Rob Ford’s transit strategy is costing, not saving, the city a lot of money
Seizing on the opportunity to run a photo of Rob Ford in a goofy hard hat, the Globe and Mail takes the mayor to task for his transit strategy—specifically his decision to extend the Sheppard subway and bury the Eglinton LRT. But apparently all is not lost. The Globe argues Ford still has a way out: reverting to the original Eglinton plan and using the surplus cash as “seed money” for a public-private partnership that would finally see Sheppard built. Of course, as John Michael McGrath at OpenFile points out, the same money could be used to build a Finch LRT line “almost twice.” And although the Globe cites Vancouver’s Canada Line as an example of a working public-private transit partnership, we’re still skeptical—not only about the feasibility of the same approach, but also of how essential the Sheppard line is in the first place. Read the entire story [Globe and Mail] »
Well it’s obvious it has to be buried the entire way. St. Clair West is a disaster – nobody drives, walks or takes the TTC along that route anymore. Buildings are in decay as the half-built condos fester and are turned into junkie squats.
The same thing could happen along Eglinton. Even though Miller had planned to bury the track along the busiest section of town – that’s not enough! I need to drive vroom vroom all over the road, all of the time. And sure, it seems like it might be smarter to replace a completely buried streetcar with a completely buried subway, since it would be cheaper than digging a two-storey tunnel built to accommodate the overhead wiring.
All in all, the Eglinton LRT, thanks to Rob Ford, is looking like an excellent Public Money Black Hole. Throw in the tax dollars and we can justify shutting down more services. Finnaly.