Before We Build Billion-Dollar Trains

🚨 Before We Build Billion-Dollar Trains, Let's Talk About B.C. Weather

By Tina Winterlik aka Zipolita

Every time I hear about a new $10 BILLION regional train system for B.C., I shake my head. Not because I don’t love public transit — I do. But because none of these planners ever seem to talk about the reality we live in: THE WEATHER.

❄️ B.C. is Beautiful — and Brutal

We have some of the wildest, scariest, most unpredictable weather in Canada. Let’s remember a few things:

• Just a few years back, people were stuck in their cars for 12 hours trying to get home in a snowstorm.
• Years ago out in the Fraser Valley, a storm shut down the highway — hundreds of stranded drivers were rescued by strangers who took them into their homes for the night.
• Last year, a house in North Vancouver was swept away in a rainstorm. Two people died.
• When the Coquihalla connector washed out, it wasn’t just a traffic jam — it cut off communities, caused food shortages, and cost millions in damage.
• During the heat dome of 2021, over 600 people died, mostly seniors and low-income folks — and we still don’t have proper emergency protocols.
• Our buses literally can’t drive in the snow. I’ve seen 8 buses backed up on Broadway because they couldn’t climb the tiniest hill.

🚂 Now Imagine a Regional Train in That Chaos

Trapped in a train during:

• A wildfire with nowhere to go.
• A landslide or track washout with no detour.
• A blizzard while emergency services are already overwhelmed.

Who’s evacuating hundreds of people from a mountain pass or canyon?
Where are the backup shelters, water, heat, oxygen masks, communication systems?

Spoiler: They’re not in the $10 billion budget.

💭 Do We Really Want a Shiny Train Before We Fix the Basics?

We have:

• Buses that can’t run in snow
• Sidewalks that aren’t cleared
• People freezing or baking to death in their homes
• Underfunded emergency shelters
• Crumbling roads and delayed transit

But they want to build a 350-km train across mountain ranges?

It doesn’t make sense. Not now. Not without addressing climate resilience first.

🛑 Let’s Build Smart, Not Flashy

This isn’t about being anti-transit. It’s about being realistic.

We need:

• Climate-resilient local transit
• Community emergency plans
• Better buses that actually run in snow
• Cooling and warming centers
• Affordable housing near existing transit hubs

Before they push another shiny mega-project, maybe they should ride a Broadway bus during a snowstorm.
Or sleep on a couch after the heat dome.
Or hike through a washed-out trail in the rain.

Because weather is no longer predictable.

And we deserve plans built on reality — not fantasy.