Hi All,

I've recently had a job offer in Vancouver, working downtown.

My employer told me to relocate north of the "Fraser river" ..said not to have to cross the bridges everyday.

Having never lived there, could anyone give us there experiences of driving in Vancouver in general, hotspots to avoid ect. All experiences wanted good and bad. Also were looking for a place within good driving distance to downtown, though not Downtown, easy commute, recommendations of areas to live would be great, good or bad experiences. We have a dog, so land would be great also.

Also, whats the public transport like, should we consider that to be an option? Is it reliable, ect.?

Thanks in advance.

Depends what your job is, what your hours are, etc. But the easiest commute is on the West Coast Express, which gives you the options of living anywhere from Mission to Port Moody, north of the Fraser. Coquitlam and Port Moody give you even easier access with no bridges to cross the Pitt River or Shaughnessy River as well. The further east you go, the cheaper the house prices.

The BE Wiki article on Vancouver gives an overview of the Greater Vancouver Area.

Have a look at New Westminster (except the Queensborough areas).
They have nice heritage houses , new condos and town houses.
New Westminster has a small town kind of feeling and yet it is
only 45mins. by skytrain to downtown. Takes 1 hr. to drive during
rush hour and 45mins outside rush hours. Below is the translink website
and you can plan your trip.
http://www.translink.bc.ca/?p=1.txt
www.mls.ca ( home prices in GVA)
I have stopped driving to work in downtown Vancouver.
Before 7am, you normally able get a seat on the sky train or the bus.
Yoong

Good advice from the new boss about avoiding the bridges.

North Vancouver with the buses, somewhere on SkyTrain or somewhere on West Coast Express. Basically the further out of Vancouver you go, the more land you'll get for your money in general.

They are also going to build a new LRT out to Coquitlam - Evergreen Line. www.translink.bc.ca/About_TransLink/News_Releases/news12070501.asp

I wouldn't recommend driving into downtown for commuting if you work a 9-5 type job - parking is expensive even if you don't care about the effect on the air quality for everyone else. As Yoong said, check out the Translink website for details on public transport, or transit as it is known here.

Congrats on the job offer.

Hi everyone, thanks so much for your invaluable advice.

Were looking at Port moody / coquitlam but still unsure, we'll definatley avoid the bridges, we have a dog so looking at Maple ridge also, but maybe just out of commute reach, lots to plan without a reccie.

Thx to everyone again, great links advice