Correspondence: Email from Ian Brown regarding BC Transit presentation

From: margaret and Ian Brown Sent: Monday, February 8, 2021 8:11 PM To: Mayor And Council Email mayorandcouncil@viewroyal.ca Subject: BCTransit presentation Feb.9, 2021

To Mayor and Councillors, Town of View Royal

Since I will not be able to attend the Committee of the Whole meeting tomorrow, Feb.9, here are some questions I would like to ask of the B C Transit officials:

• At the Trans Canada exit outgoing that connects under the underpass to Highway 1A, will there be a dedicated bus lane plus two lanes for cars to join with the bus lane in front of Starr Auto and the Shell station. If not, won’t the buses having to join the rest of the traffic at this point reduce their “fast” nature a lot?
• I understand that southbound buses will be able to jump the queue at 6 Mile Road and so get ahead of the traffic to cross the bridge and use the bus lane on the hill. So how will buses northbound avoid being totally bunged crossing the bridge?
• In your diagram of the Atkins/Island Highway intersection, am I to presume this is just in front of Starr/Integra? If so, where in this area will you put a Park and Ride?
• Since this is one of the few times we in View Royal get a chance to interact with senior staff from B.C. Transit, I would like to ask if their plan to completely transfer the whole bus fleet to electric vehicles is still on track and, if so, how will they deal with the highly polluting Compressed Natural Gas buses now operating in Greater Victoria. These vehicles produce as much carbon emissions as diesel and will be stranded assets when we phase out, as we must, the last of the heavy carbon emitters. We look to being lumbered with these dinosaurs for decades which is well beyond the 2030 deadline of the IPCC.

Thanks for considering these questions and I hope that someone will ask them of the B.C. Transit officials.

Sincerely Ian D.Brown