TransLink schedules annual general meeting on election day

I thought it was sneaky of the Vision Vancouver-controlled city council to bring forward a late-distribution report on social housing on provincial budget day. It ensured minimal coverage.

I also thought it was sneaky of the Vision Vancouver-controlled city council to deal with cycling lanes on the Burrard Bridge during the last week of a provincial election. The timing of the May 7 vote reduced the amount of media attention.

But these two instances of political weasel-like behaviour are nothing compared with TransLink's plan to hold its annual general meeting on the morning of election day next Tuesday (May 12).

On election day, the media will be working late shifts. The entire province will be riveted on the results, and not on a TransLink annual general meeting.

And well-meaning citizens who attend the annual general meeting will be overlooked by most media outlets—which is probably precisely what the directors of TransLink intended by choosing May 12 for their annual general meeting.

The meeting  will take place from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Firefighters Hall (6515 Bonsor Avenue) in Burnaby.

I've scheduled all of our reporters to work election night, which means we won't have staff there that morning. Anyone who plans to make speeches to the board is welcome to e-mail  copies of them  in advance to contact@straight.com. If they're of interest to a wider audience, I will try to ensure they are posted on this site.

We have a comment space below. I would love to read some explanations by the directors of Translink why they think it's a good idea to hold an annual general meeting on the morning of a provincial election day.

It's not as if nobody knew about this.  B.C.'s fixed election date has been in place for years.

Perhaps one of the speakers at the annual general meeting might decide to  mention that the Croatian city of Zagreb is providing free bus service in the downtown core. You can read the announcement here.

By scheduling the annual general meeting on election day, TransLink directors have reduced the likelihood of this type of information being conveyed to people who live in Metro Vancouver. Shame on them.