The governments of Canada and British Columbia announce electrification for handyDART centre in View Royal

From: Infrastructure Canada

News release

View Royal, British Columbia, October 18, 2023 — BC Transit is receiving additional funding to support the electrification of the new handyDART operations and maintenance facility centre currently under construction in the Town of View Royal, as announced today by Ministers Sean Fraser and Rob Fleming, Ryan Windsor, from the Victoria Regional Transit Commission, and Erinn Pinkerton from BC Transit.

The decision to electrify the new handyDART centre requires an additional investment of $51 million since the project’s initial announcement in 2019, bringing the overall project budget to over $83.5 million. Electrification brings the planned facility into alignment with BC Transit’s Electrification Program and moves the province closer to Canada’s net-zero emissions by 2050 target.

The additional investment will allow handyDART services to expand in Greater Victoria, bringing accessible, door-to-door transit service to commuters with disabilities, while also supporting the transition to a low-carbon battery electric bus fleet and the expansion of conventional bus service in the region. The supplemental funding will also account for increased inflation and construction costs since the project’s inception.

Once complete, the centre will roughly double fleet capacity for handyDART in Greater Victoria to meet the expected growth as the region’s population grows. Construction on the facility has begun and is being built to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) Gold standards, an internationally recognized benchmark for green, sustainable building performance. The Centre is scheduled to open in 2025.

By investing in infrastructure, the Government of Canada is growing our country’s economy, building resilient communities, and improving the lives of Canadians.

Quotes

“A community that works for everyone is one that gives choices, options, and independence to all its members. The handyDART facility being built in View Royal will help people with reduced mobility get to work, the grocery store, and everywhere else they need to go. And it will do it in a green, sustainable way that protects our environment. We’re working to deliver public transit to all Canadians and fund projects that make a meaningful difference in people’s lives.”

The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities

“Electrifying our transit system is a key part of our climate plan and the move towards net-zero. This important funding will help support our communities, expanding transit capacity and accessibility while reducing our carbon footprint. This project exemplifies what we can do when all orders of government work together to invest in infrastructure, creating cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable communities for everyone.”

Patrick Weiler, Member of Parliament for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast— Sea to Sky Country

“With this additional funding, the View Royal HandyDART centre is set to become a state-of-the-art, sustainable facility that will serve the Greater Victoria region’s growing population now and over the coming decades. By providing accessible public transportation options across the region, we’re ensuring people of all ages and abilities can get where they need to go safely and efficiently.”

The Honourable Rob Fleming, B.C. Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure

“It is essential that those with mobility assistance needs have access to an affordable and efficient public transportation system. This additional investment will help provide access to those who need it, fully electrify the new View Royal HandyDART operations and maintenance centre, and help us meet our CleanBC emissions reduction targets.”

Mitzi Dean, MLA for Esquimalt-Metchosin

“This funding will help us deliver a facility that can support a future 100 per cent electric fleet so we can continue operating these essential handyDART services in the most sustainable way possible. We’re thankful that this Federal and Provincial government funding will also contribute towards BC Transit’s first LEED Gold building in the province, which achieves a high standard of sustainable design and operations.”

Erinn Pinkerton, President and Chief Executive Officer for BC Transit

“This new, more central location in View Royal will allow BC Transit to not only operate handyDART services more efficiently, but also expand this important service across the region. The VRTC is thankful to work alongside our partners at all levels of government to support the expansion of transit services in the Capital Regional District.”   

Ryan Windsor, Chair for the Victoria Regional Transit Commission

Quick facts

  • Joint funding for the project was first announced in 2019. Total funding of more than $83.5 million for this project includes the Government of Canada’s contribution of over $21.8 million, the Government of British Columbia’s contribution of more than $40.1 million, and the Victoria Regional Transit Commission’s contribution of $21.6 million.

  • In July 2019, BC Transit announced its Low Carbon Fleet Program, which aligns with the Province’s CleanBC initiative and is a core component of the strategic vision for the future of BC Transit. 

  • The Low Carbon Fleet Program was established to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and includes a 10-year fleet replacement strategy to replace over 1,200 buses with electric buses.

  • The Government of Canada’s funding comes from the Public Transit Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. 

  • This stream supports the building, expansion, and upgrading of urban and rural transit networks.

  • Investments in public transit help Canadians get where they need to be, create new manufacturing and construction jobs, reduce pollution, and make life more affordable.

  • Including today’s announcement, 55 infrastructure projects or project bundles under the Public Transit Infrastructure Stream have been funded in B.C., with a total federal contribution of more than $2.5 billion and a total provincial contribution of nearly $3.9 billion.

  • The Government of Canada is investing $14.9 billion over the next eight years in reliable, fast, affordable, and clean public transit. This funding includes $3 billion per year in permanent, predictable federal public transit funding which will be available to support transit solutions beginning in 2026-27.

  • Since 2015, the Government of Canada has announced an unprecedented investment of over $30 billion in thousands of transit projects in communities from coast to coast to coast.

  • Under the Investing in Canada Plan, the federal government is investing more than $180 billion over 12 years in public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes, and Canada’s rural and northern communities.

  • Infrastructure Canada helps address complex challenges that Canadians face every day—ranging from the rapid growth of our cities, to climate change, and environmental threats to our water and land.

Associated links

Contacts

For more information (media only), please contact:

Kevin Collins
Office of the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities
Kevin.Collins@infc.gc.ca

Media Relations
Infrastructure Canada
613-960-9251
Toll free: 1-877-250-7154
Email: media-medias@infc.gc.ca
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Web: Infrastructure Canada

Media Relations
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
250-356-8241

Media Relations
BC Transit
250-880-1303
media@bctransit.com

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