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Metrotown station

Coordinates: 49°13′32″N 123°00′11″W / 49.225463°N 123.003182°W / 49.225463; -123.003182
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Metrotown
SkyTrain station
Entrance to Metrotown's west stationhouse
General information
Location4401 Beresford Street, Burnaby
Coordinates49°13′32″N 123°00′11″W / 49.225463°N 123.003182°W / 49.225463; -123.003182
Owned byTransLink
PlatformsCentre platform
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeElevated
AccessibleYes
Other information
Station codeMT
Fare zone2
History
OpenedDecember 11, 1985; 39 years ago (1985-12-11)
Rebuilt2015–2018; 6 years ago (2018)
Passengers
2023[1]8,213,900 Increase 23.6%
Rank2 of 53
Services
Preceding station TransLink Following station
Patterson
towards Waterfront
 Expo Line Royal Oak
towards King George or Production Way–University

Metrotown is an elevated station on the Expo Line of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system, and is located along Central Boulevard, directly across from the Metropolis at Metrotown shopping centre, in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. As of 2022, it is the second-busiest station in the SkyTrain system.[2]

History

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Metrotown station was built in 1985 as part of the original SkyTrain system, on what is now known as the Expo Line. An overhead walkway, spanning Central Boulevard and the bus loop, to the Eaton Centre shopping centre (now Metropolis at Metrotown) was added to the station in 1989.[citation needed] Originally, the loop was open-air and connected to the station via an at-grade street crossing.[3]

The station was originally designed as a suburban station serving residential neighbourhoods and local transit connections. It experienced a major traffic increase due to the opening of nearby shopping centres and the redevelopment of the neighbourhood, leading to passenger loads and circulation surpassing the design capacity of the original station.

In 2007, TransLink established plans for a major retrofit and redesign of the station to improve passenger flow and increase station capacity.[4] Construction began in February 2015, with an estimated cost of $55.5 million, jointly funded by the federal, provincial and municipal governments.[5][6]

On November 15, 2016, TransLink closed and partially dismantled the pedestrian overpass in preparation for work required in rebuilding the east stationhouse. The closure led to criticism and extra travel time for many passengers.[7][8][9] A new footbridge, to be funded entirely by the City of Burnaby, is included in Burnaby's 2019–2023 Capital Plan, released May 2019.[6][10][11] The plan allocates a total of $17.25 million over 4 years towards its construction but does not specify a completion date for the project.[6]

The centre stationhouse opened to the public on March 24, 2017, and features new stairs and elevators.[12] On July 24, 2017, the west stationhouse opened, featuring four escalators.[13]

The rebuilt east stationhouse opened on March 19, 2018, and—like the west stationhouse—it also features four escalators.[14] Upon completion of the third phase, the station has a total of eight escalators, three elevators as well as stairs to and from platform level.

Services

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  • Metrotown station is a major connection point for the TransLink bus routes in southern Vancouver and Burnaby.
  • The station is right across Central Boulevard from a bus loop and Metropolis at Metrotown[15] and Station Square malls.
  • The Crystal Mall and many other retail developments are nearby on Kingsway, one block north of the station.
  • The Burnaby Public Library Bob Prittie Metrotown Branch is also one block away from the station in Burnaby Civic Square.
  • Burnaby Civic Square, Kinnee, Maywood Park & Bonsor Park are located two blocks away from the station.
  • Bonsor Recreation Complex is a community centre located in Bonsor Park.
  • An ATM is available on the street level of the station's east entry.

Station information

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Entrances

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Escalators at the western entrance
  • East entrance: This entrance is located on the BC Parkway, north of Beresford Street and south of Central Boulevard. It can be found at the far east end of the platform. It has four escalators and opened on March 19, 2018,[16] replacing the original entry which was limited to stair access between street and concourse level. The entrance is in close proximity to Bay 9 of the Metrotown transit exchange for connections to south Burnaby community shuttle services.
  • West entrance: This entrance is located on the west side of the station. It has 4 escalators which opened on July 24, 2017, to replace an emergency exit stairway.
  • Centre entrance: Construction on this entrance, which includes access to the station via stairs and 3 elevators, began in May 2015[4] to replace the previous single elevator entrance. It was opened, with two of its three elevators in service, on March 24, 2017.[12]

Transit connections

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See also: List of bus routes in Metro Vancouver

Metrotown provides a partial off-street transit exchange on Beresford Street, and in front of the ground-level entrance to Metropolis shopping centre. Bus bay assignments are as follows:[17][18]

Bay Routes Additional information
1 — Unloading only
2 19 Stanley Park Trolley bus service
3 430 Richmond–Brighouse Station Express
4 130 Phibbs Exchange / Kootenay Loop / To Pender
5 222 Phibbs Exchange Peak hours only
6 119 Edmonds Station
129 Holdom Station Limited service
7 31 River District
8 146 Suncrest
147 Edmonds Station
10 — Unloading only
11 49 UBC Articulated bus service[19]
12 116 Edmonds Station
13 110 Lougheed Station
14 144 SFU

References

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  1. ^ "2023 Transit Service Performance Review – SkyTrain Stations Summaries". tableau.com. TransLink. April 17, 2024. Archived from the original on April 30, 2024. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  2. ^ Ho, Kenny (April 28, 2023). "The top 10 busiest SkyTrain stations in 2022". The Buzzer blog. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  3. ^ "SkyTrain historic photos: Princess Diana visits SkyTrain and more". Buzzer Blog. January 21, 2011. Retrieved November 20, 2011.
  4. ^ a b ""Moving Forward" 2012 Supplemental Plan and Outlook". TransLink. Archived from the original on April 1, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2011.
  5. ^ "Construction begins on $55.5-million Metrotown Station". Daily Hive. February 26, 2015. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c Chan, Kenneth (June 1, 2019). "New pedestrian bridge to connect SkyTrain's Metrotown Station with Metrotown mall". The Daily Hive. Retrieved July 26, 2019.
  7. ^ Hewitt, Jessica (November 9, 2016). "Attention Metrotown SkyTrain riders!". The Buzzer Blog. TransLink. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  8. ^ Saltman, Jennifer (November 17, 2016). "Metrotown transit upgrade: Four things you need to know". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  9. ^ "Metrotown SkyTrain construction leaves commuters puffing up the stairs". CBC News. November 16, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  10. ^ Amiri, Hamed (May 7, 2019). "New Pedestrian Walkway Will Connect Metrotown SkyTrain Station To The Mall". 604 Now. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  11. ^ Shepert, Elana (May 7, 2019). "New pedestrian bridge will connect Metrotown Skytrain Station with mall". The Vancouver Courier. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  12. ^ a b "Metrotown Station elevator is open for business on March 24, 2017!". TransLink. March 22, 2017. Archived from the original on September 21, 2018. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  13. ^ Chan, Kenneth (July 24, 2017). "Metrotown Station's super-long escalators finally open (PHOTOS)". Daily Hive. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  14. ^ Chan, Kenneth (March 20, 2018). "New Metrotown Station entrance opens with 4 additional escalators". Daily Hive. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  15. ^ Metropolis at Metrotown: public transit Archived October 8, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ "TransLink BC on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  17. ^ "Metrotown Station" (PDF). translink.ca. TransLink. September 2021. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  18. ^ ""Bus Timetable: Burnaby / New Westminster" (PDF). translink.ca. TransLink. January 6, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  19. ^ "2016 Transit Service Performance Review" (PDF). Retrieved September 9, 2017.
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Media related to Metrotown station at Wikimedia Commons

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