AlbionBritish Columbia

Albion sits on the southeast side of Maple Ridge along the Fraser River, immediately adjacent to the Golden Ears Bridge that connects the City to the Township of Langley across the river. The City's Albion neighbourhood starts at about 240 Street and is about 2.9 kilometres north to south and 2.4 kilometres east to west. Albion Flats is a separate City neighbourhood on its south-west side. North East Albion is a planning study area in the north-east of the Albion Area Plan. Cottonwood is a separate neighbourhood immediately west, not a sub-area of Albion.

Albion has the deepest non-Indigenous-settlement history of any Maple Ridge neighbourhood. Samuel Robertson and his Indigenous wife Julia were the first European settlers; Robertson planted what is reported to be British Columbia's first fruit orchard. The community was renamed from "East Haney" to "Albion" in 1907 at Canada Post's request. The Albion Ferry operated between Albion and Fort Langley from June 2, 1957 to July 31, 2009 (originally by the BC Ministry of Highways, later TransLink); tolls of 40¢ per car were removed February 15, 1972. The last two ferries in service (the MV Kulleet and MV Klatawa) made their final sailings just after noon on July 31, 2009. The Golden Ears Bridge replaced the ferry: opened June 16, 2009; cost $808 million; built by the Golden Crossing Constructors JV. Tolls were eliminated September 1, 2017 by the BC government.

The market here is dominated by post-2005 new construction, with Albion as one of Maple Ridge's most active development zones. Of all the Maple Ridge neighbourhoods, Albion is the one that practically sits closest to Fort Langley on a drive-time basis: bridge crossings can vary by traffic, but off-peak the Fort Langley village to Albion run typically clears in 12 to 15 minutes.

The OCP framework is the Albion Area Plan (a chapter of the Maple Ridge OCP), updated and adopted by Council on October 28, 2025 following a public hearing October 21, 2025 (second reading was given September 16, 2025). The new policies support affordable housing, more rental units, adaptable housing, tenant protection, and family-sized homes. Council also directed staff to prepare an OCP Amending Bylaw for the Southern portion of the North East Albion Area under "Concept 1" (townhouses along 248 Street), the concept that provided a moderate density increase without requiring water/sewer infrastructure upgrades. Albion has a density bonus program in the Zoning Bylaw, tied to an Albion zoning matrix; read the current bylaw for the parcel's amenity contribution and floor-space ratio.

Three context points worth knowing. First, Albion sits in REBGV (not FVREB): different board, different statistical methodology, different reporting cadence. The Golden Ears Bridge is the daily-life connector to FVREB-Langley but the boards are separate, so cross-comparison takes some translation. Second, Albion Flats (south of urban Albion in the ALR) has been an ongoing Council/ALC discussion: the Agricultural Land Commission has indicated only east-of-Jim-Robson-Way lands could be excluded, contingent on drainage / soil improvements to west-side farmland; multiple NW-of-105 Avenue applications have been previously refused. Council approved a mixed-use Albion Flats plan in November 2019 to advance to ALC. Third, the Fraser River floodplain mapping affects the southernmost river-adjacent properties: Maple Ridge maintains a Fraser River Flood Plan tied to BC River Forecast Centre data and a "Be Flood Ready" guide; the November 2021 atmospheric river prompted an evacuation alert for ~800 North/South Alouette residents.

For schools, this is SD #42 (Maple Ridge–Pitt Meadows). Albion Elementary is at 10031 240 Street, in the City's Albion Flats neighbourhood. cəsqənelə Elementary is at 240 Street & 104 Avenue, beside the Albion Community Centre. Samuel Robertson Technical Secondary is the technology-focused secondary with junior honours, engineering, and gifted streams. Garibaldi Secondary is the only IB Diploma Programme school in Maple Ridge (Grades 11–12). Catchments shift with overcrowding and we verify the current attendance area for any specific Albion address.

Day-to-day amenities concentrate at the Albion / 240 Street commercial cluster (Save-On-Foods at 300–23981 Dewdney Trunk Road) with larger weekly errands typically drawing residents into central Maple Ridge along Lougheed Highway. The Albion Community Centre at 24165 104 Avenue (20,000 sq ft, co-located with cəsqənelə Elementary) is the rec anchor. The Albion Sports Complex is 34 acres with multi-sport facilities and 250 stalls off Lougheed Highway. Telosky Stadium & Thomas Haney Youth Action Park at 23000 116 Avenue includes 2 synthetic softball diamonds, a synthetic soccer overlay with LED sports lighting, a fieldhouse, and a skate park. Kanaka Creek Regional Park runs ~11 km along Kanaka Creek (~1,100 acres) with the Bell-Irving Hatchery (Coho, Chum, and Pink salmon), the Cliff Falls section, and a canoe launch. Port Haney Station (West Coast Express commuter rail, 22300 River Road, the closer of the two Maple Ridge WCE stations to Albion) runs 5 inbound trains weekday AM and 5 outbound PM (commuter only, no weekends), with Port Haney → Waterfront in 56 minutes on the September 2026 schedule.

School District 42 (Maple Ridge - Pitt Meadows). Samuel Robertson Technical Secondary is the program-of-choice STEM, engineering, and gifted-stream school in Albion, one of the structural school-catchment draws for the neighbourhood.

Other catchment elementaries serve the post-2005 build-out blocks. Verify the current SD #42 attendance area for any specific Albion address before paying a school-catchment premium. The school district is shared with Pitt Meadows; SD #42 is distinct from SD #35 (Langley) and SD #36 (Surrey).

Albion is the oldest non-Indigenous settlement in Maple Ridge, slightly younger than Fort Langley. Samuel Robertson and his Indigenous wife Julia were the first European settlers; Robertson planted what is reported to be British Columbias first fruit orchard. The community was renamed from "East Haney" to "Albion" in 1907 at Canada Posts request.

The Albion Ferry operated between Albion and Fort Langley from June 2, 1957 to July 31, 2009. Tolls of 40 cents per car were removed February 15, 1972. The Golden Ears Bridge replaced the ferry: opened June 16, 2009, $808M build by Golden Crossing Constructors JV. Tolls were eliminated September 1, 2017 by the BC government.

Across the Golden Ears Bridge to Township of Langley and Surrey: 12–15 minutes off-peak to 200 Street. Fort Langley village is 12 minutes; Walnut Grove and Carvolth Exchange 10–12 minutes; Surrey City Centre 25–30 minutes; downtown Vancouver via Highway 1 from 200 Street 60–80 minutes at peak.

No SkyTrain. West Coast Express service: Port Haney Station (22300 River Road) is the nearer station, with five inbound trains weekday AM and five outbound PM only. Port Haney to Waterfront downtown is 56 minutes on the September 2026 schedule. Most Albion buyers underwrite a car-dependent commute pattern even with WCE access.