Vancouver604 › About
About
Vancouver's traffic radio, reborn as an app
Vancouver604 is a free, spoken, real-time traffic report for Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and the Sea-to-Sky, refreshed every 15 minutes from driver reports and public road feeds, produced in Vancouver by Temper Tantrum Studios Inc.
Why it exists
For years Metro Vancouver had something few cities did: a radio station that talked about nothing but traffic, all day, so a driver could turn it on and know within a minute what was ahead. It went off the air in June 2024. What replaced it was a map with coloured lines and a government website that lists incidents, and neither one tells you why the bridge is stopped or whether to bother with the alternate.
Vancouver604 brings the voice back. Press play and a spoken update tells you what is happening on your roads right now, zone by zone, in the names locals use: the Ironworkers, the Cut, the Massey, the Port Mann. It is refreshed every fifteen minutes, it never stops for a song and it is free.
How it works
Drivers report what they see, by voice or in two taps, from the app. Each report is placed on the road it describes, weighed by how reliable that reporter has been and checked against public feeds such as DriveBC, TransLink and the City of Vancouver. Every fifteen minutes the station assembles a fresh cycle from what has been reported in the last hour, writes the script and reads it aloud. Reports that more than one driver has seen move up; reports nobody has seen in a while drop off; when a zone is clear, the station says so and means it.
The same text you hear is published on this site, on the zone pages, as JSON and as RSS, so it can be read, quoted and reused with attribution.
What we promise
Traffic always plays before anything commercial. Reports are verified before they air. When we suppress something, we say so; when we get something wrong, the correction is dated. Vancouver604 is a community information service and not an emergency service: in an emergency, call 911.
Who makes it
Vancouver604 is produced in Vancouver by Temper Tantrum Studios Inc, an independent studio founded by Shelby Lui, a creative director and e-commerce strategist with twenty years in retail and digital commerce. A partner from broadcast operations runs the station side. Nobody involved is a large media company, which is rather the point.
Help build it
The station is in beta on iOS. Drivers who join now become the Founding Road Crew: named on the site, thanked on air and first to every feature after. Join the beta, or write to support@vancouver604.com.
Questions
- Is Vancouver604 free?
- Yes. Listening on the web and in the iOS app is free and will stay free. The station is paid for by short spoken messages from local businesses, read in the same voice as the rest of the broadcast. There is no tracking and no third-party ad network.
- How often is it updated?
- Every fifteen minutes, around the clock. Each cycle is assembled from what drivers have reported in the last hour together with public road feeds. When the roads are clear, the station says so.
- Where does the traffic information come from?
- From drivers. Hold the button in the app and say what you see, or report in two taps. Reports are weighed by a reporter trust system and checked against public feeds such as DriveBC before they air. Vancouver604 is not affiliated with DriveBC or the Province of British Columbia.
- Does it work in the car?
- Yes. The iOS app supports CarPlay, background audio and lock screen controls. Android and Android Auto are coming. Never use your phone while driving; hold-to-talk is designed for a mounted phone or a stop.
- What area does it cover?
- Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley to Hope and the Sea-to-Sky to Pemberton, in nine zones: Vancouver / UBC, North Shore, Burnaby / New Westminster, Tri-Cities, Richmond / Delta, Surrey / White Rock / Langley, Maple Ridge / Pitt Meadows, Sea-to-Sky and Fraser Valley East.
- Who makes Vancouver604?
- Temper Tantrum Studios Inc, an independent Vancouver studio founded by Shelby Lui, together with a partner from broadcast operations. It is locally owned and locally made.