New limited-edition TransLink craft beer pays tribute to retiring Mark I SkyTrain fleet

TransLink is raising a glass to the original SkyTrain fleet as the iconic trains continue to gradually disappear from the system.

The public transit authority has partnered with New Westminster-based Steel & Oak Brewing Co. to create Rolling Stock Mark I West Coast IPA — a limited-edition craft beer inspired by the original Mark I SkyTrain cars.

The collaboration comes as TransLink continues to gradually retire all 150 Mark I trains, which entered service between the 1980s and early 1990s. They are being increasingly replaced by incoming arrivals of the new generation Mark V fleet that have fully completed the testing process.

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TransLink has ordered 47 five-car-long Mark V trains, with the final train from this order arriving in 2029. The public transit authority previously noted the final Mark I train could be retired by 2027 or 2028.

For longtime public transit riders, the beer’s packaging may be particularly familiar. Its can design takes inspiration from the original BC Transit livery of red and blue stripes on white on the exterior of the original Mark I trains.

The transition will ultimately bring an end to an era for the Mark I vehicles, which have carried generations of passengers on the Expo and Millennium lines. This is the first model of SkyTrain vehicle used on the entire system, which began with the first segment of what is now known as the Expo Line, built in time for the Expo ’86 World’s Fair.

Steel & Oak plans to brew approximately 5,000 litres of the West Coast IPA, including a limited production run of about 1,250 four-packs.

The four-packs will be sold at Steel & Oak’s brewery and tasting room in New Westminster, as well as at select liquor stores across Metro Vancouver while supplies last. The beer will also be available on tap at participating restaurants around the region.

There will be more than beer for transit enthusiasts to collect.

A line of limited-edition merchandise — including hats, T-shirts, tote bags, pins, and stickers — is also being released as part of the collaboration. The merchandise is being produced by New Westminster-based PBJ Merch Co. and will be available from Steel & Oak.

“There’s something special about the original SkyTrain cars. They’ve been part of Metro Vancouver for 40 years, and people still love them,” said TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn in a statement today.

“As we gradually retire these iconic trains, our collaboration with Steel & Oak is a fun way to celebrate their legacy with a locally brewed beer, while generating additional revenue to support transit.”

Some retired Mark I cars are also finding second lives. TransLink has sought proposals to preserve and repurpose some of the vehicles being retired, rather than simply disposing of all of them. One retired car has already been incorporated into a film production studio in Langley.

The beer and merchandise collaboration is also intended to do more than commemorate the trains. TransLink will receive a portion of the revenue generated through sales of the beer and associated merchandise.

The public transit authority has increasingly looked at commercial partnerships and other non-fare revenue sources as ways to bring in additional funding to support services and new and improved infrastructure.

“At Steel & Oak, we’ve always been proud of our New Westminster roots and the community that’s supported us over the years,” said Jorden Foss, founder of Steel & Oak Brewing Co.

“Collaborating with TransLink gives us a chance to celebrate that connection in a fun and unique way, while paying tribute to an iconic piece of Metro Vancouver’s history. We can’t wait for people to try it.”

But this is not TransLink’s first venture into craft beer.

In Summer 2025, TransLink partnered with Port Coquitlam-based Patina Brewing Co. on Platform Pilsner, its first officially branded public transit-themed beer. That beer featured artwork inspired by the West Coast Express commuter rail trains and was also produced as a limited release.

And craft beer is not the only beverage getting the public transit treatment.

In August 2026, TransLink partnered with Vancouver-made Callister Craft Soda on a limited-edition 99 B-Line Blueberry & Honey soda, celebrating the bus route’s 30th anniversary. The soda can prominently revives the original purple-and-yellow B-Line branding — complete with the vintage cartoon bee mascot that quite literally represented the “B” in B-Line.

Another recent TransLink-branded beverage collaboration came that same month, when the public transit authority partnered with Vancouver-based Trees Organic Coffee & Cheesecake on the limited-edition Travelling Through Taste coffee and tea collection.

The 99 B-Line itself is also approaching another major change. When the Millennium Line’s Broadway extension opens to Arbutus in late 2027, the bus route will be shortened again to run only between the new Arbutus Station and UBC, with SkyTrain replacing its service farther east along Broadway.

The craft soda is also not the only recent collectible celebrating 99 B-Line’s 30th anniversary: Heritage Bricks recently partnered with TransLink on a 430-piece building kit made with real LEGO pieces that recreates a 2002-era articulated 99 B-Line bus, complete with its vintage blue, white, and yellow livery and the original bee logo.

Heritage Bricks has also previously recreated SkyTrain vehicles, including the original Mark I cars. Its first TransLink collection, released in 2025 to coincide with SkyTrain’s 40th anniversary, featured brick-building kits of the Mark I, Mark II, Mark III, and Mark V trains, with a later release expanding the lineup to include Canada Line trains,

You might also like:
• SkyTrain's retired iconic Mark I cars spotted being torn apart in scrapyard
• End of the line in sight for two generations of old SkyTrain cars
• SkyTrain's entire fleet of Mark II train cars is also set for retirement
• Retired old Mark I SkyTrain car converted into Canada's first standing subway film production set
• A world-class example of repurposing subway trains as public space centrepieces