SURREY, B.C. — Mayoral candidate Mike Starchuk and Imagine Surrey are proposing a citywide traffic-signal system that would use real-time traffic conditions to adjust signals, along with upgrades to several chronically congested Surrey corridors.
Starchuk said the plan would synchronize Surrey’s traffic lights into one coordinated system and use adaptive technology to respond to traffic in real time. The proposal also includes giving buses priority at key intersections and reducing vehicle wait times at red lights.
The road expansion plan targets 124 Street, 144 Street, 148 Street, 168 Street, 80 Avenue, Colebrook Road and 40 Avenue, according to the campaign.
Starchuk said the City tested adaptive traffic signals on 72 Avenue in 2013 and reported positive results, but the technology has not been implemented citywide.
“I spent 32 years as a firefighter in this city. When you’re heading to a call with the siren on and you hit a wall of cars at a red light that shouldn’t be red, you learn which intersections are broken,” Starchuk said.
He also said Imagine Surrey would examine ways to accelerate road construction, including the possibility of 24/7 roadbuilding in areas without residents, where feasible.
The campaign says road improvements would be delivered corridor by corridor, starting with major bottlenecks, with funding potentially coming from development cost charges, TransLink cost-sharing and provincial and federal programs. Imagine Surrey says its transportation commitments would be part of its broader pledge to keep tax increases at or below inflation.
Ashiyana Hanif, an Imagine Surrey council candidate and founder of Media Waves Live, said residents are increasingly concerned about longer commute times.
“I hear it every day, in Punjabi and in English: the drive to work keeps getting longer and nobody at City Hall seems to notice,” Hanif said.
Imagine Surrey lists Fast Commutes as one of its five campaign priorities, alongside Safe Streets, Smart Investments, Lower Costs and Strong Services.
The campaign says its full platform will be released in the coming weeks. The 2026 Surrey municipal election is scheduled for October 17, 2026.
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