South False Creek Line
The South False Creek Line is an electrified 3.4 mile railway line of the British Columbia Railway (BC Rail) running from Grandview Junction on the Inter-Dominion Line to South False Creek; Grandview Junction is also the beginning of the Washington & British Columbia Railway's Burrard Inlet Line.
The South False Creek Line is Line 201 of BC Rail's Lower Mainland Region.
History
The industrial trackage in the area of Granville Island on the south shore of False Creek in Vancouver was originally opened in 1904 by the Vancouver & Lulu Island Railway (V&LI), a subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), running from the CPR's Drake Street Yard to Steveston, Richmond. In 1905 the British Columbia Electric Railway (BCER) purchased the V&LI from the CPR and electrified it, becoming the BCER's first interurban line, the Lulu Island Line. When the BCER was nationalised in 1960, it became the British Columbia Hydro Railway (BCH).
Planning for what became today's Greater Vancouver Metro system began in the first half of the 1970s, envisioning the conversion of most of the BCH network north of the Fraser River, including the Lulu Island Line (to become the Expo Line) into a dedicated light rail commuter transit system. Planning was finalised in the autumn of 1978, and through 1979 necessary preparatory work was undertaken along the Lulu Island Line; this included discontinuation of BCH freight trains along the line; in order to continue service to the industries on the south shore of False Creek, the trackage in the area was transferred to the BCR in 1980 and a connection from South False Creek to Terminal Avenue Yard was built.
Services
The South False Creek industrial area is much reduced since the 1980s; only Lafarge Concrete on Granville Island, and the Molson Brewery remain rail-served, being handled as local shunting duties from Terminal Avenue Yard.
Route
A yellow background indicates an electrified section.
| Station | Milepost | Connecting lines | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grandview Jct | 0.0 | Inter-Dominion Line Burrard Inlet Line (W&BC) |
|
| Terminal Avenue Yard | 0.7 | - | Classification yard |
| South False Creek | 3.4 | - | Lafarge Cement, Molson Brewery |