More fare gates coming to SkyTrain's congested Yaletown-Roundhouse Station
Upon inquiry, TransLink told Daily Hive Urbanized they will be adding two fare gates, which will grow the number of gates at the station to a total of five.
The installation process is currently underway, with the additional fare gates expected to be operational by mid-May
This also happens to coincide with the anticipated major passenger volumes the station will see during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, starting in mid-June. BC Place Stadium will host a total of seven matches, with major full road closures in the area creating a 2.6-km-long, car-free, pedestrian-only route and fan zone along Pacific Street and Pacific Boulevard between Yaletown-Roundhouse Station and the Expo Line’s Main Street-Science World Station. This route will serve as the only entrance and exit for stadium spectators on match days.
Feb. 26, 2026, construction on additional fare gates at SkyTrain’s Yaletown-Roundhouse Station. (Kenneth Chan)
But the station has had a shortage of fare gates for the passenger volumes it sees.
Based on Daily Hive Urbanized’s previous in-depth breakdown of 2017 TransLink ridership and fare gate statistics, the fare gates at Yaletown-Roundhouse Station are the hardest-working fare gates on the entire TransLink network of SkyTrain stations and SeaBus terminals.
Based on 2017 passenger volumes, each fare gate at Yaletown-Roundhouse Station saw an average of 3,500 entries per fare gate per weekday. This station has the busiest fare gates of any SkyTrain station, coming ahead of Vancouver City Centre Station’s average of 3,067 per fare gate per day, Broadway-City Hall Station at 2,900, Langara-49th Avenue Station at 2,467, and Richmond-Brighouse Station at 2,340. In 2017, the station recorded 3.45 million annual boardings, with averages of 10,500 per weekday, 8,170 per Saturday, and 6,290 per Sunday/holiday.
In 2024, based on the latest available statistics, Yaletown-Roundhouse Station saw 3.055 million boardings per year, ranking it as SkyTrain’s 21st busiest station, with passenger volumes being lower at the time compared to the pre-pandemic period due to factors such as the sustained semi-remote office work practices. The station saw 2024 ridership averages of 8,950 per weekday, 7,964 per Saturday, and 6,330 per Sunday/holiday. Each weekday in 2024, each fare gate processed an average of 2,980 passengers per day — a decrease compared to 2017, but still very high.
SkyTrain stations have a minimum of three gates, with a total of seven stations currently having this limited number, including the Canada Line’s King Edward, Langara-49th Avenue, Olympic Village, and Sea Island Centre stations, and the Millennium Line’s Holdom and Sperling-Burnaby Lake stations.
Brentwood Town Centre Station on the Millennium Line previously had just three fare gates, up until 2025 when a major station expansion project reached completion, which included doubling the number of gates to six.
TransLink also recently began the bidding process seeking a contractor to design a brand new and improved Compass fare payment system, including an overhaul of the aging fare gates. This project, starting later this decade, could potentially cost over $500 million.
Completed upgrades of SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre Station with additional fare gates, as seen on March 22, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)
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- FIFA World Cup road closures to turn downtown Vancouver into a pedestrian fan zone