SkyTrain Celebrates Four Decades of Transit in Metro Vancouver
This week marks 40 years since the SkyTrain rapid transit system first opened in Metro Vancouver, and a special photo retrospective highlights how it has shaped travel in the region. The first SkyTrain cars rolled into Vancouver’s Waterfront Station on December 11, 1985, marking the beginning of what has become a transportation backbone for communities across the Lower Mainland.
SkyTrain has grown far beyond its original 21 kilometres of track with the Expo Line, adding the Millennium Line and other extensions, and serving hundreds of thousands of riders every weekday.
Photos Show Early Years and Surrey Arrival
The photo collection includes historic images from the system’s earliest days, including celebrations at the 1985 launch and scenes from later expansions. One of the system’s most notable milestones came in March 1990, when SkyTrain extended into Surrey for the first time. Commuters began using Scott Road Station as trains crossed the Fraser River via the engineering landmark known as the SkyBridge, a cable-supported rapid transit bridge built specifically for SkyTrain.
By 1994 the Expo Line further expanded with new stations including Gateway, Surrey Central and King George, continuing the rapid transit network into the city’s core.
A System That Shaped the Region
From its beginnings as a showcase project for Expo 86 to an everyday essential transit service, SkyTrain has played a central role in shaping urban growth and mobility in Metro Vancouver. Over time the network has influenced neighbourhood development, commuter patterns and how people move between suburbs and downtown.
Today SkyTrain remains one of the busiest automated rapid transit systems in the world. Expo and Millennium lines alone averaged nearly 349,000 weekday boardings last year, contributing to almost 1.5 million rides across the entire transit network.
Looking Ahead Expansion Continues
Photographs from the retrospective also connect past achievements with future growth. Major projects are underway that will add new stations and extend service further south and across the region. The Surrey Langley SkyTrain extension will add 16 kilometres of track and several new stops south of King George Station, connecting new communities to rapid transit. Along with other expansions such as the Broadway Subway, these projects will increase the system’s reach more than its original length a reminder of how far SkyTrain has come since that first snowy day at Waterfront Station four decades ago.
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