Stuntman Stu asks Andy via Twitter: When can we see a real debate involving you, Watson, Obrien, Doucet and McGuire?
Andy's reply: I would love to have a debate with these gentlemen. A real debate! So far the All Candidates Debates allows only 1 minute to present a platform. They do not want a debate, because I have all the correct information. In the near future I will be challenging them to a Transit debate because we are talking about saving the taxpayer 1.365 billion dollars. No one seems to care! The Ottawa Citizen refuses to inform the public of the overwhelming operational and financial advantages of high capacity, grade separated Bus Rapid Transit. The streetcar proposal that they call Light Rail, with overhead wires, is exponentially expensive and not required. The LRT will bankrupt the City of Ottawa and stagnate transit expansion for over 10 years. Does anyone know that we, in Ottawa, presently have the BEST Transit System in North America? 40% better than the next best located in Calgary with an LRT system. Why does the City hide this fact from the public? I guess we want to become the worst Transit system in North America.
The Ottawa Chamber of Commerce has declared that the LRT will lose ridership, by virtue of the fact that riders going East-West will have to transfer. The City says ridership will increase but provides no references to support this assertion. The Toronto Transit Commission says ridership will decrease up to 50%. You have been fed a pack of lies and I have clear cut evidence that this is the case. You have been told that you are getting subways. Both Watson and O'Brien call for spending restraints. They talk about affordability, and yet support a project that is far beyond our ability to pay. In addition LRT is inferior to Bus Rapid Transit in operations and that is why the world is going to Bus Rapid Transit. All that is required for a full system is 735 million dollars for the Transit Bus tunnel. With the other governments' contribution, there is a surplus of 465 Million dollars. Their LRT costs are 2.1 billion dollars, resulting in a deficit of 900 million dollars. My proposal is at NO COST to the taxpayer.
The public wants lower taxes. 1% on your tax bill generates 10 Million dollars, and you need 900 million. You can do the math. By the way, all the numbers being used are in 2009 dollars. As money traditionally doubles every 7 years, the cost of their project is increasing by 300 million dollars a year--- almost a million dollars a day. It's your money they are wasting! Maybe you should arrange a Haydon- Watson debate. Having a four person debate is not advantageous as both O'Brien and Doucet are LRT. As you know, Randall Denley has declared Watson the winner, so it is up to you to determine the truth. Watson's Campaign Manager says that the reason Watson is supporting LRT is "because the public wants it". Watson says his policy is give the people what they want. I say, tell the people what they need to know. If the public had the facts, instead of the distortions that have been fed to them by an incompetent staff, the public would make the only right decision. The propaganda has been great, the facts have been very well hidden.
A well publicized, minimum one-hour debate, on radio, television, and online is mandatory so that the public can be truly informed.
I wonder if anyone has done any research into overhead monorail - run north/south and east/west lines (maybe a figure 8 type layout) with a hub system to bring people to them. No surface roads/tracks to maintain and no traffic issues to deal with.
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ReplyDeleteThe LRT plan is typical of how Ottawa has always been run. Lets spend multi-billon dollars that we don't have for a project that will serve few. LRT is great but it has to be expanded in stages that the city can actually afford. What should be done is expand the bus system we already have in a way that any new transit projects can be converted to light rail in the future. Money for projects like this should be put aside and saved overtime so that when the time comes there is something available to start with. But this will never happen because the politicians who run Ottawa are like little kids who want everything and want it now. They shouldn't expect hand outs from higher up government every time they want something new. LRT won't be winning many people over with transfers. People want to get on and stay on until they get to where they are going.
ReplyDeleteIt is projects like this that are causing taxes to go up and it has to stop.
The following report from the United States General Accounting Office (GAO) to Congress on Mass Transit is informative. Note Figures 6 thru 9. The link is:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.gao.gov/new.items/d01984.pdf
GRP
I agree with Mr. Haydon completely. LRT in Ottawa will be too expensive, too disruptive and will have little benefit.
ReplyDeleteI believe buses are a more flexible and cost effective solution for our city, particularly given that we all ready have a transit way that meets many of our needs and would be very expensive to retrofit for light rail.
The major problem with the bus situation now is that we cannot add enough of them to meet our requirements for good service to the centre of the city. If they built a bus tunnel in the centre core, this of course will solve this problem.
Some of the other problems with buses are, they are noisy, and they pollute. Of course hybrid buses could easily replace the buses we have now and this could be done on a gradual basis. All electric buses might be available, as a retrofit to the hybrid buses when battery technology improves.
The biggest problem I think with most bus rides and many other similar forms of transportation, is the fact that you can't get a seat. Who wants to stand up for 2 hours every day? I believe using computer and GPS technology we could easily arrange to have almost exactly the appropriate buses and seating to provide comfortable rides to the majority of passengers. Book your trip times in advance with a reservation, pay one fee. Take a trip without an appointment, pay another. Hey, we could even pick our seats. Why not.
People want to get to work as fast as possible. Transferring from bus to LRT to bus will be result in longer commutes not shorter commutes.
It is a shame that one of the other two leading candidates do not have the courage to agree with Mr. Haydon's plans. If I though Mr. Haydon had a chance to win I would certainly vote for him.