TransLink to extend rapid bus service from Phibbs Exchange to Metrotown by 2027

The Mayors’ Council and TransLink’s Board of Directors have approved the agency’s 2025 Investment Plan. In a press release, TransLink said the plan will fund the largest increase in bus service since 2018, and advance Bus Rapid Transit projects. The plan will create a rapid transit bus service between Phibbs Exchange and Metrotown in 2027.

“Through this Investment Plan, TransLink will create new bus routes to serve people in eight areas that currently have no transit and will add or enhance bus routes to improve transit in six under-served areas,” TransLink said.

The transit agency will add new routes to industrial areas like Campbell Heights (Surrey), Gloucester (Langley), and Tilbury (Delta). TransLink will also provide enhanced access to parks like Stanley Park, Terra Nova Park (Richmond), and Golden Ears Provincial Park (Maple Ridge). The R2 Marine Drive RapidBus provides frequent all-day service between Park Royal and Phibbs Exchange. This plan funds the delivery of the R2 RapidBus extension from its current terminus at Phibbs Exchange to Metrotown.

“This extension will improve connections to the North Shore, provide easier access to SkyTrain, and build ridership in advance of BRT along the corridor,” the agency said. Key investments include more service on 50 overcrowded bus routes, improving or implementing 40 new routes, including to 14 areas with no or limited transit service. This Investment Plan will be funded with a $20 increase in property taxes for median households in 2025 and a fare increase of $0.14 for the average trip starting in July 2026.