Quote:
Originally Posted by SkahHigh
I don't get the jealousy of some people. Did any city get refusal from the feds? Calgary probably got some funding for it's Green line, so did Ottawa with phase 2 of the Confederation line. Vancouver doesn't have much proposed.
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I'm jealous of Montreal's Metro system as a whole, not complaining about funding arrangements. We did, and will continue to get, our fair share. We (Ottawa) opted for a commuter rail built on metro standards, stretching as far as possible to serve the suburbs, for better or worse. We also lack a proper interprovincial rapid transit system to serve our largest suburb, Gatineau, because no one seems to be willing to work together (they talk a big game but don't act).
The "bastard lines" comment refers to the short little lines they've build or continue to build (think Sheppard (epic fail), Scarborough R/T, Finch West, Sheppard East) feeding into the older, overcapacity lines.
Bottom line, I believe Montreal's current metro system and planned REM, concentrated in the central core of the metropolitan area, is the best model of how a transit system should be planned and built. Distant suburbs should be served by commuter rail only, not multi-billion dollar metros and subways.
This as opposed to Toronto that continues to build random little lines, forcing transfers all over the place and stretching the Yonge-University farther north to the far-flung suburbs (where GO service already exists). I believe they should start building the Downtown relief line at this point instead of continually investing everywhere else outside Toronto's core.
End of the day, we all seem to get our fair share, more-or-less, and decide for ourselves the way we want to build and invest. I think Montreal has the best approach nowadays.
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