91原创 and its neighbours could see transit service reduced to almost nothing, with major cuts to HandyDart too, if a $600 million budget shortfall isn't corrected by next year, TransLink warned Thursday.

TransLink announced Thursday, July 25 that if money isn't found to fill the hole in its operating budget, it would have to slash existing transit service across the region.

Bus service would be cut in half, with 145 routes cancelled outright. The cuts would fall particularly heavily on Metro Vancouver's outer suburbs, with "almost no transit service" in 91原创, White Rock, Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows, South Delta, Port Coquitlam, and the North Shore.

In addition, HandyDart, which serves people with disabilities and mobility issues, would but cut by 35 per cent. Disability rights advocates have long called for more HandyDart service, which has suffered from delays and a lack of capacity even before this announcement.

SkyTrain and SeaBus service would also be reduced, and the West Coast Express could be shut down entirely.

鈥淭hese cuts would be devastating to the region, and we鈥檙e doing everything we can to stop them from happening,鈥� TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn said in a statement. 鈥淯nfortunately, this is a window into our reality if a solution to our outdated funding model is not implemented. We need all levels of government to come together to protect and expand transit service to meet the needs of Metro Vancouver鈥檚 growing population.鈥�

Brad West, head of the Mayors' Council which oversees TransLink, called for senior levels of government to come to the table to create a stable funding model, including a permanent $3.4 billion a year Access for Everyone fund for current and expanded transit operations.

鈥淥ur region is growing rapidly and facing an affordability crisis at the same time 鈥� both of which require more transit, not less," West said. "We are committed to doing everything possible to prevent these cuts and ensure our transit system remains robust and reliable.鈥�

Local reaction was swift, with mayors of City and Township joining the call for the province to come up with a stable funding model.

"If not resolved, the situation facing the Township of 91原创 would be dire, potentially a total removal of almost all of the current transit service," said Township Mayor Eric Woodward."

He noted that the planned Bus Rapid Transit line up and down 200 Street was not even funded yet, and if existing services could not be kept up, it was very likely that a new project like BRT would be indefinitely delayed.

"It is up the province now to solve it, by confirming a new sustainable funding model that does not rely on more increases to property taxes beyond the annual four per cent, or fare increases," Woodward said.

City Mayor Nathan Pachal said that overall, he was optimistic that governments would come together to find a solution.

"People are willing to get this done," he said.

But they need to be aware of the consequences of not fixing funding, and that was what the report lays out, he said.

He noted that if transit service were slashed, it would mean more people relying on cars.

"It would ratchet up congestion like nothing we've ever seen," he said.

Greater 91原创 Chamber of Commerce CEO Cory Redekop called the TransLink report "shocking."

鈥淭ransit is a business issue," Redekop said. "These reductions would put up to 265,000 jobs beyond the reach of transit, cutting people off from their jobs and severely restricting the ability of local businesses to hire and retain workers. 91原创 residents and businesses pay a significant amount of taxes towards transit and we are already woefully underserved, but this plan would see what service we do have eliminated! Again, completely unacceptable."

TransLink identified several problems that have led to this situation.

Like all North American transit systems, TransLink saw a massive decline in revenues during the pandemic, when trips to work or school were reduced or eliminated for many people.

But since then, there have been other issues. Transit fare increases have been cancelled, or have gone ahead at below the level of inflation, while costs for the transit service have risen. Fares have been going up by 2.3 per cent a year, while inflation is currently at 2.7 per cent in Canada and peaked at 8.1 per cent in 2022. Costs for labour, fuel, and new vehicles have all increased, the TransLink report said.

Successful campaigns to get drivers to switch to electric vehicles are also reducing another of TransLink's funding sources 鈥� the fuel tax. The agency collected $34 million less from that tax in 2023 than in 2022.