TransLink CEO Tom Prendergast fought off an army of critics at a June 16 open house in White Rock.

While he was there to talk about TransLink's funding shortfall and seek opinions as to how best to deal with it, the 100 or so residents on hand (far more than attended similar forums in Surrey and Langley) wanted to talk about the loss of direct bus service to downtown Vancouver.

The 351 bus has connected White Rock and South Surrey with the downtown area since the early 1970s, but it and the 352 and 354 routes are being truncated. They will soon end in Richmond, where people can get aboard the new Canada Line rapid transit system and continue their trip downtown.

While the shortening of bus routes has been standard procedure as rapid transit lines are built, people in South Surrey and White Rock who are regular users of the 351 aren't impressed. They do not want to transfer to another transit mode, nor travel into Richmond on city streets. They fear a longer trip and potential delays.

TransLink is planning a service enhancement. The 351 will run every 10 minutes in rush hour to Richmond, and every 15 minutes at other times of the day. That's a far better level of service.

What Prendergast encountered is the perennial problem TransLink has in convincing people south of the Fraser to pay more for transit. We have a significantly lower level of service here – yet it is suggested that we pay more, even though transit is not a realistic option for many Surrey, Delta and White Rock residents.

Prendergast is well aware of this challenge. He knows that the level of service south of the Fraser is much lower than it should be. Yet thus far, TransLink is reluctant to suggest transit taxes be higher in regions where transit service is at the highest levels.

There are a number of ways this could happen. There could be a congestion tax, for example, for all vehicles entering downtown Vancouver. There could be tolls on all Fraser River and Burrard Inlet crossings in the Lower Mainland – not just the new ones that are being financed by tolls.

People who live in Vancouver, Burnaby and New Westminster, where transit service is best, could pay more in vehicle taxes, if that tax is introduced, as seems likely. TransLink's property tax rates could be levied at a higher level in areas where service is highest – with the highest taxes paid by property owners in the Burrard Peninsula, medium level taxation in Richmond and on the North Shore and lower taxes in the Tri-City and Maple Ridge areas, as well as south of the Fraser.

TransLink's basic premise – that transit service needs to continue to expand – is sound. The Metro Vancouver area continues to grow, and it makes sense for many reasons to make transit service more convenient and encourage more riders.

But to encourage people to use it, the service must be frequent and convenient. Few people will use transit if their trips to work are twice as long as they would be be in commuting by car.

TransLink also must do far more to boost local service south of the Fraser. It is difficult to make local trips on the bus in many areas of Surrey and Delta. In some areas, bus service is either non-existent or so infrequent that a simple trip to the grocery store can consume most of an afternoon.

TransLink definitely needs to hear from the public about how it can best finance expansion plans. But at the same time, it needs to listen carefully when people tell it that the south Fraser area needs better transit service – not reductions or reroutings that add time to trips.

TransLink will get some support for more transit taxes in this region, if and when it pushes harder for significant service improvements.