Contact BC Hydro before you start designing your laneway or coach house. It could save you time and money!
Cost of your electrical service could depend on the height, design and location of your Laneway or Coach House or its location on your property. Make sure you consider the following before you begin designing your Laneway or Coach House.
- Be safe!
Clearance requirements from BC Hydro's electrical infrastructure are there to keep workers and the public safe. Property owners and those parties acting on behalf of a property owner who make an application for electrical service for a Laneway House are responsible for ensuring that any structure, such as a Laneway or Coach House, located close to the property line meets the minimum clearance requirements. Clearances are set out by Worksafe BC, the Canadian Electrical Code, and the Canadian Standards Association.
If you are building in the City of Vancouver, please refer to, Issues to Consider for Building and Construction Around BC Hydro Overhead Infrastructure in the City of Vancouver [PDF, 326 Kb].
- Costs
In most cases BC Hydro will need to add new equipment or upgrade the existing electrical system in order to provide an electrical service to your Laneway House. The associated costs will vary depending on the scope of the work needed. The cost of electrical service for the property owner can range from $600 and up to as much as $20,000 or more depending on the specific circumstances.
In some situations, BC Hydro will be required to go underground to provide electrical service, for which costs are much higher. However, the location on the site and the design of a Laneway or Coach House could eliminate the need for underground service. For this reason, BC Hydro should be contacted before you start designing your Laneway or Coach House.
- What your electrical service will include
BC Hydro provides one electrical service to a residential lot. Electrical services come in various sizes depending on your electricity load requirements. BC Hydro will provide overhead electrical service unless the only technical option is to provide you an underground service or if the applicant requests it.
An electrical service size of less than 100 amps should be discussed with your insurance company in advance to ensure insurance coverage is possible.
BC Hydro will require a multi-meter base and supply a separate meter for your new Laneway or Coach House. The location of the multi-meter base must be designed to be located on the building closest to the BC Hydro electrical supply. Due to physical constraints and safety considerations, we will do our best to accommodate the location you would like for your meter(s), however, we will make the final determination.
Electrical service for Laneway Houses in Vancouver:
Electrical service for Coach Houses in all other municipalities:
For answers to some common questions about the initiative, specifically those related to the process and cost of new electrical connections for laneway housing, please see the information below.
BC Hydro power and laneway houses
If a customer wants to build a laneway house and get a new connection, should they contact BC Hydro?
Yes. We always advise customers to get a connection estimate first so that they know the cost. Fill out the application forms at, How to apply for a Connection.
What is the cost of connecting new laneway homes to the BC Hydro grid?
Costs vary for individual customers. The cost of the connection is dependant on a number of factors, such as whether an extension and additional equipment are required and whether existing infrastructure must be relocated. Connection costs are calculated in accordance with the Electric Tariff.
Media reports have suggested that the cost of doing the connections can range from $600 be to $20,000 or more. Why is the cost so high?
Connection costs vary depending on the specific situation. In situations where new infrastructure and equipment are required, the cost can be in the thousands (as high as $20,000, but that is extreme).
In the City of Vancouver, new additional infrastructure required for laneway housing may need to go underground if BC Hydro is not allowed to add additional overhead infrastructure in Vancouver's lanes. As well, in most cases in Vancouver overhead distribution lines at a secondary voltage are at full capacity and BC Hydro must design for underground services to laneway homes.
Why are these costs being passed on to individual customers and developers?
The Electric Tariff requires that BC Hydro recover the costs associated with hooking up new customers from the customer requesting the connection. This ensures BC Hydro ratepayers province-wide are not required to absorb the cost.
Connection costs are calculated in accordance with the Electric Tariff.
What do you mean when you say the distribution lines are "at capacity"?
Vancouver is densely populated and in some areas, it is no longer technically possible to add more physical infrastructure to the existing poles and the lines. For example, BC Hydro often cannot connect a 200 Amperage service (which is what is most often requested by customers) mid-span which is the only physical option. The reason is that the service connection (conductor) is too heavy to be supported by the secondary line and would violate safety requirements.
There also may be no way of servicing buildings with an overhead line because the laneway house is high enough or too close to other buildings that BC Hydro can't meet safety clearance requirements.
Also, in a situation in which a municipality allows developers to build houses up to the lot line, there is not enough room for BC Hydro to meet its safety clearance requirements. For example, we need a metre of clearance between the meter and any other structure otherwise we wouldn't be able to physically get in and install the meter. In this situation, the meter can only be located in a limited number of locations which then define where BC Hydro can put the line.
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Contact us
Call 1 877 520 1355 during normal business
hours, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday.
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