| New Westminster | |
| Symbol Location: | vancouver |
| Symbol: | expo |
| Type: | SkyTrain station |
| Style: | TransLink (BC) |
| Style2: | SkyTrain |
| Address: | 32 8th Street, New Westminster |
| Structure: | Elevated |
| Platform: | Side platforms |
| Tracks: | 2 |
| Architect: | Architektengruppe U-Bahn |
| Rebuilt: | 2012, 2015– |
| Accessible: | yes |
| Code: | NW |
| Owned: | TransLink |
| Zone: | 2 |
New Westminster is an elevated station on the Expo Line of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system. The station is located at the intersection of Columbia Street and 8th Street in New Westminster, British Columbia. In 2012, the station was incorporated into the Shops at New West complex, making it the first train station in Canada to have a direct connection to a shopping centre at the platform level.[1]
New Westminster station was built in 1985 as part of the original SkyTrain system (now known as the Expo Line), providing a transportation link to Expo 86 being held in the city of Vancouver. The Austrian architecture firm Architektengruppe U-Bahn was responsible for designing the station.[2] [3] The station also served as part of a strategy for redeveloping the districts along the New Westminster Quay.
Upon opening, New Westminster station was the original eastern terminus of the SkyTrain system, and remained so until the completion of Columbia station in 1989. The station still serves as a temporary terminus for the Expo Line towards closing hours of revenue service. During the station's period as terminus station, a temporary platform had been built over the westbound guideway with trains thus arriving and departing on the eastbound track.
At its inception, New Westminster served as the major transfer point for buses servicing Coquitlam, Langley, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody and Surrey. After the Expo Line extension in 1990, Langley and Surrey buses were rerouted to terminate at Scott Road station. Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody buses were eventually rerouted after the completion of Millennium Line in 2002; these routes now terminate at either Braid, Lougheed Town Centre, or Burquitlam stations.
In 2012, the Shops at New West shopping centre was integrated into the station. The shopping centre was a major component of the mixed-use development of Plaza 88.[1] [4]
Between May 2015 and November 2016, the station received $12 million in upgrades which included better integration with the Shops at New West complex that was built as part of Plaza 88 project. Broader plans to upgrade the station and Expo Line were put forth by TransLink and the British Columbia Rapid Transit Company (BCRTC).[5] [6]
See also: List of bus routes in Metro Vancouver.
The bus loop at New Westminster station is located under the Shops at New West between Carnarvon Street and Columbia Street, west of 8th Street. Bus bay assignments of the exchange are as follows:[9]
| Bay | Location | Routes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8th Street | Unloading only | |
| 2 | Columbia Street | 103 Quayside | |
| 3 | Columbia Street | Unloading only | |
| 4 | Bus loop |
| |
| 5 | Bus loop | 105 Uptown 109 Lougheed Station | |
| 6 | Bus loop | HandyDART service | |
| 7 | Bus loop | 106 Edmonds Station | |
| 8 | Carnarvon Street | Unloading only | |
| 9 | 8th Street | 102 Victoria Hill | |
| 10 | Carnarvon Street | 112 Edmonds Station |