Surrey is skirting the traditional route for regional planning by appealing directly to the federal government for $1.8 billion in funding to build three light rail lines across the city.

The pitch, made under the Building Canada Plan, underscores years of frustration by Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts and other regional mayors over TransLink decisions that have pitted municipalities against each other for transit projects.

Watts and other mayors also argue a looming referendum on potential transit funding options is doomed to fail, leading to further delays on much-needed transit projects.

Surrey argues its pitch to the Building Canada Fund, which is offering $53 billion over 10 years for infrastructure improvements in Canada, including transportation, is necessary for goods movement because it will get people out of their cars and taking transit, freeing up the roads. If approved, the project would likely be based on cost-sharing between the federal, provincial and local governments.

City officials plan to lobby federal transportation minister Lisa Raitt, as well as local MPs, the province and TransLink, which is responsible for transportation planning in Metro Vancouver and receives funds on behalf of municipalities, to press its case for light or at-grade rail.

This isn’t the first time the city has tried to bolster support for light rail. When TransLink said it preferred to extend the rapid transit line with SkyTrain technology, Surrey spent taxpayers’ dollars on a cost feasibility study on at-grade light rail.

Watts argues at-grade rail — and not the monolithic concrete SkyTrain — is desperately needed to shape the city, which is expected to see its population swell from half a million today to more than 750,000 in the next 30 years. Surrey also contributes $41 million annually to TransLink’s coffers, yet this money has been spent on projects such as the West Coast Express and the Millennium Line, and not in the city itself.

Surrey argues its pitch to the Building Canada Fund, which is offering $53 billion over 10 years for infrastructure improvements in Canada, including transportation, is necessary for goods movement because it will get people out of their cars and taking transit, freeing up the roads. If approved, the project would likely be based on cost-sharing between the federal, provincial and local governments.

Coun. Tom Gill says if Surrey does get federal funding, the city may go so far as to challenge legislation in the South Coast Transportation Act to ensure that TransLink honours its plans for light rail stretching from City Centre to Guildford, Langley and White Rock.

Given Surrey’s status as the region’s second-largest city, the move could be a significant blow to TransLink, which is responsible for transportation planning across the region.