TransLink to extend North Shore RapidBus route to Metrotown starting in 2027

Currently, the R2 Marine Drive RapidBus is a west-east route serving the North Shore, running between Park Royal in West Vancouver and Phibbs bus exchange in the District of North Vancouver, with a key connection to the SeaBus terminal and Lonsdale bus exchange.

Starting in 2027, TransLink will extend the R2 RapidBus from its existing easternmost terminus of Phibbs bus exchange to Burnaby.

Its route will be extended southward, across the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge to provide transfer opportunities with two SkyTrain stations — Brentwood Town Centre Station on the Millennium Line and Metrotown Station, the RapidBus route’s new southern terminus, on the Expo Line.

It will also connect with the R5 Hastings Street RapidBus, and provide a new way to reach the BCIT Burnaby campus.

This expansion of the R2 service was made possible by a key decision earlier this month, following the endorsement by TransLink’s board and the Mayors’ Council of new measures to increase fares, parking taxes, and property taxes. These changes aim not only to avoid service cuts — offering an interim solution to the transit authority’s fiscal cliff — but also to expand and enhance transit services. In addition to the new revenue raised by TransLink, the provincial government has also committed to providing new interim operating funding of $312 million through 2027.

Based on TransLink’s newly released ridership statistics, the existing R2 running between Park Royal and Phibbs bus exchange recorded 1.944 million boardings in 2024, with averages of 5,700 per weekday, 5,000 per Saturday, and 4,000 per Sunday/holiday. This is slightly down from 1.965 million in 2023, with averages of 5,800 per weekday, 5,050 per Saturday, and 4,100 per Sunday/holiday.

Currently, the R2 is TransLink’s 42nd busiest bus route out of 195 across Metro Vancouver, and ranks fifth out of the six RapidBus routes.

While the precise extended R2 route has yet to be finalized, after making its bridge crossing, the extended RapidBus is expected to run along Hastings Street to reach Willingdon Avenue for the remaining journey to Metrotown.

There is already strong ridership demand on the corridor between Phibbs bus exchange and Metrotown via Ironworkers Memorial Bridge, Hastings Street, and Willingdon Avenue.

In 2024, the No. 130 Metrotown Station/Phibbs Exchange bus route was TransLink’s 20th busiest, with 3.256 million annual boardings — averaging 10,200 on weekdays, 7,000 on Saturdays, and 5,200 on Sundays/holidays. This is up from 2023, when the route saw 3.181 million boardings, with daily averages of 10,000 on weekdays, 7,100 on Saturdays, and 5,300 on Sundays/holidays.

The No. 222 Metrotown Station/Phibbs Exchange — the express bus equivalent of the No. 130, running on the same route with limited stops during peak hours only — recorded about 950,000 annual boardings in 2024, with averages of 3,800 per weekday. This is up from 912,000 in 2023 and 668,000 in 2022. Currently, it is TransLink’s 80th busiest bus route.

During optimal traffic conditions without any issues on the bridge crossing, the end-to-end travel times for the No. 130 and No. 222 are currently about 35 minutes and 45 minutes, respectively, during peak hours. Similarly, the end-to-end travel time on the existing R2 within the North Shore is roughly 40 minutes.

The funding decision earlier this month also enables TransLink to conduct detailed design and planning work to launch three new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lines.

An initial public consultation for the King George Boulevard BRT and Langley-Haney Place BRT was conducted in early 2025.

In Summer 2025, TransLink will launch a separate initial public consultation on upgrading the R2 RapidBus to a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) standard, including an opportunity for input for the interim move of extending this RapidBus route to Metrotown.

The proposed BRT standard includes dedicated bus-only lanes, traffic signal priority, and other transit-priority measures, along with enhanced passenger amenities such as specialized shelters resembling those found at Light Rail Transit stations.

Another public consultation in Fall 2025 will focus on the road design changes to support the King George Boulevard BRT and Langley-Haney Place BRT.

TransLink is also expected to consider longer-term rapid transit solutions such as Light Rail Transit and SkyTrain for the route between the North Shore and Metrotown.

To better support the R2 RapidBus/BRT and other new and improved bus services, TransLink is also in the process of considering a major expansion and redesign of the bus exchange at Metrotown Station to “potentially increase bus service capacity as our system expands in the coming years.”