New Westminster station

New Westminster is an elevated station on the Expo Line of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system. The station is located at the intersection of Columbia Street and 8th Street in New Westminster, British Columbia. In 2012, the station was incorporated into the Shops at New West complex, making it the first train station in Canada to have a direct connection to a shopping centre at the platform level.[2]

New Westminster
SkyTrain station
Platform level at New Westminster station
Location32 8th Street, New Westminster
Coordinates49.201354°N 122.912716°W / 49.201354; -122.912716
Owned byTransLink
PlatformsSide platforms
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeElevated
Disabled accessYes
ArchitectArchitektengruppe U-Bahn
Other information
Station codeNW
Fare zone2
History
OpenedDecember 11, 1985
Rebuilt2012, 2015–16
Traffic
Passengers (2018[1])15,890
Rank8 of 53
Services
Preceding station   TransLink   Following station
toward Waterfront
Expo Line

History

New Westminster station was built in 1985 as part of the original SkyTrain system (now known as Expo Line), providing a transportation link to Expo 86 being held in the city of Vancouver. The Austrian architecture firm Architektengruppe U-Bahn was responsible for designing the station.[3][4] The station also served as part of a strategy for redeveloping the districts along the New Westminster Quay.

Upon opening, New Westminster station was the original eastern terminus of the SkyTrain system, and remained so until the completion of Columbia station in 1989. The station still serves as a temporary terminus for the Expo Line towards closing hours of revenue service. During the station's period as terminus station, a temporary platform had been built over the westbound guideway with trains thus arriving and departing on the eastbound track.

At its inception, New Westminster served as the major transfer point for buses servicing Coquitlam, Langley, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody and Surrey. After the Expo Line extension in 1990, Langley and Surrey buses were rerouted to terminate at Scott Road station. Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody buses were eventually rerouted after the completion of Millennium Line in 2002; these routes now terminate at either Braid, Lougheed Town Centre, or Burquitlam stations.

In 2012, the Shops at New West shopping centre was integrated into the station. The shopping centre was a major component of the mixed-use development of Plaza 88.[2][5]

Between May 2015 and November 2016, the station received $12 million in upgrades which included better integration with the Shops at New West complex that was built as part of Plaza 88 project. Broader plans to upgrade the station and Expo Line were put forth by TransLink and the British Columbia Rapid Transit Company (BCRTC).[6][7]

Services
  • The station connects to local bus and shuttle services to Quayside and Uptown areas, as well as regional bus connections to Burnaby.
  • The station is the terminus for some late-night trips of Expo line trains from Production Way–University and King George.
  • The station houses the "New Westminster Smoke Shoppe", a small convenience store that opened with the opening of SkyTrain's formal revenue service in 1986.
  • New Westminster Quay and River Market are two blocks south of the station, across railway tracks. Pedestrians can access the Quay via a pedestrian overpass or via a ground-level crossing.
  • A pedestrian overpass across the SkyTrain tracks connects the upper levels of the station.
  • The Shops at New West, along with a 10-screen Landmark Cinemas theatre, are directly accessible from the station.[8]

Station information

Station layout
    Overlying residential and commercial development
T Upper Concourse Compass vending machines, fare gates (eastbound), cinema, shops
Side platform; doors will open on the right
Platform 1
Inbound		 ← ■ Expo Line towards Waterfront (22nd Street)
Platform 2
Outbound		 ■ Expo Line towards King George and Production Way–University (Columbia) →
Side platform; doors will open on the right
C Concourse Quayside entrance (through the Shops at New West)
Compass vending machines, fare gates (westbound), shops
    Parking for the Shops at New West
    Parking for the Shops at New West
S Street level McNeely, 8th Street entrances, bus loop
Shops, parking for the Shops at New West

Entrances
Platform level entrance with service to King George and Production Way–University
  • 8th Street entrance: This is the east entrance of the station, located on 8th Street between Columbia Street and Carnarvon Street. Of the three entrances to the station, the 8th Street entrance has the higher pedestrian activity.[9] Bicycle racks are available at this entrance. Temporary connections to the New Westminster community shuttles are provided at Bay 6 and 7 near this entrance.
  • McNeely Street entrance : This entrance served the original off-street bus loop and serves the current temporary on-street temporary transit exchange for conventional buses (bays 1 to 5) on Carnarvon Street. It is located at the west end of the station and is connected to the other two entrances at the concourse level.
  • Quayside Drive entrance : This entrance was opened in December 2011 as part of the Plaza 88 development. It offers a connection between the concourse level of the station and the Quayside overpass through the Shops at New West.

Transit connections
See also: List of bus routes in Metro Vancouver

The bus loop at New Westminster station is located under the Shops at New West between Carnarvon Street and Columbia Street, west of 8th Street. Bus bay assignments of the exchange are as follows:[10]

Bay Location Routes
1 8th Street
southbound		 Unloading only
2 Columbia Street
westbound		 103 Quayside
3 Columbia Street
westbound		 Unloading only
4 Bus loop 123 Brentwood Station
321 Surrey Central Station (limited service)
N19 Downtown
N19 Surrey Central Station
5 Bus loop 105 Uptown
109 Lougheed Station
6 Bus loop HandyDart
7 Bus loop 106 Edmonds Station
8 Carnarvon Street
eastbound		 Spare
9 8th Street
southbound		 103 Victoria Hill
10 Carnarvon Street
eastbound		 112 Edmonds Station

References
  1. "2018 Transit Service Performance Review – Average Daily Boardings per Weekday". translink.ca. TransLink. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  2. Lowrie, Ian (December 17, 2012). "The Shops at New West Station". Spacing. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  3. Pabillano, Jhenifer (February 21, 2011). "1982 SkyTrain station concept drawings!". The Buzzer Blog. TransLink. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  4. "U-Bahn Vancouver". Architektengruppe U-Bahn. Archived from the original on April 28, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  5. "Plaza 88". Projects. VIA Architecture Inc. Retrieved November 5, 2016. Plaza 88 represents the regeneration of five city blocks that wrap around the New Westminster SkyTrain Station
  6. "Construction is starting at New Westminster Station!". TransLink. May 8, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  7. "New Westminster SkyTrain station upgrades complete". The Vancouver Sun. November 18, 2016. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  8. "New Westminster theatres on schedule". North Shore News. Archived from the original on November 5, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
  9. "Expo Line Station Review" (PDF). Translink. Archived from the original on November 5, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
  10. TransLink (December 2017). New Westminster Station (PDF) (Map). Retrieved February 10, 2018.
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