5896 replies to this topic

[Victoria Watcher]

I don’t think anyone is owed a car, but we sure have as a society made it much more expensive to own one.

 

2025 Nissan Versa, starting around $20,798 MSRP

 

About $10,000 in 1990 dollars.

[Mike K.]

And gas was like 35 cents a litre in 2025 dollars.

[Victoria Watcher]

And gas was like 35 cents a litre in 2025 dollars.

 

You sure?

 

It was around 2005 when gas first broke the $1 dollar mark per litre.

 

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 11 January 2026 - 09:54 AM.

[Mike K.]

Oh I’m sure I’m way off.

As a kid I vividly remember the excitement over 35 cents a litre. My first ever camping trip as a teen without adult supervision was in the late 90s, and I remember we pulled up to a station and paid 35 cents per litre, in summer in Port Alberni. I was 16 that year, so 1999? I don’t know if it was a fluke deal.

[Tony]

Handy Dart serves those who have difficulty walking with tax funded support.

 

True, the further out you go the greater the challenge may be. When I lived in Saanich I had three different bus routes  stops less then 150m from my house.

 

The dicussion was talking about no parking requirements for City of Victoria units construction.

 

Is it interesting that we have a single organization that runs the bus system and not an individual bus service in each municipality?

[LJ]

I remember being pissed off when gas went above $1.00 a gallon.

[Mike K.]

Handy Dart serves those who have difficulty walking with tax funded support.

It sounds like it’s the last resort for many of its riders. You have to book well in advance, and there can be delays, so you need to book travel times well before your appointments. It’s great to have it, but it’s also not a service most people would choose if they were able bodied. I’m not knocking it down, but it’s a tricky alternative.

[Victoria Watcher]

Is it interesting that we have a single organization that runs the bus system and not an individual bus service in each municipality?

 

It just sort of evolved that way, really.

 

I suppose if we started from scratch today though, we'd use the CRD.  And of course now the CRD is starting some type of transportation arm.

 

And now, BCT runs our system diectly, but in most of the province, it is contracted out.  Although BCT does not run Vancouver transit. 

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 12 January 2026 - 12:26 AM.

[Mike K.]

But it used to run Vancouver transit, until they split out into Coast Mountain and Translink. Would that be correct?

[Victoria Watcher]

But it used to run Vancouver transit, until they split out into Coast Mountain and Translink. Would that be correct?

 

I concur!

 

https://en.wikipedia...wiki/BC_Transit

 

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 12 January 2026 - 07:12 AM.

[FogPub]

Handy Dart serves those who have difficulty walking with tax funded support.

 

True, the further out you go the greater the challenge may be. When I lived in Saanich I had three different bus routes  stops less then 150m from my house.

 

The dicussion was talking about no parking requirements for City of Victoria units construction.

 

Is it interesting that we have a single organization that runs the bus system and not an individual bus service in each municipality?

More to the point, in many outer areas the bus doesn't run all that often particularly during nights and weekends.

 

Closer in, more and more bus stops are being removed and not replaced (or closed for years for someone's construction project) meaning people on average have to walk farther to get to one.  Also, and in no small part due to various "traffic calming" measures, the schedule is a complete work of fiction.

 

End result: if you want any sort of independence in your timing and-or reliability in your arrival you need either a car or a bike, and unless you're young and fit a bike ain't gonna do it.  Even if you are young and fit, a bike is no good for large or heavy loads; and having someone deliver those loads just means you're passing the buck: someone else has to own and run the vehicle instead of you.

 

Developers should be made to provide not just 1:1 parking per unit but extra above that to allow for visitors, trades, and so forth.

[Mike K.]

An example, is BC Transit just changed the routing of the 65 Sooke-Victoria commuter bus. So while there are now 4 in the AM and 4 in the PM operating (in lieu of 2), the route no longer runs west of Otter Point Road, meaning commuters who used the route now have to transfer from the 61 onto the 65. That adds more time to their commute and will be an inconvenience.

And we’re not talking maybe a block or two deviation, but a 2km route change at its furthest point.

[Victoria Watcher]

Oak Bay hires Robbins Parking to take over parking enforcement

 

 

 

Robbins Parking has taken over parking enforcement in the District of Oak Bay.

 

As of Sunday, Robbins staff are in charge of enforcing the municipality’s parking bylaws, such as for street parking, residential street parking, recreation centres and the municipal hall.

 

Robbins is taking over from the previous contractor, the Commissionaires, who had previously been awarded parking enforcement contracts in the district since 2007.

 

[...]

 

The contract is valued at $280,462 throughout the next three years.

 

It’s up significantly from the previous contract, which was signed with the Commissionaires in 2022.

 

At a council meeting on Dec. 8, when Oak Bay council approved the contract for Robbins, Coun. Esther Paterson asked why there was a “substantial increase from the last contract” to the tune of 55 per cent.

 

“I think there’s a couple of things playing into that,” said Andre Boel, director of community building and planning for Oak Bay.

 

The previous contract dates back in 2022. Very different rates were established at the time,” he said at the council meeting.

 

“We did see some variation in the proposed cost from the proposals, that was weighed as part of the criteria,” he said. “…None of the proposals were coming close to the current budget.”

 

In 2024, the district issued 1,539 warnings and tickets – and as of early December 2025 it issued 1,952 warnings and tickets throughout the year.

 

Boel says the district receives an estimated $20,000 in revenue from tickets, but stressed that the focus of parking enforcement was on education and not cost recovery.

 

 

https://cheknews.ca/...cement-1303388/

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 04 February 2026 - 04:34 AM.

[Mike K.]

Boel says the district receives an estimated $20,000 in revenue from tickets, but stressed that the focus of parking enforcement was on education and not cost recovery.

Oak Bay PD will take care of that

[Fox]

So $93k/year to enforce parking rules which historically results in $20k in fine revenue?  Will be interesting to see how much that revenue increases with Robbins.

[Victoria Watcher]

Seems like a lot of money to just hand out warnings. Why not make it break even? Instead taxpayers are paying $70k a year for warning ticket man.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 04 February 2026 - 11:22 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

 

$10,000/Monthly

 

https://www.realtor....ctoria-rock-bay