Councillors being wooed by Mayor Rob Ford to support Sheppard subway expansion are telling him to look beyond Scarborough, especially if new city-wide fees or taxes are on the table.
In a recent meeting with Ford, centrist councillors Mary-Margaret McMahon and Ana Bailão pushed construction of a “downtown relief line” connecting the Yonge and Bloor lines. McMahon also pitched rapid transit to serve communities springing up on the eastern downtown waterfront.
“If we can find the funding pot of gold, a combination of road tolls and parking levies or whatever to build transit in Toronto, let’s spread the love,” said McMahon (Ward 32, Beaches-East York).
Bailão (Ward 18, Davenport) wants to see a “realistic business plan” for a Sheppard subway at a March 21 special council meeting, and long-term solutions including the relief line to ease chronic overcrowding.
Ford showed no enthusiasm but “didn’t say no,” McMahon noted.
Etobicoke Centre Councillor Gloria Lindsay Luby told the mayor this week she’s prepared to “look very carefully” at a realistic business plan for subway, as opposed to the cheaper surface light rail many councillors say is better suited to Sheppard’s population density.
“I told the mayor I’m also concerned about the west end, that we should link Kipling Station and Sherway Gardens, and it could mostly be above ground on rail lines and industrial land,” said Lindsay Luby (Ward 4).
“That takes us to Mississauga and would relieve vehicle traffic on the Gardiner, Dundas and Eglinton,” she said, noting her residents are coping with bus-service reductions from Ford-backed budget cuts.
Ford, who made a Scarborough subway a hallmark promise in his successful 2010 election campaign, listened, “but I think he was simply focused on Sheppard,” she said.
Council last month defied Ford, voting to use $8.4 billion in provincial funding for an LRT on Finch Ave. W., surfacing the buried Eglinton LRT east of Laird Ave., and leaving Sheppard to an expert panel for advice. That panel agreed Friday to hold two more meetings next week but is certain to recommend LRT.
Most councillors expect Ford on March 21 to ask council to approve construction of two Sheppard subway stops, east to Victoria Park, with funding including $330 million promised from Ottawa.
Another motion would authorize a detailed study on how to extend it with a public-private partnership, building on the Ford-requested report by ex-councillor Gordon Chong.
But Ford this week quickly backpedalled on considering transit “revenue tools” — including road tolls, a special sales tax, parking levies and a car tax — that many centrists say must be on the table to get their votes.
Councillor James Pasternak, who favours east and west Sheppard subway expansion because he fears subway-LRT connections could discourage ridership, said the ongoing painful debate could birth a new era of city-wide construction of both forms of transit.
“I think we’re at an essential crossroads for future transit,” said Pasternak (Ward 10, York Centre). “We have an exciting opportunity to do enormous catch-up in our vision, and I think we will keep building, keep digging.”
Original Article
Source: Star
Author: David Rider
In a recent meeting with Ford, centrist councillors Mary-Margaret McMahon and Ana Bailão pushed construction of a “downtown relief line” connecting the Yonge and Bloor lines. McMahon also pitched rapid transit to serve communities springing up on the eastern downtown waterfront.
“If we can find the funding pot of gold, a combination of road tolls and parking levies or whatever to build transit in Toronto, let’s spread the love,” said McMahon (Ward 32, Beaches-East York).
Bailão (Ward 18, Davenport) wants to see a “realistic business plan” for a Sheppard subway at a March 21 special council meeting, and long-term solutions including the relief line to ease chronic overcrowding.
Ford showed no enthusiasm but “didn’t say no,” McMahon noted.
Etobicoke Centre Councillor Gloria Lindsay Luby told the mayor this week she’s prepared to “look very carefully” at a realistic business plan for subway, as opposed to the cheaper surface light rail many councillors say is better suited to Sheppard’s population density.
“I told the mayor I’m also concerned about the west end, that we should link Kipling Station and Sherway Gardens, and it could mostly be above ground on rail lines and industrial land,” said Lindsay Luby (Ward 4).
“That takes us to Mississauga and would relieve vehicle traffic on the Gardiner, Dundas and Eglinton,” she said, noting her residents are coping with bus-service reductions from Ford-backed budget cuts.
Ford, who made a Scarborough subway a hallmark promise in his successful 2010 election campaign, listened, “but I think he was simply focused on Sheppard,” she said.
Council last month defied Ford, voting to use $8.4 billion in provincial funding for an LRT on Finch Ave. W., surfacing the buried Eglinton LRT east of Laird Ave., and leaving Sheppard to an expert panel for advice. That panel agreed Friday to hold two more meetings next week but is certain to recommend LRT.
Most councillors expect Ford on March 21 to ask council to approve construction of two Sheppard subway stops, east to Victoria Park, with funding including $330 million promised from Ottawa.
Another motion would authorize a detailed study on how to extend it with a public-private partnership, building on the Ford-requested report by ex-councillor Gordon Chong.
But Ford this week quickly backpedalled on considering transit “revenue tools” — including road tolls, a special sales tax, parking levies and a car tax — that many centrists say must be on the table to get their votes.
Councillor James Pasternak, who favours east and west Sheppard subway expansion because he fears subway-LRT connections could discourage ridership, said the ongoing painful debate could birth a new era of city-wide construction of both forms of transit.
“I think we’re at an essential crossroads for future transit,” said Pasternak (Ward 10, York Centre). “We have an exciting opportunity to do enormous catch-up in our vision, and I think we will keep building, keep digging.”
Original Article
Source: Star
Author: David Rider
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