New Westminster Mayor Jonathan Cote is taking on a new role in Metro Vancouver.
At the Nov. 15 meeting, members of the Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation elected Cote as chair for the 2019 year. It was the first meeting of the Mayors’ Council following the Oct. 20 civic election.
“I am looking forward to the opportunity to serve as chair of the Mayors’ Council. I think TransLink and the Mayors’ Council are in a really good position over the next number of years to deliver some big improvements to public transportation across the Metro Vancouver region. We have also got a huge opportunity to do some long-range planning about the next major investments in the region too,” he told the Record. “I am looking forward to working with mayors all across the region, particularly with so many new faces around the table, to really start to chart and develop the long-range plans for transportation and public transit beyond the mayors’ 10 year plan.”
The Mayors' Council, which includes representatives from municipalities throughout the region, is responsible for considering TransLink plans dealing with transportation service levels, major capital projects, regional funding and borrowing limits.
“As someone who is a big advocate, not only in the City of New Westminster but also in the region of Metro Vancouver, to me I am looking forward to the opportunity of being able to serve the region,” said Cote, who has previously served on some of the Mayors’ Council’s sub-committees. “Definitely there is going to be more responsibilities as the chair of the Mayors’ Council. There will be more involvement with the TransLink board specifically. Definitely the calendar will be filled up with more meetings than normal, but it is something I will be able to manage in terms of my responsibilities and role as mayor of New Westminster.”
The Nov. 15 Mayors Council’s agenda included items such as reports on the proposed 2019 work plan and the 10-year vision, including rapid transit on the south of the Fraser River.
In June, the Mayors’ Council approved Phase 2 of its 10-year plan, which included a new street-level Newton-Guildford light rail line. Although TransLink has already spent millions on the $1.65 billion LRT project, the new Surrey city council passed a resolution to scrap the project and support a SkyTrain extension.
As a result of Surrey’s opposition to the LRT project, the Mayors’ Council voted to suspend the project.
“As someone who has been a champion of the mayors’ plan and has supported light rail south of the Fraser River, my initial reaction was not positive to making these changes. Having said that, as the election has passed I think there has been a growing recognition from myself and from other mayors across the region that we do need to respect the new direction from the City of Surrey and recognize that it would be very difficult to move ahead with a billion-dollar infrastructure project in a community that was not supportive and not willing to be a partner,” Cote said. “I really think the region has had no question but to re-evaluate how rapid transit is going to expand south of the Fraser River. I do find it frustrating, given that it has been many years in the works and approximately between $50 and $70 million has already been spent on that project. That issue was raised and discussed by a number of mayors around the Mayors’ Council table.”
Cote said the Mayors’ Council will seek more information about the costs to date, some which may be very specific to the LRT project and others that may he preplanning work that would have been required with any project.
“The Mayors’ Council decided to suspend the light rail project, but I think in all reality, unless the City of Surrey has a change of heart within the next six months, I don’t see that project moving forward at all. Construction was anticipated to start on the light rail project in 2020,” he said. “There’s no doubt we can work hard to make sure we are taking the $1.6- billion that we do have available for rapid transit south of the Fraser River and look to reallocate that to another project that has the support of the local government, but the reality is there is a lot of work to do to get us to the point to even where we are today with the light rail project in Surrey. No doubt this will lead to a delay in being able to deliver rapid transit south of the Fraser River. But I think the Mayors’ Council is going to work hard and be committed to being able to move forward with rapid transit as soon as possible. “
Aside from the changes to the LRT plan in Surrey, Cote isn’t anticipating any major changes from what’s been approved in the region’s transportation plan.
“I think there will be a strong commitment to move ahead with the mayor’s transportation plan, particularly the projects that are already being funded,” he said. “With the exception of rapid transit south of the Fraser River, I expect all of the other components of Phase 2 of the mayors’ 10-year plan to be moving ahead over the next several years.”
