This is Vancouver Why can't Vancouver get a SkyTrain built to UBC?
Jan 14, 2026
Solomon E. Kieran, Vice President of External Affairs at UBC's AMS, and Dennis Agar, Executive Director of the local transit advocacy group Movement, dive into the long struggle for a SkyTrain extension to UBC. They discuss the stalled commitments and mounting frustrations of students relying on overcrowded transport. Economic and healthcare benefits of completing the SkyTrain are highlighted, alongside the challenges of funding and political hurdles. Advocating for a strong student voice, they explore innovative cost-saving designs and the urgency for momentum to finally realize this transit dream.
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Eighteen-Year Broken Promise
- Solomon E. Kieran recalled the SkyTrain promise first made 18 years ago and its 2020 completion target that never arrived.
- He described students facing half-hour gaps and long commutes while the project stalls at Arbutus.
Half-Built Line Shifts Problems
- Stopping the Broadway line at Arbutus creates a 'half-built solution' that shifts congestion rather than solving it.
- Solomon warned this will leave thousands of students stranded at a terminus lacking infrastructure.
Thirty Minutes Means Thousands Fewer Cars
- A UBC SkyTrain would cut many commutes by about 30 minutes and remove thousands of cars from Lower Mainland roads.
- Solomon argued this reduction would meaningfully reduce gridlock across multiple municipalities.