As TransLink prepares to extend rapid bus service from the North Shore to Metrotown, businesses along East Hastings Street are raising concerns about parking.
TransLink has blocked off parts of the curb lanes in both directions on East Hastings Street between Skeena Street and Boundary Road to install stops for the R2.
Ferruccio Susin, owner of North America Sports at Hastings Street and Boundary Road, says customers can’t park in front of his shop right now while TransLink installs new bus stops.
“They’re here in the morning. I don’t know what time they start, maybe 8, or 9 o’clock,” said Susin.
“And by 3 o’clock, they’re finished. And yet the pylons are not removed. They’re not moved over a little bit.”
He says his customers have resorted to calling ahead before arriving to ask how to access the store.
TransLink and the City of Vancouver have discussed implementing 24/7 bus lanes for the R2, and Susin says he wouldn’t approve.
“Why does the Translink need a lane after hours?” he said.
“There’s only two peak hours from early in the morning when people go to work or go to school, and then in the evening when they go home.”
He says most parking on side streets is permit-only, which makes it almost impossible for customers and even deliveries to access his shop.
Susin asked, “How are we supposed to survive when we’re cutting customers for parking near, in front of the stores? The city is not providing any additional parking areas around Hastings.”
According to TransLink, the R2 extension does not include implementing new bus lanes, but says the option is still on the table and will be re-examined in 2027.