Hello all,
I have a major interest in this topic as I am a transit user/advocate and believe that LRT expansion is an essential part of dealing with Ottawa's transportation/infrastructure issues. I have recently been enthralled in this topic, ever since the city killed any hopes of seeing light rail expanded in this city, at least within the next 4 to 6 years.
I am probably one of the only ones here that actually supports the city's original north-south LRT expansion project. However I also believe (like the "friends of the O-train") that building spurs off the north-south LRT will be more cost effective for the city, rather than building a completely new east-west line.
Your proposal is not a bad one, however it has some minor flaws. First off the existing single track does have to be doubled, otherwise the highest frequency it could ever reach would be 10 minutes. Secondly, creating a diesel line to Bayview and then having to transfer to an electric line in order to get downtown is not very efficient or affective. Believe me transfers are not always as simple as people think, and most transit users would rather take one bus/train then have to transfer to another bus/train. This is why the city's express busses are so popular with transit users, even though they cost $1 more then a regular bus. Lastly, taking all busses off Albert and Slater does sound like a great idea except for one thing..... transit (90-series) busses. These busses, like route 95 and 97, run from one end of the city, through downtown, and then continue on to another part of the city using are great transitway. Under your proposal a passenger let’s say taking the 97 from South Keys to Bayshore, would have to hop on the 97 at South Keys, then transfer to the electric LRT at Hurdman, ride the train to Bayview, and then hop on the 97 again to get to Bayshore. That's two transfers, very time consuming and inefficient.
I am also pro electric rather then diesel, since diesel is more costly to maintain and the city is under tight budget pressure since amalgamation. However using more of our existing tracks around the city is a better idea.
I emailed Councillor Doucet to see why the city can't extend the current O-train pilot project south to the originally proposed Leitrim station using the existing single track line, at least until the city decides what to do next based on Mayor O'Brien's task force. The city could fund this expansion using the current reserve fund from the axed LRT expansion plan. Councillor Doucet's assistant stated that he is unsure if the original environmental assessment done on the O-train pilot project covers Leitrim, and if not would require a new one to be done. He also stated that any money taken out of the reserve fund for future LRT expansion plans would only cause more delays.
As the city waits and debates what to do next the immensely growing communities of Riverside South and Barrhaven continue to grow and have no immediate plans to address the lack of inadequate public transportation. Not to mention the possibility of multi-million dollar lawsuits brought on by the contractor (who did lose out on at least 90 million dollars reportedly) and land developers around the proposed LRT line.
At the end of the day who suffers, the people who take the busses (and the O-train)....... transit riders.
Let the battle continue........
Kyle Cooper
Transit User
P.S. Does any body know if the environmental assessment done on the original O-train pilot project covered Leitrim?