Stadium–Chinatown station

Template:Infobox Vancouver SkyTrain station Stadium-Chinatown Station is part of the SkyTrain system in Greater Vancouver, Canada. It serves both the Expo Line and the Millennium Line at the eastern entrance of the Dunsmuir Tunnel, located beneath Downtown Vancouver.

As its name entails, the station is located near both the Stadium District and Chinatown. It is accessible from the surface on two levels: from the "Downtown" level at Dunsmuir Street and Beatty Street, or from the "False Creek" level near the corner of Expo Boulevard and Abbott Street.

History

Stadium Station, built in 1985, was named such due to its proximity to the then-new BC Place Stadium (built in 1983). Both the station and the stadium were vital pieces of Vancouver's Expo 86. The "Chinatown" portion of the station's name was added in 2004, after Vancouver city council felt it would increase tourism to the area and increase awareness to out-of-towners about Vancouver's ever-expanding Chinatown district, just one block away.

Track and platform configuration at the station (left to right): Spare platform, outbound platform, inbound platform.

During Expo 86, the station served as a transfer point between the main site of the World's Fair and the Canadian Pavilion (now Canada Place), located on Burrard Inlet at Waterfront Station. Transferring between these two stations was free to fair attendees during the World's Fair using special shuttle trains which ran from a third track at Stadium-Chinatown Station (where there was a connection to the monorail serving the main Expo 86 site) to the Canadian Pavilion at Waterfront Station. This third track and platform are currently used for train storage and special event service. The third track makes Stadium-Chinatown the only station on the SkyTrain system with three tracks. (Lougheed Town Centre Station on the Millennium Line was built with a third platform in mind; however, since the Evergreen Line in construction will not utilize SkyTrain technology, it is not likely that the third platform will be used there.)

The station was originally constructed with an underground passage under Beatty Street to the west in anticipation of future development. When the Amec Building constructed across Beatty Street did not link to the underground passage, the passage was closed and is currently occupied by the Lost Property Office. The staircase on the west side of Beatty was filled with sand and topped with a concrete sidewalk, so that the passage could be reopened in the future.

Services

Station name in English and Chinese.

• Stadium-Chinatown is one of five SkyTrain subway stations on the Expo and Millennium Lines currently serving Downtown Vancouver.

• Even though the station provides transfer to only a small number of bus routes, it is nonetheless very busy due to its proximity to BC Place Stadium (home of the BC Lions of the CFL and many conventions and trade shows), GM Place (home to the Vancouver Canucks of the NHL and most of Vancouver's large concerts), and Vancouver's theatre district which is also nearby.

• Following a concert or sporting event at these venues, the passenger volumes are sufficiently large that it is feasible to post TransLink personnel to collect and check fares at this station, in contrast to the proof-of-payment system normally in force on the SkyTrain. In addition, during such events, police traffic units control the flow of traffic allowing people to cross the street en masse.

• The Plaza of Nations dock for False Creek Ferries and Aquabus is located a few blocks away.

• The lost property office of TransLink is in this station.

• The station entrance closest to Chinatown is marked by traditional Chinese characters in addition to English. The sign reads: "Stadium - Chinatown 體育館／華埠（唐人街）". This makes the station the only station on the system to be officially marked in Chinese.