Surrey, B.C.
Misson accomplished: What’s next for Daryl Dela Cruz
Opinion
Teodoro Alcuitas
Editor, philippinecanadiannews.com(PCN.Com)
For more than a decade, Daryl Dela Cruz pitched doggedly for his advocacy – to have a Skytrain extension from Surrey to Langley instead of an LRT favoured by the transportation agency, TransLink.
On July 8, 2021, that dream came to fruition when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made an announcement that the federal government would be funding the project to the tune of $1.3 B, assuring the completion of the project.Shovels will be on the ground soon, says reports.
It has been a long and difficult struggle for Dela Cruz who faced a strong opposition to his idea of scrapping the Light Rail (LRT) advanced by TransLink.
At age 15 in his senior year of high school, he founded the Skytrain to Langley coalition which lobbied to replace the LRT idea with a skytrain, arguing that it would be cheaper and carry more passengers among other reasons.
The young campaigner appeared in rallies and media interviews and was vindicated when the current mayor of Surrey took up the cause as a campaign issue in the last municipal elections. When Mayor Doug McCallum got elected the LRT plan was scrapped and skytrain was adopted.
Today, at 25, he sees his dream fulfilled with the announcement of the federal component of the project.
Still, this young man does not rest on his laurels.
He has been busy with pushing for his new project – the SFU Gondola that will carry students to the top of his alma mater – Simon Fraser University (SFU).
While the final decision over the gondola lies with TransLink management and the Mayors’ Council of the City of Burnaby. TransLink is awaiting city council’s recommendations on the route and project before continuing any planning work.
What is in store for this young man? Whatever it is, he certainly is a man to watch.
Here is our story of Dela Cruz at the time he was starting his advocacy.