Townhouses Before Transit

South Surrey’s unchecked sprawl is a masterclass on how not to grow an urban mobility system.

Picture this: you’ve just moved into a brand-new townhouse in Surrey’s Grandview Heights. The homes are modern, the schools are filling with young families, and there are plenty of stores nearby. But if you don’t own a car, your only option is a 30-minute walk along a busy road with no sidewalk, just to miss your bus and wait 30 minutes for the next one. This is what “growth” looks like when transit planning is left behind.

South Surrey’s unchecked urban sprawl without transit infrastructure is a planning failure that furthers inequity, worsens congestion, and contradicts Surrey’s climate goals. I call on TransLink and the City of Surrey to prioritize transit-oriented development before building more car-dependent communities.

The problem with Grandview Heights

Twenty years ago, the Grandview Heights area was farmland and low-density housing. Now the area has medium- to high-density housing with townhouses as far as the eye can see. The small-capacity, low-frequency neighbourhood bus may have been acceptable 10 to 20 years ago, but it’s no longer appropriate.

Looking at the 2005 neighbourhood development plan reveals the root of the problem: the City of Surrey didn’t plan for any increase in public transportation to serve the increase in residents. What’s more, Canadian census data shows that from 2016 to 2021, Grandview Heights was Surrey’s fastest-growing neighbourhood, doubling the population increase of the next most rapidly expanding neighbourhood. The idea to develop this land started all the way back in 2003. So where is the adequate transportation? Two decades have passed, yet no effective plan has been implemented.

Equity

If you’re too young, too old, or too broke to drive, South Surrey’s urban design effectively tells you to stay home. For newcomers to Canada, many of whom arrive without a car, the long and unsafe walks to bus stops make daily life unnecessarily difficult. Students and workers who rely on public transit face exhausting commutes, and families often end up buying a car out of necessity, not choice.

With Canada’s population aging faster than ever, we need communities that enable independence, not ones that strand car-less residents. We need proper walking and public transport infrastructure. A truly inclusive neighbourhood is one where everyone can get around safely, affordably, and sustainably. Grandview Heights fails that test.

Congestion and climate

Cars are choking the region out. Having lived in the South Surrey area for over 20 years, I can confidently say the traffic has never been worse. The road capacity of the major collector roads has mostly stayed the same, but the population of South Surrey has grown by 47% from 2006 to 2021, almost 30,000 more people in 15 years, and thousands more cars. The transit system is basically the same, with only a few extra stops added.

Surrey’s own Climate Action Strategy commits the city to “prioritize access to frequent transit,” advocating for 15-minute cities. Yet every new subdivision built without transit guarantees higher emissions and traffic for decades to come. We cannot meet our climate goals if our built environment keeps locking residents into car dependency.

Counterarguments

Admittedly, there are vague mentions of future increased public transport from TransLink in their 2050 executive summary, but these supposed improvements aren’t coming fast enough. TransLink’s 10-year priorities have no mention of increased bus service in the Grandview Heights area.

One could argue there isn’t demand for public transit because only 4% of South Surrey residents use transit to get to work. But I argue there is always demand for safe, efficient, and fast transportation; people just don’t currently have any other options. According to the 2024 TransLink performance review, everything south of the Fraser River, including South Surrey, saw nearly 8 million new public transport users, far more than any other region in Metro Vancouver.

Final thoughts

If the City of Surrey and TransLink are serious about climate action, accessibility, and livability, they must change the sequence of development. Public transit should be the foundation of new communities, not an afterthought, especially in a community growing as rapidly as Grandview Heights. That means investing in bus rapid transit routes, protected walking and cycling corridors, and frequent local service before or in tandem with approving large housing projects.

If the city waits until the final stages of Grandview Heights are built later this decade, residents will end up buying a car and perpetuating the congestion and emissions we already have. The municipal government needs to treat public transit as a priority when developing large communities, or it will deny residents the mobility they need.