Rapid Transit

[SteelTown]

Mayor on hunt for LRT cash
Candidates stake positions on light rail transit issues

Jon Wells
THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR
http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...t-for-lrt-cash

The race is on for mayoral candidates to prove who can best lead the city into the new frontier of light rail transit (LRT), and obtain the hundreds of millions of public dollars necessary to build a system in Hamilton.

Today, Mayor Fred Eisenberger will announce his plan to assemble a "SWAT team" of community leaders to lobby senior government officials to secure between $850 million and $1.5 billion in funding for LRT.

"There have already been indications that we are at the front of the queue, so we'd like to have this happen sooner rather than later," Eisenberger told The Spectator. "We need to convince our provincial partners in Metrolinx that we are ready."

Metrolinx is the public authority that manages transportation planning for Hamilton and the GTA.

Eisenberger added that the goal is to achieve commitments in the provincial government's upcoming budget round in March 2011. He believes it would take between four and six years after that to start and finish the project.

Among those recruited for the lobbying effort, he said, would be representatives from partners in the LRT program from Mohawk College, McMaster University, Hamilton Health Sciences, Hamilton Community Foundation, Jobs Prosperity Collaborative and Chamber of Commerce.

LRT would not only be a people mover in Hamilton, but encourage more development and greater property assessment, he said.

"The excitement and enthusiasm is already there (among developers). Properties are already selling potential (transit) corridors."

Eisenberger's announcement comes after Metrolinx CEO Bruce McCuaig said Hamilton needs to make its case for receiving funding.

Mayoral candidate Larry Di Ianni was critical of the timing of Eisenberger's initiative, suggesting that as mayor he should have carried the flag for LRT long ago. He said Eisenberger is only now proposing action because the Chamber of Commerce and the Hamilton Spectator have demanded the city be more aggressive in securing the funding.

"On this file, Fred has fumbled the ball badly," Di Ianni said. "This should have started two years ago, not on the eve of the election. We should be reaping the rewards of our efforts, not just beginning to sow the seeds, which Fred seems to be doing."

Di Ianni said mobilizing community partners to secure LRT funding is already part of his platform, and he stressed the issue when in July he announced his candidacy. Yesterday, his campaign team released a statement that Di Ianni plans to mount a community team to secure LRT funding if elected.

Mayoral candidate Bob Bratina said all the talk of senior government funding is a moot point if the next mayor can't get city council on board. LRT is a "motherhood" issue, he said, and some councillors are happy to come out in favour of public money from other levels of government -- but not from the city.

"What bothers me is, there is no inkling (from other candidates) that we need to confront this. (Eisenberger) has got to sell this to council."

[LikeHamilton]

Rapid Transit Open House
September 30, 2010
6:00 to 8:00 pm
City Hall, Main Lobby
Drop in event

[mattgrande]

Originally Posted by LikeHamilton

Rapid Transit Open House
September 30, 2010
6:00 to 8:00 pm
City Hall, Main Lobby
Drop in event

Anyone going to this, please report back here how it went! I'm interested, but pre-booked.

[SteelTown]

No light-rail trains before Games
Mayor-elect won't bite on LRT view

Meredith MacLeod
http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...s-before-games

Light-rail won't be in place in time for the Pan Am Games in 2015.

City officials charged with bringing the anticipated transit project to reality have given up hope the trains can be running by the time athletes and spectators come to town.

Jill Stephen, director of rapid transit with the city's public works department, says there is simply too much planning, design, engineering, environmental study and construction work to complete and senior officials did not want roads torn up during the Games.

“A lot of things have to align and we want to make sure we're doing it properly and not rushing to get it done.

“This is a better and more responsible way to approach it.”

The goal will now be to have all the preliminary work finished so that shovels can go in the ground immediately after the Games finish.

The Pan Ams and their para-games component conclude in mid-August.

“This shouldn't be seen as a lack of urgency on our part or that we're putting less importance on this. It's just better for the project,” Stephen said.

“Pushing it forward at the wrong time doesn't make for success.”

Kathy Drewitt, executive director of the Downtown Hamilton Business Improvement Area and a member of the city's citizen advisory committee on LRT, said it was a “disappointment” that the trains won't be running when the city is featured on the international stage.

Although the province has previously said projects linked to the Pan Am Games would get priority for transit funding, neither Stephen nor Metrolinx board member Richard Koroscil believe Hamilton's prospects for Queen's Park cash have dimmed due to the delay.

Koroscil, who is also president of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce, said Premier Dalton McGuinty already made clear transit funding and the Games were separate issues when he was in town in February.

“I don't think it changes anything in terms of urgency,” said Koroscil, who has repeatedly encouraged Hamilton citizens and civic leaders to unite in pressuring the Liberal government for LRT funding in time for the next provincial budget in March.

He is concerned about remarks made by Mayor-elect Bob Bratina before the election which questioned whether the chosen east-west route should be swapped in favour of a north-south corridor linking to the airport and future employment lands.

“There's a lot of work that's been done and to change tracks now could have a negative influence on the province,” said Koroscil, who has asked for a meeting with Bratina.

“If you think of it in terms of the (Pan Am) stadium issue, it looks like Hamilton can't make up its mind.”

Bratina wouldn't comment on his LRT views to The Spectator yesterday, saying he is not yet mayor and that the file belongs to Mayor Fred Eisenberger.

Hamilton was expected to present its progress on LRT planning to the Metrolinx board, the region's transit authority, this month. That has been delayed.

Stephen said city staff, in conjunction with Metrolinx staff, will push to get all the necessary studies and reports in place. She expects design reports will be ready in late spring that will allow the public to really understand what stations will look like and where the track will be on the street.

[SteelTown]

http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...ay-king-street

No two way for King or Main St.

[mattgrande]

Will there be LRT on King between Victoria and Catherine? It's only two lanes of traffic there, will they just shut down the road and make that a car-free zone?

[LikeHamilton]

King and Ferguson when there where Street Cars along there. Not much room with narrow side walks.

[markbarbera]

Originally Posted by mattgrande

Will there be LRT on King between Victoria and Catherine? It's only two lanes of traffic there, will they just shut down the road and make that a car-free zone?

There's actually four lanes hidden along there. Doesn't seem like it because there's two lanes of one-way through traffic and bumpout parking on either side of those lanes. Conversion will be one lane bumpout parking, one lane through, and two-way LRT.

[SteelTown]

LRT to cost city $130 million

http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...ty-130-million

Light Rail Transit is estimated to cost Hamilton $130 million to build and $20 to $23 million each year in operating costs.

Those are the preliminary numbers for the costs of an east-west lower city LRT line from Rob Rossini, the city’s general manager of finance, but they were enough to make some councillors run off the rails.

“It’s unaffordable,” said Ward 9 Councillor Brad Clark. “That’s been my concern from the beginning, but everyone drank the Kool-Aid ... We don’t have the money.”

Ward 8 Councillor Terry Whitehead and Ward 12 Councillor Lloyd Ferguson said they will not support the project if city taxpayers have to contribute to the capital costs.

“If we have to put in a sizeable contribution, forget it,” said Ferguson, though he said the operating costs were lower than running a bus.

Ward 6 Councillor Tom Jackson suggested the city take another look at Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) because of the worrisome cost predicted for LRT and Ward 15 Councillor Judi Partridge suggested the city not rule out getting the private sector involved with the project.

“There are so many details that need to be nailed down,” Partridge added.

The $130 million would cover the city’s capital costs, while the city would have to pay between $12 million and $15 million in yearly operating costs. About $8.6 million would be required each year to cover increases on other existing city services like snow removal, waste collection, and traffic lights once the LRT is built.

“I can’t stress enough how very, very preliminary all the cost estimates are,” Rossini said. “I would also add that this excludes any revenue growth from increases in additional property assessment due to the economic benefits of LRT and the transformational, city-building impacts it could have.”

Those costs are only for LRT, not BRT, Rossini said. The city will have better cost estimates in four to six months.

The total estimated cost of building an LRT line in Hamilton is approximately $800 million. It’s unclear how much the province and federal government will chip in.

Jill Stephen, the city’s director of rapid transit, said the finance department was asked to come up with preliminary figures to give council an early snapshot of the costs.

“We’re doing our due diligence right now,” she said. “What we’re trying to do is make sure that when it comes to decision-making time, council has as much information as possible.”

Stephen said other departments are also being asked to investigate the implications of LRT.

[bigguy1231]

With those numbers, any chance of LRT just died in this city. City council will never approve the 130 million investment let alone the minumum 20 million a year in operating costs.

[SteelTown]

Yet Hamilton can approve and afford $500 million for the Red Hill expressway?

It's likely that Queen's Park and Ottawa will pay majority or the entire cost of the LRT and it's up to Hamilton to pay for the operating cost. Same deal with Waterloo's LRT.

[mattgrande]

$130M for LRT doesn't seem so bad (I'd rather have LRT than a stadium, personally), but $20M per year? Yikes...

[LikeHamilton]

Originally Posted by mattgrande

but $20M per year? Yikes...

So how much of this money will come from the operation of the B Line bus no longer being needed? There is a cost to operate the B Line that should go to LRT. There should be some savings as other routes that go along this route will change to local feeders. There are costs that are most likely assigned this one route that will go down as other lines are opened as the infrastructure will now already be there.

This is not a true picture of the operation cost of the line.

[SteelTown]

Operating the B-Line with BRT will be more expense too. Operating LRT is cheaper.

[oldcoote]

ROI people.

Portland had a $2.3 billion ROI for a $55 million investment.
Tampa had a $1 billion ROI for the same.

Hell, I'd support a $130 million investment for a $250 million return, let alone more than $1 billion.

[MalcolmTucker]

Penny wise, pound foolish. How does council think projects get built in other cities? I am sure Mississauga would be more than happy to take any of the money that would have gone to Hamilton (and it would make much more sense politically for the senior governments to support a project there if there was a choice).

Streamlining the bus system with implementation should more than cover the operational costs.

As for this:

About $8.6 million would be required each year to cover increases on other existing city services like snow removal, waste collection, and traffic lights once the LRT is built.

What extra waste needs to be collected? Wouldn't collection be covered by the advertising provider as it is now (I assume based on most other cities).

As for snow removal, LRT tracks don't need to be cleared like roads do. During the day constant trains clear the route, and if you get a huge dump that can actually stop the trains from leaving the yard you get a little plow truck like the railways use that have those extend-able rail wheels. Nothing fancy.

Some old (2006) numbers from Calgary Transit for their entire system:
Right of Way Maintenance costs: $2.9M (2006)
Signals Maintenance costs: $2.4M (2006)

I can't imagine Hamilton being so incompetent as to running a shorter system with higher costs.

Who do they have doing their transit consulting? Or is it all internal?

[emge]

The AEGD with little to no promise of real jobs or investment is slipped by easily at a cost of $200+ million last term?

And LRT, after is going to be a struggle for the city after a huge runaround of consultation and proof upon proof of its efficacy.... at a $130 million price tag?

[bigguy1231]

Originally Posted by SteelTown

Yet Hamilton can approve and afford $500 million for the Red Hill expressway?

It's likely that Queen's Park and Ottawa will pay majority or the entire cost of the LRT and it's up to Hamilton to pay for the operating cost. Same deal with Waterloo's LRT.

No Hamilton will be required to pay $130 million of the $800 million capital cost. So the upper levels of government will not be paying for all of it.

I may be wrong but I thought the voters in Waterloo turned their proposal down in the recent referendum during the election.

When I stated what I said, I wasn't passing judgement on LRT itself. I was merely stating what I think will happen when council sees the numbers. They are going to balk at the idea of having to spend $20 million a year in operating costs in addition to the $12 million a year it already subsidizes the HSR.

[markbarbera]

As I had mentioned here a few months back, the greatest challenge to the LRT proposal is to demonstrate that there would be a significant enough of an increase in paid-fare ridership to justify the operational costs of the line.

There is also a tendency to assume LRT is a catalyst for economic growth. I would humbly suggest that it is more accurate to describe it as a focal point for growth. There is a nuanced difference.

LRT does not spur economic growth, it directs where the growth will occur. That is an important factor needing consideration when determining the economic impact LRT would have on a city already experiencing an economic boom vs a city wishing to create an economic boom. LRT does not create economic activity, it channels the energy of economic activity.

[MalcolmTucker]

There wasn't a question on LRT put to the public in either Kitchener or Waterloo. The question was on exploring merging the cities, which Waterloo rejected and Kitchener embraced.

There is also a tendency to assume LRT is a catalyst for economic growth. I would humbly suggest that it is more accurate to describe it as a focal point for growth. There is a nuanced difference.

This is true. Infrastructure investments shape and redirect development that would have happened otherwise (likely in a different place, in a different form), they do not create it. That being said, this situation is very different for a city like Calgary where there are no competing jurisdictions around to redirection development from versus Hamilton where at the very least you might get some spill development enticed over from Burlington or St. Catherines.

With all day Go Service coming to Hamilton , I think (not just conjecture either, but economics says there should be) there will be a surprising amount of people willing to try out long distance commuting in exchange for lower property prices.

You aren't going to convince many people to do it, but out of the entire regional population you don't have to encourage that high a percentage to move to get the benefit.

Forgive me if I am wrong, but a light rail line connecting to the Go-Hub will help spread out those benefits from the hub, and reduce the need to build large parkades to support commuters. It won't happen overnight, but the investment paid for mostly by other levels of government will pay for itself many times over.

If city council thinks sticking with the status-quo is a recipe for success, I don't know what could change there minds.