Actually I was wanting to fly direct Vancouver-SFO, so Abbotsford wouldn't have worked.

What a huge contrast in freeway mileage between Vancouver and Seattle! Agree that traffic in Seattle is still bad, but at least during off-peak periods freeways do get you around quicker. Freeways don't automatically lead to massive peripheral development, since planning controls can work if there's enough will.

Also, in Vancouver's case, I'd like to see more of a sustained commitment to rail and transit if its longtime mobility model isn't to crash and burn. Not merely a scheme to do things on the cheap.