Earth Week Update: Mountain Access

Grouse Mountain is an amazing place. It provides access and insight into BC's wilderness, culture and way of life. Keeping that naturalness and beauty is something we care about greatly. Leading up to Earth Day 2017 we want to share with you some of the ways we’re working to be more sustainable. While our journey is ongoing and there are always ways to improve, here’s a look at some of the steps we’re taking towards reducing our environmental footprint.

With over 1.3 million people visiting Grouse Mountain every year, there’s a big opportunity for us to offer sustainable ways for people to access the Mountain. 

As the only transit accessible Mountain on the North Shore, Grouse Mountain is serviced by two public transit routes with regular service running to and from the base every half hour. 

During the summer we run a complimentary shuttle providing service from Downtown Vancouver to the base of Grouse Mountain. In addition, during busy holiday periods in the winter we also offer a complimentary shuttle along Nancy Greene Way. 

For those with electric vehicles we introduced a Leviton electric vehicle charging station in 2013. Conveniently located near the entrance to the Grouse Grind and supporting both Level 1 charging at 120V and Level II charging at 240V, the station is accessible to electric car users with a ChargePass. 

Another popular sustainable choice for many people are car-share programs. We’re pleased to offer designated spots for the majority of the region’s major car-sharing options (Zipcar, EVO and Modo). For bike enthusiasts (fit enough to make the trek up Nancy Greene Way!), we also provide bike racks located at the base. 

Once our guests arrive at the base, it’s on to the iconic Super Skyride to continue the journey to the mountaintop. You may not have thought about it, but the Skyride offers a low-impact way to access the Mountain. For one thing, it has eliminated over 25 million drives to the top of the Mountain. 

Another thing you may not know about the Skyride is that it can actually generate power. When the uphill tram is carrying more people than the downhill tram, it requires power to carry those people up the Mountain. However, when the opposite occurs and the downhill tram is full but the uphill tram carries a minimal load, the Skyride actually supplies power into the grid which is pretty cool!