New Westminster

New Westminster is a city of 79,000 people (2021) in British Columbia that is part of Vancouver's eastern suburbs. Its many Victorian-era houses and buildings remain giving the city a different feel than the rest of suburban Vancouver.

Understand
Burnaby lies to the north and west, Richmond on the southwest corner, Coquitlam on the northeast and the Fraser River borders it on the south and east.

History
Despite being a suburb of Vancouver today, New Westminster once eclipsed it in importance. Founded by the British in 1859 as the capital of the new colony of British Columbia, it was the first city incorporated in the colony. The name came from Queen Victoria for her favourite part of London and has earned the city the nickname "The Royal City". The hopes for colonial grandeur took a blow when Victoria was named the new capital of British Columbia in 1866. The city's importance continued to gradually decline as the major transportation routes moved north through Coquitlam and Burnaby into Vancouver.

Get in
See Vancouver for options to get in the Vancouver area by plane, by bus, and by train, and by boat.

New Westminster is easy to access by car.

By car
From Vancouver's airport, get on Marine Drive and head east for 15-30 minutes (it depends on traffic). From Highway 1 (Trans-Canada Highway), take the Brunette Ave exit and head south. From Burnaby, driving east on either Kingsway or Canada Way will get you there.

Get around
The city is fairly compact, measuring only 11 km long and 6.5 km wide so if you are up for a good walk you can get around by foot; however, be warned that much of the city is on the side of a large hill. The street system is mostly a grid, with Columbia Street the major street along the Fraser River and 6th and 12th Streets being the major streets that run back from the river towards Burnaby.



By public transit
Passengers can pay for fares using Compass Cards ($6 refundable deposit), Compass Tickets, or tap-to-pay using contactless credit cards (only American Express, Mastercard or Visa) or mobile wallets. Passengers using Compass Cards and Compass Tickets pay discounted fares. Passengers can transfer for up to 90 minutes, except if taking West Coast Express, in which case they can transfer for up to 120 minutes. On bus and HandyDART, passengers can also pay in cash, but in that case will not receive change and are not eligible for transfers. Zone based fares apply between Monday and Friday for trips starting before 6:30 pm, if travel involves SkyTrain or SeaBus. Outside of those hours or for travel on only bus or HandyDART, a single zone rate applies. If traveling by West Coast Express, a higher cost zone based fare system applies regardless of time of travel. Children 12 and under can ride for free. People aged 13 to 18, and 65 and older pay discounted concession fares.

Burnaby and New Westminster are part of the same transit zone, so the cost will be ; getting in from anywhere else will cost.

By SkyTrain
There are five SkyTrain stations in New Westminster on the Expo Line. The Expo Line travels to Vancouver's neighbourhoods of downtown, Yaletown-False Creek, Gastown-Chinatown, and East Van, and beyond Vancouver to Burnaby and Surrey.

New Westminster Station being the most useful of the Expo Line stations in New Westminster. It's one block from the Riverfront area and close to shops and restaurants. Columbia Station is also located in downtown New West, but is further east and a longer walk from most attractions. The two stations are roughly 30 minutes from downtown Vancouver.

By bus
There are several bus routes that serve the city. None link directly with downtown Vancouver, but there are direct links with several transit centers in Burnaby, Coquitlam, Surrey and  Richmond.

Bus routes are designed to connect New Westminster with Vancouver and other neighbouring municipalities so you may need a transfer depending on where you are going. Bus route #106 goes up 6th St, #112 follows Columbia and 12 Streets, #123 travels along 8th St and #155 cut along 6th Ave at the top of the city. New Westminster, 22nd Street, and Braid SkyTrain stations also have a number of buses that meet there.

See
There are several museums that have information on local history.



Stay safe
New Westminster is safe in general. The Downtown/Columbia Street area had a bad rep in the city for many years, but has become much safer since the police station relocated to 555 Columbia St and the revitalization work.

Connect
The area code for New Westminster is 604.

Go next
Surrey sits across the Fraser River from New Westminster and can be reached by car across the Pattullo Bridge or heading east on the Expo SkyTrain line. Richmond and Delta can be reached from the Queensborough Bridge (Highway 91A). The 91A south also leads to the U.S. border and Washington state (via Hwy 91 and 99).