Vancouver ranks 3rd in list of Best Canadian Cities for Public Transit
If you have traveled to other North American cities of similar size to Vancouver, you would probably know that Vancouver does decently when it comes to its public transit system.
According to a new list compiled by Walk Score, Vancouver has the third best public transit system in Canada after gaining a score of 74 – coming just behind Toronto with 78 and Montreal with 77.
Canada’s three largest cities made it to the Top 3 with high scores in the 70s while Winnipeg and Ottawa were ranked fourth and fifth with distant scores of 51 and 49.
“In comparison to the United States, Toronto and Montreal score better than any large U.S. city except New York and San Francisco. And Vancouver, with a Transit Score of 74, trounces nearby Seattle (our home town), with a Transit Score of 57,” said Matt Lerner from Walk Score.
New York City and San Francisco were given scores of 81 and 80.
Cities with a transit score of between 90 to 100 are considered a “Rider’s Paradise” while scores of 70 to 89 are considered to be places with “Excellent Transit.” Scores between 50 to 69 are deemed to be places with “Good Transit” and a rating of 49 or below indicates areas with “Some or Minimal Transit options.”
No North American city scored “Rider’s Paradise” although three City of Vancouver neighbourhoods (Downtown, West End, Strathcona) attained such a description.
The scores are based on the sum value of all transit routes in the city and is defined by service level (frequency per week), mode weight (heavy/light rail, ferry/cable car, and bus), and the distance to a nearest stop along a route.
The rankings are based on our Transit Score algorithm, which measures how well a location is served by public transit. Addresses with a Transit Score of 90-100 are considered a “Rider’s Paradise.” Places with a score of 70–89 have Excellent Transit. Scores of 50–69 indicate places with Good Transit and ratings of 49 or lower indicate areas with Some or Minimal Transit options. Read the Transit Score methodology.
Last fall, Walk Score named Vancouver as Canada’s most walkable city and the fourth most walkable among North American and Australian cities.
Canada’s Top 10 Public Transit Systems
| Rank | City | Transit Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toronto | 78 |
| 2 | Montréal | 77 |
| 3 | Vancouver | 74 |
| 4 | Winnipeg | 51 |
| 5 | Ottawa | 49 |
| 6 | Brampton | 48 |
| 7 | Québec | 46 |
| 8 | Edmonton | 44 |
| 9 | Calgary | 43 |
| 10 | Hamilton | 42 |
Vancouver Neighbourhoods the Best Walkability and Transit Service
| Rank | Name | Walk Score | Transit Score | Bike Score | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Downtown | 96 | 98 | – | 54,022 |
| 2 | West End | 94 | 90 | – | 44,233 |
| 3 | Strathcona | 93 | 90 | – | 12,245 |
| 4 | Kitsilano | 89 | 74 | – | 41,358 |
| 5 | Fairview | 89 | 80 | – | 31,307 |
| 6 | Mount Pleasant | 88 | 82 | – | 26,434 |
| 7 | Grandview-Woodland | 86 | 75 | – | 27,160 |
| 8 | Riley Park | 80 | 68 | – | 21,894 |
| 9 | South Cambie | 77 | 70 | – | 7,675 |
| 10 | Kensington-Cedar Cottage | 76 | 73 | – | 47,423 |
| 11 | West Point Grey | 74 | 70 | – | 12,763 |
| 12 | Marpole | 72 | 66 | – | 23,871 |
| 13 | Renfrew-Collingwood | 72 | 79 | – | 50,338 |
| 14 | Arbutus-Ridge | 70 | 59 | – | 15,904 |
| 15 | Hastings-Sunrise | 69 | 65 | – | 33,859 |
| 16 | Dunbar-Southlands | 68 | 54 | – | 20,050 |
| 17 | Shaughnessy | 66 | 64 | – | 8,786 |
| 18 | Sunset | 63 | 61 | – | 36,328 |
| 19 | Kerrisdale | 63 | 57 | – | 14,716 |
| 20 | Killarney | 62 | 59 | – | 28,277 |
| 21 | Victoria-Fraserview | 62 | 60 | – | 30,386 |
| 22 | Oakridge | 61 | 71 | – | 12,435 |
Image: SkyTrain Canada Line via Shutterstock