On Monday, November 18th, 2024, the Burnaby Mayor and City Council heard from Translink representatives that proposed improvements for the speed and reliability of the R5 rapid bus over a section Hastings Street in the Burnaby Heights area. This proposal suggested that the curbside lane in this area be a dedicated Bus lane from Monday to Sunday, 12 hours a day.
Burnaby City Councillors took issue with the street parking that this expansion would remove, the reason given being that the local businesses along Hastings Street in the Burnaby Heights neighborhood rely on those parking spaces to accommodate their customers.
After an extensive round of questions from Burnaby City Council, Councillor Daniel Tetrault successfully passed an amendment for Translink’s proposal, shortening the length of the expansion, and asking that they look into the feasibility of bus bulbs along Hastings Street, which would give buses the ability to pick passengers up without having to change lanes while retaining the areas street parking. Both those for and opposed to Translink’s proposal stated their approval for the final decision.
