Nonpartisan Hacks

Vancouver Island’s Forgotten Corridor with Thomas Bevan of ICF

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What’s next for Vancouver Island’s rail corridor? Is just a relic of the past, or the backbone of its future?

In this episode of Non-Partisan Hacks, hosts Joel Grenz and Sean Wood sit down with Thomas Bevan, CEO of the Island Corridor Foundation (ICF), to talk trains, trestles, and the tangled politics of one of Vancouver Island’s most unique public assets.

Bevan shares what it’s like to work with every level of government—federal, provincial, regional districts, municipalities, and 14 First Nations—while trying to reimagine a 290-kilometre corridor that runs through the backyards of about 80% of island residents. From Scotch broom removal and firebreaks to high-rail buses and long-term transit-oriented development, the conversation uncovers both the risks and the opportunities of this corridor.

🎧 Listen in for:

  • Corridor ownership: Whose Line Is It Anyway?
  • Why the corridor still matters for housing, planning, and the future of Vancouver Island
  • The Wesley Ridge fire’s impact on trestles and infrastructure
  • Creative short-term uses, including high-rail buses
  • How governance silos shape (and sometimes stall) progress
  • Whether this “forgotten corridor” can become the island’s true spine

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    Nonpartisan HacksBy Joel Grenz and Sean Wood