West Coast Express

The West Coast Express (reporting mark WCE) is a commuter railway serving the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. It is owned and operated by the region's transit authority, TransLink. Opened in 1995, it provides a link between Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley Regional District and is the only commuter railway in Western Canada. In 2025, the system had a ridership of 1,734,200, or about 6,900 per weekday as of the fourth quarter of 2025.

Service is provided between Downtown Vancouver and the municipalities of Port Moody, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge, and Mission. Along its route, several stations interchange with the SkyTrain metropolitan rail system as well as local bus services. Additionally, Waterfront station in Downtown Vancouver provides a connection to the SeaBus passenger ferry.

Service on the West Coast Express began on November 1, 1995, under the management of BC Transit. It was transferred to TransLink on April 1, 1999, the successor to BC Transit's operations in Greater Vancouver. In 1997, an onboard education program called the "Brain Train" was introduced; for a fee, passengers in a dedicated car would listen to weekly lectures from a Capilano College instructor in various subjects, including foreign languages and public speaking.

The West Coast Express operates from Monday to Friday (excluding holidays) with five trains per day running from Mission to Vancouver in the morning peak hours (5:25 am – 7:25 am) and returning to Mission in the evening peak (3:50 pm – 6:20 pm). A one-way trip takes 75 minutes, which is faster than driving to Downtown Vancouver.

The commuter railway is owned by TransLink, the transportation authority of the Metro Vancouver region. Metro Vancouver Transit Police officers and transit security officers conduct random fare inspections within the Fare Paid Zones at stations and on board trains. People caught without valid fare are removed from the train and may be fined $173. Contracted commissionaires provide station attendant services and a security presence, even checking fares on occasion at stations. Commissionaires do not conduct fare enforcement.

Rail service is supplemented by TransLink's 701 bus route, which runs four eastbound and four westbound trips per weekday—one in the morning, one in the afternoon, and two in the evening—between Coquitlam Central station and Mission City station. As with the West Coast Express itself, this bus service does not run on weekends and holidays. TransLink's regular one-zone adult/concession fare rates apply to these trips. The eastbound bus makes regular stops until it reaches Haney Place Exchange in Maple Ridge and then runs non-stop for about 26 minutes to Mission City station. This process is reversed for westbound buses. The entire one-way route is completed in 60 to 70 minutes.

Until December 30, 2016, the West Coast Express ran coach-style "TrainBus" service, which provided additional service when trains were not running. The TrainBus service provided two buses, one from Port Haney station in Maple Ridge and one from Mission City station, to Vancouver in the morning (after all westbound trains had departed) and five buses eastbound (two mid-day, and three after all eastbound trains had departed Waterfront), three of which extended to Mission, stopping only at West Coast Express stations. This service was replaced by the 701 bus service.

Use of the Compass Card on the West Coast Express began on June 8, 2015, along with new card vending machines. Existing paper fares were honoured until July 24, 2015.