Access to Affordable Housing

Connectivity Will Create Opportunities for More Affordable Housing

Where people work and live is an important factor in transit project planning, and a lot of people work and learn at UBC but live elsewhere. There is also a growing number of people who live at UBC and work somewhere other than the university. A SkyTrain line to UBC will open up work and housing options across the entire line.

UBC is Metro Vancouver’s largest provider of workforce housing, with nearly 1200 units for faculty and staff, and the largest provider of student housing of all Canadian post-secondary institutions, with 13,400 beds currently and more to be built in the coming years. But this is not enough. Faculty, staff and students are living throughout the region and commuting to UBC.

UBC plans to increase on campus housing numbers over the next decade, and this growth will be amplified by Musqueam’s nearby Lelem development. Rapid transit will be critical for ensuring interest in these units in this geographically isolated and currently disconnected neighbourhood.

Rapid transit to UBC will also allow UBC faculty, staff and students to move beyond the crowded local neighbourhoods and find housing further out, where it’s more affordable but without a burdensome commute.

SkyTrain to UBC will increase the available options and help the university to attract and retain top talent in the Metro Vancouver region.