We have a saying around CTF headquarters: No victory is final.

It’s a little reminder that we, as citizens, have to remain ever vigilant in a democratic society. Yesterday’s big victories can be quickly reversed by new governments, new leaders, or new situations. We’ve seen it with balanced budgets, debt repayment legislation.

It’s why the Debt Clock will never by destroyed, even if every government in Canada reverses course and pays down the debt that cripples our country. No victory is final.

Eleven years ago, citizens fought off a vehicle levy in the Lower Mainland, a significant victory for taxpayers. But history is repeating itself, as regional mayors have sent the provincial government a letter asking them to pass legislation by mid-June that would allow TransLink to collect taxes through road pricing, a regional carbon tax, a portion of the B.C. carbon tax, vehicle levy, and additional fuel tax.

Despite claiming they are doing this to offer $30 million in property tax relief, TransLink’s own report says these taxation tools could generate up to $1 billion:

• Road pricing: $100-$200 million
• Fuel tax: $30-$100 million
• New regional carbon tax: $200 million+
• Share of provincial carbon tax: $200 million+
• Vehicle levy: $100-$200 million

Bear in mind that Lower Mainland residents already pay the highest gas tax in North America—50 cents a litre. And getting the provincial portion of the carbon tax is just wishful thinking by the mayors.

Here’s what should happen:

1. TransLink should get its fiscal house in order. It’s a waste machine—see details below for just a few examples. Until that happens, not another penny should flow into that organization.
2. Once TransLink has cut its waste internally, we can get a better look at the real state of finances and spending.
3. If more money is necessary, then we can at least talk facts. Once we have faith that TransLink has stopped wasting so much money, we would be happy to advocate that more provincial and federal gas tax revenues be shifted to TransLink to fund transportation improvements in the greater Vancouver area. At 50 cents per litre, we pay enough. But until we can have confidence in TransLink’s spending decisions, the answer should be a hard no.

There are two significant reasons why TransLink can’t get by on the $1.4 billion it already annually generates in taxes and fares: waste and SkyTrain.

The CTF, whistleblowers and media have pointed out concerns about TransLink’s spending on nepotism, security, U-passes, safety, communications, fare evasion, polling, superfluous studies and transit police. I believe these instances of waste are just the tip of the iceberg. The one good thing the Mayors’ letter did was ask for more power to oversee current spending at TransLink. Up to now, mayors have only been consulted on spending increases, not where the money currently goes. This has let to an unaccountable atmosphere at TransLink, where mistakes and waste like the ones listed above have become all-too-common.

The second reason is SkyTrain. You’d be hard pressed to find a more expensive rail system anywhere—at-grade, light rail would have saved taxpayers billions of dollars. Even the pro-transit South Fraser blog thinks SkyTrain was too costly:

Phase I (Original Expo Line)
Cost: $854.3m (1986)
Cost: $1,601.15m (2012)
Cost per km: $74.8m (2012)

Phase II (Columbia to Scott Road)
Cost: $179m (1990) 
Cost: $281.69m (2012)
Cost per km: $90.9m (2012)

Phase III (Scott Road to King George)
Cost: $148m (1994)
Cost: $207.48m (2012)
Cost per km: $47.1m (2012)

Phase IV/V (Millennium Line)
Cost: $1,167m (2002)
Cost: $1,443.21 (2012)
Cost per km: $70.4m (2012)

Canada Line
Cost:  $2,000m (2009)
Cost: $2,136.28m (2012)
Cost per km: $111.3m (2012)

Evergreen Line
Cost: $1,400m (2012)
Cost per km:  $127m (2012)

Note how the cost of SkyTrain construction is exploding—$127 million per km for the Evergreen Line is a fortune. Compare that to Toronto, where they are contemplating a 13 km light rail line, including 25 stations, for $1 billion—roughly $77 million a kilometre in the most expensive city in Canada.

We picked the Cadillac of transit systems, and it’s killing us financially. No wonder Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts wants light rail.