Metro Vancouver region now home to population of 3 million

Metro Vancouver has reached another milestone.

According to estimates from Statistics Canada, over three million people now live in the region, with the largest year-over-year growth in Surrey.

Andy Yan, director of the City Program at SFU, says Surrey has grown by around 33 per cent over the last 10 years — and in Langley, by 40 per cent.

In fast-growing cities like Surrey, Yan says they face significant challenges in terms of housing, schools, and access to medical care.

“It’s really these fast-growing areas of the province that there are ongoing challenges in terms of getting them the amenities and services that are needed to thrive in the province,” said Yan.

He says growth needs to be sustained in the areas that have grown already and supported in those that are falling behind.

“It’s looking at really the areas that already have infrastructure and ensuring that they have the density to ensure that that infrastructure is used as much as possible… ensuring that other parts of the region, particularly south of the Fraser, get the baskets of amenities and services that allow communities to thrive.”

Yan says one factor contributing to the growth is immigration, and from this point forward, he says the population growth in Metro Vancouver is going to be connected to migration.

The federal government is already moving to reduce the number of people immigrating to Canada, capping the total of permanent residents to 395,000 this year.

Despite ongoing challenges like affordable housing and access to medical care, Yan says reaching three million is a sign of success for Metro Vancouver.

“But then, I think it’s [important to be] ensuring that a sense of success is passed through the entire population, as we still face ongoing challenges in affordable housing, as well as economic development and transportation.”