TransLink proposes 5 new bus routes to River District in Vancouver | Daily Hive

TransLink proposes 5 new and improved bus routes to serve the rapidly growing River District in Vancouver

River District (East Fraser Lands) in Vancouver, January 2025. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

Tucked away in the southeasternmost corner of Vancouver is River District, also known as the East Fraser Lands — one of the city’s newest highest-density neighbourhoods outside of downtown.

This is a brand new master planned neighbourhood developed by local developer Wesgroup Properties, built on a 128-acre former vacant industrial site fronting the Fraser River to the south and the Vancouver-Burnaby municipal border to the east.

Currently, only two TransLink bus routes directly enter and serve River District.

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The existing No. 31 River District/Metrotown Station bus route, launched relatively recently in 2020, runs between SkyTrain’s Metrotown Station and the retail village core of River District. It uses small community shuttle buses for its service.

According to TransLink statistics, the No. 31 saw 270,000 boardings in 2023, making it the 131st busiest bus route in TransLink’s network of about 200 bus routes, with averages of 800 boardings per weekday, 680 per Saturday, and 520 per Sunday/holiday. This is up from 185,000 annual boardings in 2022 amid the pandemic recovery.

The other existing direct bus service is the No. 80 River District/Marine Drive Station express bus route between SkyTrain’s Marine Drive Station and River District via Marine Drive and Marine Way. However, the No. 80 only operates during peak periods on weekdays, recording 75,000 passengers over its first 8.5 months of operations after launching in mid-April 2023. It ranked as the 167th busiest bus route.

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River District (East Fraser Lands) in Vancouver, January 2025. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

River District’s retail village core is also about a 10-minute walk to the nearest bus stops on Southeast Marine Drive — north of Marine Way — for the No. 100 Marpole Loop/22nd Street Station. Running between Marpole bus loop and SkyTrain’s 22nd Street Station in New Westminster, the existing No. 100 is TransLink’s 17th busiest bus route, with 2023 annual boardings reaching 3.57 million, and with averages of 10,800 per weekday, 8,200 per Saturday, and 7,100 per Sunday/holiday.

In recent years, the No. 100 has garnered attention as TransLink plans to make it Metro Vancouver’s first 100% battery-electric bus route. A TransLink spokesperson told Daily Hive Urbanized today that the public transit authority has received all 15 new battery-electric buses from Nova Bus, and nine vehicles are now in service on the No. 100, with preparations being made for the other six vehicles.

Proposal for five new and improved bus routes serving River District

As more high-density residential phases of River District unfold and reach completion, TransLink aims to significantly improve the neighbourhood’s public transit access and connectivity, helping to reduce car dependency and traffic congestion in the area.

Under its proposed Burrard Peninsula Area Transport Plan, which will undergo public consultation starting on February 10, 2025, TransLink is looking to provide River District with five brand new and improved bus routes.

“The River District has a high and growing demand for transit service which will require new and better connections to other transit services and destinations,” states TransLink in its rationale for proposing the various service enhancements for River District.

River District (East Fraser Lands) in Vancouver, January 2025. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

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River District (East Fraser Lands) in Vancouver, January 2025. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

First of all, the public transit authority is looking to introduce a brand new route between SkyTrain’s Joyce-Collingwood Station and River District, running along Tyne Street.

Second, the existing No. 20 Downtown/Victoria bus route may be extended from its existing southern terminus of Harrison bus loop to River District. Currently operated as a trolley bus route, the frequent No. 20 is among TransLink’s busiest bus routes, ranking eighth in 2023 for its total annual ridership of 4.2 million boardings, with averages of 12,500 boardings per weekday, 10,500 per Saturday, and 8,200 per Sunday/holiday.

Third, TransLink is proposing to launch an Express Bus variant of the No. 20 — the No. 20X, making fewer stops along the same Hastings Street/Commercial Drive/Victoria Drive route between downtown Vancouver and River District. Over the longer term, this express bus service could be upgraded to a RapidBus.

Fourth, the existing No. 29 29th Avenue Station/Elliott bus route runs between SkyTrain’s 29th Avenue Station and the intersection of Nanaimo Street and Fraserview Drive. TransLink wants to move the No. 29’s southern terminus from this intersection to River District.

Fifth, the existing No. 80 express could see its eastern end point moved from River District to 22nd Street Station, which in effect provides greater regional accessibility to the East Fraser Lands. Over the longer term, a new RapidBus or Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line could run along the Marine Drive/Marine Way corridor between Marine Drive Station and 22nd Street Station, replacing the No. 80 express bus and providing relief to the No. 100 local bus service.

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Existing bus network in the Burrard Peninsula area. (TransLink)

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Proposed future bus network under the Burrard Peninsula Area Transport Plan. (TransLink)

Additionally, changes may be made to the existing No. 31, which would still terminate at River District. TransLink is considering merging the No. 31 and No. 146 Metrotown Station/Suncrest routes into a single service. The proposed northbound route from River District to Metrotown Station would run along Joffre Avenue and Rumble Street, while the southbound route would follow Patterson Avenue and Marine Drive. This change is being considered due to the No. 146’s route overlap with existing services and its low ridership.

18,000 residents living in River District upon full buildout

With all that said, what is the potential transportation demand of River District over the near-term and long-term upon the full buildout of the entire neighbourhood?

In 2021, Vancouver City Council approved major amendments to the East Fraser Lands’ original 2006 master plan, now enabling over 1.5 million sq ft of residential uses beyond what was originally contemplated. This will enable the construction of approximately 1,850 additional new homes, including 1,000 strata market ownership condominium homes, 500 secured purpose-built market rental homes, and 350 social housing units.

To date, most of Wesgroup Properties’ construction activity has been concentrated in the northern section of River District, north of the east-west railway corridor that bisects the site. The developer is now beginning to shift focus to the area south of the railway, with a recent rezoning application under municipal review for the development of the site’s southeast quadrant along the riverfront. Within this southeast quadrant, Wesgroup Properties is aiming to build over 3.1 million sq ft of residential uses, including 2.1 million of condominium uses and nearly one million sq ft of rental housing and social housing uses.

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Map of the future buildout of River District (East Fraser Lands), Vancouver. (Wesgroup Properties)

2021-approved master plan changes to Area 1 and Area 3 of River District (East Fraser Lands). (City of Vancouver)

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2024 preliminary concept of Area 3 (southeast quadrant) of River District, Vancouver. (Wesgroup Properties)

Construction on the site first began 15 years ago. By 2021, years after the completion of the first residential buildings, about 3,500 residents called River District home.

Brad Jones, the Chief Development Officer, told Daily Hive Urbanized that he estimates River District’s population has since grown to 4,500 to 5,000 residents.

Upon the full completion of over 10,000 homes, including the additional residential density approved in the 2021 master plan changes, River District could accommodate a future population of around 18,000 residents. The full buildout is expected to take about 20 years, as the development is currently about 40% complete. Tower heights in the neighbourhood will reach up to about 30 storeys.

This is in addition to over 500,000 sq ft of commercial office, retail, restaurant, and service uses, with the 2019-opened Save-On-Foods grocery store anchoring the retail village. As more of the development activity gravitates south of the railway, there will be additional commercial space, with retail continuing down along River District Crossing to the future waterfront plaza and community centre. Construction on the community centre is expected to begin in 2026. Altogether, the total building floor area of River District will approach roughly nine million sq ft.

In addition to the significant residential and commercial uses, River District will also provide 27 acres of public park, plaza, and open spaces.

River District’s future residential population and the overall scale of the development fall somewhere between Wesbrook Village at UBC and MST Developments’ planned Jericho Lands project in West Point Grey, which could be directly served by the future UBC SkyTrain extension.

River District (East Fraser Lands) in Vancouver, January 2025. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

“Additional transit connections to River District are essential as the community rapidly grows toward its planned population of 18,000 — which today would make it one of the 25 largest cities in British Columbia. Improved transit is critical to provide options for residents, reduce car reliance, support local businesses, and connect residents to essential services, ensuring the area thrives as a vibrant and sustainable neighboruhood,” Jones told Daily Hive Urbanized, in reaction to TransLink’s proposed bus service improvements for River District.

“These upgrades will meet rising demand and integrate River District more seamlessly into the broader Metro Vancouver region and strengthen connections to SkyTrain,” he added.

Some of River District’s most recent residential completions entail Paradigm, which is a 268-unit condominium building, and Keel, which is a 127-unit secured purpose-built rental housing building.

In January 2025, residents began moving into the newly built 26-storey, “Jenga-like” Sawmill building — a 26-storey tower with 337 below-market rental homes, including 220 units prioritized for Indigenous people and 117 co-op units.

The next major residential building to reach completion at River District will be the secured purpose-built rental housing building of Flynn, which will have 178 units. It will be ready for tenants later in 2025.

Various other residential buildings are also under construction, such as the site excavation work for the 30-storey Harlin tower with over 300 condominium units. It is expected to reach completion in 2027.

An on-site district energy system that taps into the heat generated by Metro Vancouver Regional District’s nearby Waste-To-Energy waste incinerator facility in Burnaby is expected to reach completion in 2025.

New district energy system building;River District (East Fraser Lands) in Vancouver, January 2025. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

River District (East Fraser Lands) in Vancouver, 2024. (Wesgroup Properties)

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