Whats the route of all evil?

Every day, ironworker Genevieve Capilano goes to work building the latest, most-state-of-the-art piece of transit infrastructure in Metro Vancouver: the Broadway Subway.

And every day, she rides the busiest, most-complained-about transit route in Metro Vancouver: the 99 bus from Commercial Drive to the University of British Columbia.

Its like sardines in a can, for sure, Capilano said of her commute. And it makes a hostile environment, almost because everyones just grumpy.

People are waiting two to three buses to just get home.

TransLink says the 99 was the most-complained-about bus line system-wide from Jan. 1 to Nov. 30, the latest data available.

And while the Broadway Subway project will replace much of the 99 route with a SkyTrain line, other bus riders in Metro Vancouver wont have such luck.

CBC obtained two months of rider complaints November 2022 and June 2023 through a freedom of information request. They show service levels, capacity, frequency and driver behaviour are frustrating passengers on many routes.

TransLink says it needs major funding to address capacity issues and overcrowding in particular and an advocate says its up to transit riders to take their complaints beyond the authority and start asking governments to appropriately fund services.

On the 99, overcrowding was a common complaint.

It was extremely crowded, writes one passenger. I couldnt get on the one [that] came just before as there was no room at all.

Driver behaviour also featured often.

Driver took off. I was right there and he saw me, another complainant wrote. Frustrating appeared driver didnt care.

Hes rounded corners at high speeds causing people to have to hold on and potentially fall over, another said. Speeding as well, just generally felt unsafe. I never report things but this was crazy!

TransLink spokesperson Tina Lovgreen says the sprawling Broadway Subway construction could be partly to blame for bus mistiming, crowding and difficult driving conditions.

The Broadway Subway project is really going to fill a critical gap, she said of the project that will extend the SkyTrains Millennium Line, which is set to open in 2026.

Addressing the driver complaints, Lovgreen says the overwhelming number of drivers are doing a good job under often difficult conditions.

If a complaint is lodged against a driver, she said, TransLink investigates and may take action from refresher training to disciplinary action up to termination in severe cases.

But customer surveys, she added, show a large majority of passengers are pleased with their bus drivers driving and customer service.

For context, a September 2023 report from TransLink notes complaints per million passengers were 6.6 per cent lower than the same time in 2022. Lovgreen says they are getting one complaint, on average, every 16,000 boardings.

She says improvements like more payment options, real-time information about route changes and more volunteers and attendants on hand to assist passengers have made a big difference.

Weve invested heavily in improving the customer experience, Lovgreen said, adding that crowding complaints remain a concern.

We increase service as much as we can, but were really bumping up against the limitations of our system with our current funding.

The data reveals a few trends in routes drawing high complaint volume.

Six of the 10 most-complained about routes run through Vancouver. Three are in Surrey and one runs between Richmond and Burnaby.

The 99 has the most complaints but it also has the most ridership of all routes.

A complaints per million trips analysis shows that the 23 between English Bay and Main Street Station and the 321 from White Rock City Centre to Surrey Central Station both have a much higher number of complaints relative to ridership.

In fact, some of the bus stops with most pass-ups when a bus driver signals that they have to bypass a stop because their vehicle is too full have the 23 as their sole route.

TransLink announced in late November it is looking into increasing capacity on that route.

Meanwhile, in fast-growing Surrey, some of the most-complained about routes also intersect with stops with a number of pass-ups and theyre some of the longest routes in the system.

Surreys most complained-about route was the 321 between Surrey Central Station and White Rock Centre.

Im not surprised, said passenger Inder Kaur. Theres no space to stand because there are so many people.

Some say they feel its become worse since pandemic-related distancing requirements were phased out.

Ive noticed [crowding] gone up a little bit more, said fellow passenger Jesse Scott. Hard to get in there, hard to get out a lot of Surrey bus service is just way overcrowded.

The 321 just beat the 319 between Scott Road Station and Newton Exchange the most complained-about route of all in 2019.

The line to get on a bus is constantly wrapped around the station, wrote one 319 passenger in a complaint. If you try to get on somewhere other than the station its almost impossible.

A new rapid bus line will hit Surrey roads in January.

Lovgreen says TransLink has increased service 22 per cent in Surrey but some growth has come through reductions elsewhere.

Our planners look very carefully to ensure that the needs of customers across the region are met, she said.

So maybe its re-allocating service from some of the most quiet times, underutilized times, to provide more service to busier regions.

Denis Agar, who spent 10 years as a TransLink route planner before quitting in October, says this highlights how municipal, provincial and federal funding is needed to offer dignified transit service to passengers.

Agar said he grew frustrated with the authoritys inability to keep up with passenger demand, and decided to quit to form a new transit advocacy non-profit called Movement.

One of [the levels of government] has to step up and I think thats kind of why it hasnt happened yet, Agar said. They can kind of point at each other in a triangle.

Agar says Lovgreens acknowledgement that service reductions may be needed to accommodate growth tracks with what he saw at TransLink.

Ridership in Surrey has come back so much faster than elsewhere, he said, referring to the transit systems recovery as pandemic restrictions eased.

Agar added that Vancouvers slower-to-return ridership has led to some of its buses being sent south of the Fraser.

Theyve already cut service in Vancouver as much as they can. Theyve cut it to the bone, he said.

When it comes to overcrowding, Lovgreen reiterated what the corporation has said for months: the system needs money.

As 2023 ends, TransLink is seeking billions of dollars to finance ambitious expansion in coming years, including a doubling of bus service.

But CEO Kevin Quinn has warned without those dollars, and with existing revenues like gas taxes and fares declining, the authority could soon be in trouble.

We essentially fall off a bit of a fiscal cliff at the beginning of 2026, Quinn told the Surrey Board of Trade earlier in December.

Agar said the complaints CBC found arent surprising, and that transit riders need to take their complaints to the policymakers that control the money.

Complain to the people that can address it: the people that hold the purse strings. Your MLA, your mayor and council and your MP, he said.

We are really going to be encouraging people to complain far more in the coming months.

B.C.s transportation ministry highlighted almost $3 billion in commitments to TransLink in the past two years, including for the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain project and bus fleet electrification.

It told CBC News it is looking at potential long-term, sustainable regional revenue options to help ensure a robust transit system long into the future, including to fund expansion plans, but did not hint at what those options might be.

The federal government also says theyve spent billions on transit in B.C., including SkyTrain extensions and zero-emission buses.

Its also promising permanent transit funding for communities across Canada to make longer-term transit plans, to maintain and expand their transit networks, and to get projects built. Those dollars are set to roll out in 2026.