The Viva Experience

September 6th, 2005 - At 6 p.m. this afternoon, I eagerly stood at the Finch Station bus terminal, waiting to board York Region's new Viva bus rapid system. I looked up at the electronic sign: 1 more minute till the bus arrives. Before long, a shiny new blue accordion looking bus pulled into the station, three sets of doors open and people began to file in.

The process was a bit confusing (you have to validate the ticket prior to boarding the bus) but there were half a dozen YRT officials around assisting passengers. I especially liked how the officials approached each passenger to inform how the new system works. After months of heavy marketing though, I had no difficulties with validating my ticket (though I had to double check with an official about using my ticket as a transfer). Despite that, not everyone was pleased. A lady complained how more advertising should have been in place to inform passengers (yo lady, have you been living on Mars the past few months ? have you not noticed the signs hanging along Yonge Street and Highway 7 ?)

The ride was very smooth comfortable. An electronic sign inside the bus shows the direction the bus is going and the next stop. The voice announcer was also clear and quite pleasant (unlike those TTC drivers who announce the subway stops). The seats were comfortable and the bus was air conditioned. I also liked the bus shelters - some were clearly designed with urban design principles and try to fit in with the streetscape (I really liked how there were bike racks at each station). Having transit officials at each stop also helped confused passengers get use to the new system.

Yet was it any faster ? My ride actually took a bit longer than usual, primarily because the bus now re-routes to the new Richmond Hill Centre terminal, and thus an additional 5 minutes was added to my trip. Add in the fact that these buses do not run on designated bus lanes (unlike those in Curitba and Ottawa), I still ended up getting caught in traffic. This problem will probably continue to exist until these buses get their own right-of-way.

While YRT has increased its ridership faster than any transit system in Canada, Viva still runs across suburbia. Running transit in car-dependent York Region, where over 90% of the people drive, will no doubt be a financial loser. Even if Viva does reach its goal and remove 7000 cars off the streets in Markham, Vaughan and Richmond Hill, I doubt any driver would even notice (some might even complain how these buses cause more traffic!).

Still, it's a start. York Region deserves real credit for making an effort to change the way we plan our communities. With traffic jams worse than the ones in downtown (I would say the morning rush hour traffic on the 404 is the worst in Canada), York Region can no longer ignore its transportation problems. While it may take years for Viva to reach decent ridership, it is definitely a first step towards building communities that are transit and pedestrian friendly...