moving to vancouver

[Distill3d]

okay, so due to recent events in my life, i'm moving to Vancouver a little faster then i wanted to (i was due in september, now i'm moving by the end of this week).

i have a few questions about getting around vancouver.

last time i lived there i had a car and didn't have to worry about transit, however this time its different. how the hell do the fare zone things work. like i understand the 3 zones, but what i don't understand is if i live in say Surrey, do i have to buy a 3 zone monthly pass if i work in Langley or just a 1zone pass (because they are in the same zone). and how reliable are the buses?

also, what are good/inexspensive area's to look for a place in. i'll be staying with a friend in mission or new west for the first bit, but i've noticed places in different area's are more or less exspensive. i did see a 2 bedroom apartment in burnaby (as far as i can tell its by brentwood or lougheed mall) for 750/month online. what i want to know is given the region, is this a high crime area? is it a safe area to live? there is a good transit and shopping access in the area, so i'm not so worried about that.

so, uhmm, thats about all i want to know, unless anyone here has anything else to add. i do appreciate the help

[jlousa]

Surrey to Langley are in the same zone, so you only need to buy a 1 zone pass, that's how it works, buses are reliable in that direction, but they are limited, especially if you work in the industrial areas, you might not even be able to take transit, take a look at Translink's site for info, it is very useful. As far as where to live, how much do you want to spend? That will answer the question for you. I suggest you room with your buddies as long as you can to refamlirze yourself witht the city, you'll make a better choice if you aren't rushed.

[SpongeG]

you can get really cheap basement suites in surrey - usually $500 for a one bedroom or even two that includes utilities or cable

but they aren't very central - but are on bus routes

i know i went and looked at a bunch not too long ago with a friend

some were really nice - i noticed a lot of the ads are up in the indian areas/shops or on craigslist

[SpongeG]

the $750 place sounds like a basement suite - i don't know of any apartments for that cheap

the area is ok - quite quiet and nice - skytrain is really accessible - but than it depends just where - the area can be really big - my friend lived just off hastings - which some claim to be brentwood mall area - and it was nice - lots of cafes shops etc in the heights

[squeezied]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

last time i lived there i had a car and didn't have to worry about transit, however this time its different. how the hell do the fare zone things work. like i understand the 3 zones, but what i don't understand is if i live in say Surrey, do i have to buy a 3 zone monthly pass if i work in Langley or just a 1zone pass (because they are in the same zone). and how reliable are the buses?

here's pretty much all the info you'd need: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TransLi...28Vancouver%29



if you live in surrey and commute to langley, you'd only have to pay one zone. in other words, if you're commuting within one zone(eg somewhere from zone 2 to somewhere in zone 2), you're paying for one zone; if you're commuting within two zones (ie from zone 1 to zone 2 or from zone 2 to zone 3), you're paying for two zone; if you're commuting within three zones (ie from zone 1 to zone 3 and vice-versa), you're paying for three zones. i think you get it now .

and for reliability of buses... not so great... and i live in vancouver proper. ppl tell me to go to the translink site to plan your trip(you enter your starting location and ending location and starting time and it'll tell you which buses/routes to take and the time the bus arrives) but i never do cuz it's a waste of time, i already know the directions, and most importantly i don't know how reliable the buses are. one time i had to wait 30mins for a #10 granville with four 98 b-line buses already passed by and sometimes there are two #17 oak buses back to back, even three for a few times(which is pretty annoying after having waited for a while). all these bus names probably don't make any sense to you right now, but it goes to show how aggrevating waiting for buses can be. im sure other forumers can give similar waiting-for-the-bus experiences.

if you like reliability(ie frequency), live near the skytrain or along the b-line bus routes.

[cornholio]

The apartment towers at lougheed have one bedrooms from the 4th floor to the 22nd floor for $800(750sqfeet) a month + great views of downtown/metrotown/surrey etc.. I think it only includes hot water and you have to use some weird internet/tv provider which doesnt seem like its as good as the common ones. Or you could get a penthouse in those towers in floors 22-24 for $1600 a month which is 1650sqfeet (has a fireplace, two bathrooms and a wet bar) with two huge ass balconies(each facing in a different direction) and two bedrooms. Get that with a roomate and youl have a sweet ass place for $800 each. There are also apartment in the towers around Hlodom/Brentwood in a similiar price range. So in other words there are good apartments for rent for reasonabel prices in good locations next to transit. But if your going to be working in Langley then I would sugest geting a place in Surrey or Langly which will in all likely hood be even cheaper. The two places I mentioned have web sites which give more information, the Lougheed one you also have a mall, walmart, safeway, skytrain, bc liqur store, crap loads of restaurants, good parks and everything else you need within a 5min walk. There also is a pub directly below one of the apartment towers so if you want to go for a few beers, play some pool or watch a sporting event etc. all you have to do is catch the elevator down and walk through a halway for 2min...then you can just stumbel back to the eleveator and your home in less then 2min's. Infact if I wasnt paying $200+1/2 utilities a month to share a house with a roomate in Vancouver I would defenitly consider moving there(his family owns the house so its just about rent free for him plus its not in good shape but a extra $3-600 a month + more freedom for me is worth it.
Anyways good luck by the way.

Actualy here is the page for the lougheed apartments.
http://www.lougheedapartments.ca/

[Hed Kandi]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

okay, so due to recent events in my life, i'm moving to Vancouver a little faster then i wanted to (i was due in september, now i'm moving by the end of this week).

i have a few questions about getting around vancouver.

last time i lived there i had a car and didn't have to worry about transit, however this time its different. how the hell do the fare zone things work. like i understand the 3 zones, but what i don't understand is if i live in say Surrey, do i have to buy a 3 zone monthly pass if i work in Langley or just a 1zone pass (because they are in the same zone). and how reliable are the buses?

also, what are good/inexspensive area's to look for a place in. i'll be staying with a friend in mission or new west for the first bit, but i've noticed places in different area's are more or less exspensive. i did see a 2 bedroom apartment in burnaby (as far as i can tell its by brentwood or lougheed mall) for 750/month online. what i want to know is given the region, is this a high crime area? is it a safe area to live? there is a good transit and shopping access in the area, so i'm not so worried about that.

so, uhmm, thats about all i want to know, unless anyone here has anything else to add. i do appreciate the help

I just moved to Van last month.

Here's some sites that will help you out:


www.247apartments.com
www.viewit.ca
http://www.rentalsbc.com/
http://www.concertproperties.com/properties/rental.html

[nname]

Originally Posted by squeezied

in other words, if you're commuting within one zone(eg somewhere from zone 2 to somewhere in zone 2), you're paying for one zone;

Technically, calculating the number of zone for the trip not only depend on where the trip begin/end, but also depend on what route you choose and what zones you go through even if you stay on the bus. For example, if you take the 130 from Burnaby to North Vancouver (both in zone 2), you need to pay 2 zones fare because the bus pass through Vancouver (zone 1). A more confusing example, to go from Metrotown to Richmond Centre (both zone 2), if you take the 430, then the trip is 2 zones because it passes through Vancouver. But if you take the skytrain then transfer to 410, then the trip is 1 zone as New Westminster is also in zone 2.

[Distill3d]

Originally Posted by nname

Technically, calculating the number of zone for the trip not only depend on where the trip begin/end, but also depend on what route you choose and what zones you go through even if you stay on the bus. For example, if you take the 130 from Burnaby to North Vancouver (both in zone 2), you need to pay 2 zones fare because the bus pass through Vancouver (zone 1). A more confusing example, to go from Metrotown to Richmond Centre (both zone 2), if you take the 430, then the trip is 2 zones because it passes through Vancouver. But if you take the skytrain then transfer to 410, then the trip is 1 zone as New Westminster is also in zone 2.

yeah, this is the part the screws me up. is there also times of day when the zones aren't in effect?

[SpongeG]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

yeah, this is the part the screws me up. is there also times of day when the zones aren't in effect?

i think after 6:30 pm the zones are no longer in effect

and they are not on weekends or holidays - just work day weekdays