FAQ

There are 716 active bus stops in Richmond. There are 67 transit shelters in Richmond comprising:

• 48 privately-owned by Pattison Outdoor Advertising
• 13 owned by TransLink, Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, and YVR
• 6 owned by the City of Richmond

The City currently provides transit shelters via three avenues:

• Pattison Outdoor Advertising contract. This funds the installation and maintenance of privately-owned transit shelters with advertising.
• City Capital and Operating Budget. This funds the installation and maintenance of City-owned transit shelters without advertising.
• Development Application Process. Developer contributions go towards the installation and maintenance of City-owned transit shelters.

Privately-owned shelters are provided in limited quantities and typically installed only on major streets with high traffic volumes. The City supplements the private provision of transit shelters with its own shelters to:

• support the goals and objectives of the Official Community Plan to improve transit amenities for passengers.
• ensure that bus stops located on low traffic volume roads but with high numbers of boarding passengers can still have a shelter.

Privately-owned transit shelters with advertising are provided to the City at no cost. The contracted company receives most of the advertising revenue, with the City receiving a small portion it. 

City-owned shelters with no advertising have a typical cost of $25,000, which includes installation and electrical connections.  As privately-owned shelters are provided in limited quantities and typically installed only on major streets with high traffic volumes, the City supplements the provision of transit shelters

Factors affecting the feasibility of installing a transit shelter at a bus stop include property availability and additional required infrastructure improvements (e.g. concrete pad and electrical conduit).

A number of factors are reviewed, including the following:

• bus stops with high boarding volumes (i.e. minimum of 25 boardings per day).
• close proximity of a HandyDart bus stop.
• bus stops located near schools, seniors housing, community centres and other pedestrian generators such as shopping malls.
• property availability and additional required infrastructure improvements.

Please complete the survey and let us know your top three locations. You can also e-mail the City at transportation@richmond.ca. Keep in mind, the requested locations must still go through the prioritization process mentioned above.

The private contractor supplying transit shelters with advertising is also responsible for their maintenance. The City is responsible for City-installed transit shelters without advertising. Other agencies such as the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure and TransLink look after their shelters. 

The City has two separate contracts with Goodwill Advertising (291 benches) and Key Bench Advertising Ltd. (74 benches) for the installation and maintenance of bus stop benches with advertising.

A competitive Request For Proposal will be issued that allows proponents to bid on a 20-year contract for the provision of transit shelters with advertising. 

The desired target quantities of transit shelters are an additional:

• 200 privately-owned transit shelters with advertising
• 50 City-owned transit shelter with or without advertising