mitigated for underground construction. It’s doable, but it is not ideal. It’s best to build those stations from the get-go.

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• TransLink to proceed with new $110 million SkyTrain control centre
• TransLink to create new Metrotown office for SkyTrain division
• TransLink acquires Boucher Centre for future SkyTrain Columbia Station upgrade
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• TransLink studying ways to limit SkyTrain track intrusions, including the installation of platform screen doors