sixrings
Senior Member
ONECITY, part time poster, part time fortune teller.
|
|
|
TheTigerMaster
Superstar
I had assumed that Mayor Tory would have wanted news of cost overruns to come out sooner rather than later, so it can be dealt with in this Council term. Next term will have three new Downtown councillors, who will not vote to expand the project budget, and a few Tory hardliners on Council will have their jobs in jeopardy. But apparently the Mayor views having to deal with the new Council as more favourable than having to explain cost overruns to voters.
pstogios
Senior Member
What a sweet day it will be if and when the next Council, with 3 more downtown councillors, votes to end the SSE boondoggle. One can dream!
micheal_can
Senior Member
I agree that the "one stop extension" is a bad idea, but what should they do with the line?
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
I don't know if that's productive. What I would support is a) no single station extension b) hard cap on the cost of the project to force considering alternative ways of proceeding with the extension - c) and/or increasing the special levy for the project. Those who want the project should be made to demonstrate how much they wanted it on the back of a realistic funding plan that is at least partially based on their own pocket.
AoD
TheTigerMaster
Superstar
Burn it with fire.
lead82
Senior Member
I think this extension will be going through. If the costs go up they will look for alternatives to keep the costs down. Maybe it would be worth building Lawrence East subway stop and cancelling the same stop on GO RER/SmarTrack. Perhaps they could reduce the need to build the massive underground bus station at STC. A two stop extension, even for $4B might be sellable if it keeps political peace in Scarborough. Keep in mind that precedence has been set by building a subway to empty fields in Vaughan. Vaughan now has two stations, 3 if you include Pioneer Village which straddles the border. Scarboroughs density is a lot higher than Vaughan. I think a new deal will emerge that will allow design and construction to begin in 2019/20 as the RT is on its last legs and going back to LRT solution is not going to happen as no provincial government will support it (neither Liberals nor Conservatives, nor NDP for that matter).
TheTigerMaster
Superstar
This extension is only going to go through if the provincial government picks up the extra costs. The City does not have the means, nor the will to pick up the tab.
micheal_can
Senior Member
Which means that there will be more than 1 stop.
TheTigerMaster
Superstar
And you know this how?
micheal_can
Senior Member
Know is a strong word. I suspect that is what they will do. Purely on a vote buying method. Think about it, right now, it is over cost and not well received by local residents. For the Province, or the Federal governments to buy in, they must see it as a good thing. A multi stop subway extension would be something that would meet all of that.
That is why the TYSSE was paid for by the various levels of governments. In short, it was not just an extension to York U.
Now that I think of it, they may extend the subway up to STC, and then up to Don Mills.
TheTigerMaster
Superstar
Okay, fair enough. A 3-stop $5 Billion extension might be more palatable than a 1-stop $3.5 Billion extension that nobody really wants.
The extra funds to pay for that will probably fall solely on the provincial government (the City can’t and won’t pay for that). The province is also balancing numerous other transit priorities in the GTHA, in addition to the need to have a balanced budget or minimized deficit. Additionally, the SSE isn’t at all popular outside of Toronto, so announcing they want to spend more money on it won’t be received well by voters outside the city. Only time will tell if any of the parties believe supporting the three stop option is worth any of the potential risks.
Supporting the one-stop option, and covering the cost overruns, is the safe option for the provincal parties.
micheal_can
Senior Member
They will throw the 3 stop subway extension inside all the other transit promises. Phase 2 of ION, Phase 2 of Confederation, DRL, B-Line, etc.
Rainforest
Senior Member
The City can increase the special levy.
No matter how the Council changes after the 2018 elections, the city has to provide a connection with massive capacity between Kennedy and STC. That means, either subway, or RT in Uxbridge Sub corridor, or LRT in the Uxbridge Sub corridor.
If Metrolinx has gotten comfortable with the idea of using Uxbridge Sub for the commuter trains exclusively, then it will find a way to force the City not to revert to RT/LRT plans in the Uxbridge sub (even though sharing the corridor remains technically possible). That would result in tunneling between Kennedy and STC being the only practical option.
TheTigerMaster
Superstar
With what money though? People in this forum talk as if money is unlimited, or transit is the only priority. The Wynne government is trying to keep a somewhat balanced budget, while also bringing in some very expensive social programs, including at least some form of pharmacare. And in a battle for funding between SSE and Pharmacare, the SSE loses every time.
Of course, I don’t expect you to actually identify where the money will come from. But nevertheless, it rubs me the wrong way when people say the government will just add a major project onto their list of spending, as if Wynne can waive her wand a print money.
Anyways it appears that this government is putting an increased focus on social programs, and this is likely at the expense of potential transit spending. So I wouldn’t get your hopes too high for promises of additional spending on this project.