Bit of whataboutism here.
That's a total cop-out.
SmartTrack/RER isn't just something I imagined for the sake of argument.
It's a project that's been approved and is currently being planned.
And here's the thing, if you've lived in Scarborough for 10 or 20 or 30 years, you aren't likely to care about what else is being built, unless it impacts you. The fact that there hasn't been progress for 30 years, now makes them very likely to support politicians who say, "Enough is enough. We're building this come hell or high water."
Like I said earlier, I don't agree with it. But I absolutely understand where this sentiment comes from.
How does SmartTrack not fall under that definition?
Ignorance-based planning has been Scarborough's undoing for decades. Based on your reasoning, most people in Scarborough don't care about the SSE, certainly not the version they're getting.
You've suggested what Scarborough needs is commuter rail - that's exactly what it's getting. We can't pretend it simply doesn't count to improve the argument for a subway extension.
There's a reason why downtown bound transit is such a touchstone and nobody in Scarborough is clamouring for you to knock 5 mins off their bus ride. You can argue that it shouldn't be that way. But it is. People tend to value time in absolute return not relative. It's why very few people will care about what you can do for them inside Scarborough.
To begin with, I would argue that probably half of all riders (if I had to wag it) won't touch an LRT while traveling inside Scarborough. And then if they do, they may not be on there for a long enough distance to benefit more than a few minutes. Or they end up incurring an extra transfer to use an LRT. So with that in mind, the idea that LRT offers great benefit to 77% of transit users in Scarborough is a stretch.
And again, a lot of those benefits can be accrued by simply implementing bus lanes, bus priority, etc. Why is LRT specifically needed? If LRT runs at 25 kph average, and bus at 15 kph, why is it not possible to boost buses to 20 kph average by putting in bus lanes and signal priority? Moreover, bus lanes can be implemented in more corridors that are important to Scarborough itself (like Kennedy, McCowan, Vic Park), than the East-West corridors that are important city wide.
I agree that the subway won't do much to cut commute time. It's why I've argued that suburban rail needs to happen. But I suspect the comfort factor and cut of a transfer is playing a role in keeping the SSE attractive. And it's not going to get less attractive until RER is more than hypothetical.
But suburban rail
is happening.
If we based transit planning on 'popular' sentiment nothing would ever get done. The St. Clair ROW had very vocal opposition - it was going to destroy business and ruin the area, etc. Now people love it and the area is booming. It's been a boon to passengers and business alike.
I also think we need to be honest about the support for the LRT. Most polls found support for either mode of transit split down the middle, with some even finding the LRT was preferred. It's not as though people are unanimously against it.
There is also a huge difference in what people claim they want and what actually works best for them. Everyone wants a subway - but once their RT stops are removed, there is greater bus reliance and a long transfer, people won't be very happy.
We're already seeing signs that what politicans claim people want and what they actually want are two very different things.
Ultimately if a system works, people will use it - whether it's underground or not. People have a problem with streetcars when they're backed up, rammed, short turn, etc. When they run as intended, no one cares that they aren't subways.
I get it - some in Scarborough see a subway as the best form of transit and a true connection to the core. None of that will really matter though if it isn't effective. An RER/SmartTrack combination will get people to and from the core (and around Scarborough) far more effectively than removing their current RT stops in favour of a 6km subway extension.
Whether they're aware of it now or not, the end result is what counts.
