Surrey LRT Optimal Station Locations

Abstract

Over the next five to ten years, the City of Surrey is planning to build a Light Rail Transit (LRT)
system comprised of two routes. The first route begins at Newton Exchange along King George
Boulevard and continues to 104 Ave where it makes a right turn and terminates at 152 Street. The
second route begins at King George Station and continues along Fraser Hwy until it terminates at
Langley Centre. One of the key decisions that must be made before construction of the Fraser Hwy route is the
placement of the transit stops. Placing stops requires balancing convenience, utilization, and costs.
If too few stops are built, fewer people may use transit and some the bene1ts may not be fully realized. On the other hand, if too many stops are built, using the system may be more convenient
for more people but there will be the risk that some stops are underused and, therefore, the cost
of building and operating that particular stop may exceed the expected benefits.
In this paper, we use linear programming methods to determine the most efficient placement
of transit stops along Fraser Hwy from King George Station to Langley Centre. The goal will be
to minimize costs while extracting as much bene1t as possible by balancing convenience and
utilization of stations.