Mission is the terminus of the West Coast Express, which Metro Vancouver mayors say could be at risk if the province does not provide more funding. 📷 Grace Kennedy
This story first appeared in the September 25, 2024, edition of the Fraser Valley Current newsletter. Subscribe for free to get Fraser Valley news in your email every weekday morning.
Mission Mayor Paul Horn said he doesn’t think funding for the West Coast Express is actually in danger, despite the warnings from TransLink and Metro Vancouver’s mayors.
Earlier this year, the Metro Vancouver mayors that run Translink commissioned a study into the organizations fiscal future and what a lack of funding might mean for services. That report suggested TransLink was facing a $600 million budget shortfall that could lead to hard choices. The study suggested that cuts could lead the West Coast Express to either be scaled back or yanked from the tracks entirely.
The train’s eastern terminus is in Mission and any cuts could disrupt the lives of residents there who depend on the service to get to and from Vancouver, and other stops along the line.
But Horn said he thinks most of the dire prognoses are driven by politics. While his neighours to the west are pleading for more provincial money for TransLink, Horn says funding for BC Transit and the services it provides is just as needed.
