Driving in Vancouver
May 29th, 2013, 09:51 AM
#1
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Driving in Vancouver
I will need to get from the Vancouver airport to Lions Bay, north of Vancouver. My friend has warned me that driving in Vancouver is really difficult. I drive in San Francisco. Is Vancouver worse than SF? What about this route? I could also rent the car in North Vancouver and take a taxi from the airport to the North Vancouver rental location possibly?
May 29th, 2013, 12:17 PM
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I don't think you'll find it more difficult. Growing up in the Bay Area and learning to drive there, I have no particular issues with Vancouver. Yes, there will be rush hour traffic, but nothing worse than what you drive in. Personally, I think the drivers are overall more considerate than a lot of other big cities I've driven in.
May 29th, 2013, 12:40 PM
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I recently drove in Vancouver for the first time- and I am not used to driving in big cities anymore- I thought it was not bad- I had a GPS and followed directions and it was fine.
SFO is much more difficult.
I drove in the downtown area ( Robson St) and down to Seattle with no difficulty. I think there is also a train from the airport to downtown.
SFO is much more difficult.
I drove in the downtown area ( Robson St) and down to Seattle with no difficulty. I think there is also a train from the airport to downtown.
May 29th, 2013, 01:27 PM
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There are no freeways in the city of Vancouver - once the freeways hit Vancouver city limits, it turns into regular city stop-go roads. If you're used to interstate infrastructure, it just doesn't exist in Vancouver. Whether that makes it harder or easier, I don't know. I grew up driving in Vancouver, and I've driven in San Francisco, and San Francisco's a little bit harder simply because of the crazy four way stops at 60 degree angle hills!
May 29th, 2013, 01:30 PM
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Should also mention, downtown Vancouver's roads are mostly one way lanes, and some of the major streets have "no right turns" or "no left turns" for significant chunks. Plus, during rush hour downtown Vancouver is congested. It makes walking/public transit significantly easier than driving around downtown. Also, parking is super expensive in Vancouver - there isn't free parking downtown. If you want to park, you have to park in a lot or on the street where it's $$$ per hour (from 8am until 10pm, 7 days a week). So all those factors mean that having a car can be a pain... but it's not difficult to drive in Vancouver.
May 29th, 2013, 02:40 PM
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<b>The central reason why Vancouver driving can be a struggle is that it isn't on the WAY to anywhere else! </b> (which is the product of the area being surrounded by mountains and water, it being on the western edge of the continent, and a-bout <I>{sorry, a-<b>boat</b>}</I> as far north as most really want to be).
The <I>"driving challenges"</I> there are for Vancouver's lack of infrastructure (they don't <b>neeeeeeed</b> freeways that bypass the city, because there is usually no place in high demand to GO, beyond it) and the natural barriers in place all over.
<b>The driving itself isn't any different than in most North American cities</b> (save for the <I>flashing green light</I>, of course). It's just slower and potentially more time consuming, depending upon the hour and day.
The <I>"driving challenges"</I> there are for Vancouver's lack of infrastructure (they don't <b>neeeeeeed</b> freeways that bypass the city, because there is usually no place in high demand to GO, beyond it) and the natural barriers in place all over.
<b>The driving itself isn't any different than in most North American cities</b> (save for the <I>flashing green light</I>, of course). It's just slower and potentially more time consuming, depending upon the hour and day.
May 30th, 2013, 04:07 AM
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I've driven both and spent some time in Vancouver, just make sure you aren't too pressed for time and you won't have ANY problems at all, IMHO.
Depending on what time you are arriving you may want think about what route you want to take. If you arrive during non-rush hour, take the western route. The one-way streets downtown are true but a bit of red herring in that if you take the western route, you'll likely head over the Arthur Lang Bridge and then north along Granville St all the way to downtown, take the Seymour St off-ramp, and then just turn left onto Georgia St which will lead you all the way to Lions Gate Bridge and onto Hwy 99, which connects to Hwy 1 which will lead you all the way to Lions Bay. You won't be zigzagging thru one-way streets.
If you arrive during rush hour, you may want to consider taking an eastern route, which is definitely longer, but may be faster. That would involve taking the Knight St Bridge from the airport to Vancouver, catching onto Hwy 1 - the same one that would lead you to Lions Bay (via the Second Narrows Bridge and avoiding downtown traffic).
The western option is more scenic. Take a look at google maps and decide for yourself.
Just rent from the airport - it will be much easier than having to schlep your bags, etc. to North Van (requires a transit transfer). Trust me on this!
Enjoy-la!
Depending on what time you are arriving you may want think about what route you want to take. If you arrive during non-rush hour, take the western route. The one-way streets downtown are true but a bit of red herring in that if you take the western route, you'll likely head over the Arthur Lang Bridge and then north along Granville St all the way to downtown, take the Seymour St off-ramp, and then just turn left onto Georgia St which will lead you all the way to Lions Gate Bridge and onto Hwy 99, which connects to Hwy 1 which will lead you all the way to Lions Bay. You won't be zigzagging thru one-way streets.
If you arrive during rush hour, you may want to consider taking an eastern route, which is definitely longer, but may be faster. That would involve taking the Knight St Bridge from the airport to Vancouver, catching onto Hwy 1 - the same one that would lead you to Lions Bay (via the Second Narrows Bridge and avoiding downtown traffic).
The western option is more scenic. Take a look at google maps and decide for yourself.
Just rent from the airport - it will be much easier than having to schlep your bags, etc. to North Van (requires a transit transfer). Trust me on this!
Enjoy-la!
