TransLink says there has been record-level response in public engagement about the project

Rendering shows possible look of SkyTrain station along Fraser Highway. (THE NEWS/files)

TransLink says survey results on the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain extension indicate “widespread support” for the project.

In Surrey and Langley, 85 per cent of respondents say they support the project, and the rest of the region came in at 84 per cent.

In Surrey specifically, 82 per cent said they supported the project. That rose to 90 per cent in the City of Langley and 92 per cent in the Township of Langley.

TransLink says it saw ‘record-level response’ to the first stage of public engagement on the project.

Between April 4 and 26, TransLink collected 21,267 survey responses, with nearly 17,000 of them from residents in Surrey and Langley.

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“This engagement received the second greatest number of responses in the history of TransLink engagements, second only to a topic that affected the entire region,” said TransLink CEO Kevin Desmond. “Ridership is booming, especially south of the Fraser, and the incredible number of responses from this engagement demonstrates how important it is that we continue improving and expanding our transit system.”

Strong support was also shown in this first phase of engagement for rapid transit options for 104th Avenue and King George Boulevard, where the nixed light rail project would have been constructed.

In the survey, respondents identified the following as their top three values: “predictable transit travel time that helps me get to my destination faster; efficient use of public money; and a comfortable and safe experience when I use transit.”

TransLink also commissioned a market research survey and its findings were consistent with the results of the public engagement survey.

The transit authority notes that feedback from the engagement “will help to inform ongoing planning work and will form part of TransLink’s project update to the Mayors’ Council in July.”

For more information, visit surreylangleyskytrain.ca