Rob Ford wants subways, not streetcars

[MisterF]

While I am no Rob Ford fan, I take issues with comments like this. Does his character matter or his platform? Winston Churchill was a cigar chomping, womanizing drunk and a bigot. Hitler was organized, eschewed exemplary personal manners, never smoked, never drank, didn't eat meat and was fairly loyal to to his mistress. Who would you have rooted for?

In this day and age, I don't think most of our fathers of confederation or many of the great leaders of the past would have made the cut.

Heaven forbid we judge politicians on their platforms, their ideas and the job performance. Perish the thought.

Big difference: Churchill ruled in a different time when being a bigot was acceptable, even more so for the fathers of Confederation. A bigoted, alcoholic Churchill or Macdonald would have a hard time even getting nominated in the 21st century, let alone becoming prime minister.

 

[Dan416]

It's pretty clear that whatever he says is based on a pro-car standpoint. Streetcars get in the way of cars, therefore, streetcars are bad. Subway are underground, out of the way of cars, therefore they're good. He mentions Sheppard and Eglinton (and not the DRL). At best, he'd cancel TC and finish Sheppard and maybe start Eglinton. At worst, he'd cancel TC and not replace it with anything. Either way, he's not exactly what I'd call a transit advocate since his motivation behind it isn't pro-transit.

On the other hand, Mammoliti thinks a PPP could build a subway on Jane street. I think that's pie-in-the-sky.

Really, Sarah Thomson's plan is sounding better and better everyday. Now if only Smitherman had a platform maybe we could judge him too. I wouldn't vote for him just because he's gay. He needs to earn it.

 

[SlickFranky]

Really, Sarah Thomson's plan is sounding better and better everyday. Now if only Smitherman had a platform maybe we could judge him too. I wouldn't vote for him just because he's gay. He needs to earn it.

1. You would vote for someone partly because they're gay?

2. I too am shocked that Thomson's transit platform is making the most sense so far. Her numbers are way off, but Ford's are on another planet. Plus he's a dill-hole.

 

[nfitz]

Winston Churchill was a cigar chomping, womanizing drunk and a bigot.

He also was not electable as a national leader. He would never have won an election, had he not lead the nation during the war. Um, ... doesn't that just prove my point? He was a lousy peace-time PM; Britons knew this, and this was why they turfed him the first time he faced the ballot box in 1945, while the war was still going. What came over them when they voted him back in during the 1950s, I don't know ...

 

[Electrify]

It's pretty clear that whatever he says is based on a pro-car standpoint. Streetcars get in the way of cars, therefore, streetcars are bad. Subway are underground, out of the way of cars, therefore they're good. He mentions Sheppard and Eglinton (and not the DRL). At best, he'd cancel TC and finish Sheppard and maybe start Eglinton. At worst, he'd cancel TC and not replace it with anything. Either way, he's not exactly what I'd call a transit advocate since his motivation behind it isn't pro-transit.

On the other hand, Mammoliti thinks a PPP could build a subway on Jane street. I think that's pie-in-the-sky.

Really, Sarah Thomson's plan is sounding better and better everyday. Now if only Smitherman had a platform maybe we could judge him too. I wouldn't vote for him just because he's gay. He needs to earn it.

Shows just how far left we are in this city: The most conservative candidate supports public transit. Anywhere else and he would be proposing massive highway expansions...

 

[toraerach]

I think the bigger question regarding Ford's support of public transit is if it came down to it, would he cut bus service back to balance the books/lower taxes. So long as he doesn't promise subway expansion including a viable plan on how to finance it, I wouldn't trust him so far as I could throw him.

 

[Dan416]

1. You would vote for someone partly because they're gay?

2. I too am shocked that Thomson's transit platform is making the most sense so far. Her numbers are way off, but Ford's are on another planet. Plus he's a dill-hole.

1. Why, yes, if they were a good candidate. There aren't enough openly gay politicians out there if you ask me.

2. Yes her numbers are off. But at least she's come up with some ways to pay for the transit expansion she envisions.

 

[Fresh Start]

If his supporters (illiterate Toronto Sun readers... no, this is not an oxymoron) knew that this self proclaimed penny pincher was campaigning for subways that cost several times more than light rail, I'm sure they would like to have a few words with him.

But hey, Rob Ford has never been one to shy away from whoring himself for populist attention.

I take it that you didn't read the comments section on the Sun website in regards to this story. They're overwhelmingly in favor of more subways, and for good reason too. The tradeoff must always be made between initial capital costs and long-term savings. Torontonians lose millions of dollars per day in lost productivity due to being stuck in traffic which road-median, mixed-traffic streetcars contribute heavily into.

 

[Fresh Start]

Show me one developer who will pay $500 million for air rights, or shut the hell up.

Show where Rob Ford ever made such a claim, then I will.

 

[GTS]

Ford is really helping me to decide to vote for Sarah Thomson- Thanks for helping me decide Mr. Ford.

 

[Mapleson]

Shows just how far left we are in this city: The most conservative candidate supports public transit. Anywhere else and he would be proposing massive highway expansions...

Why do people insist on this artifical divide between people. All it does is feed stereotyping partisanship. It's easy to support something you'd not fund and doubt anyone else would want to do so. For example, to say you are anti-euthanasia of the handicap would most likely be true. However, does anyone really intend to commit genocide?

It's easy to say "I'm for free icecream for everyone!" I'm about as socialist as they come, but without sound financial plan, it's either going to cost us more money in the long run or it's never take-off in the first place. It doesn't matter level of government does the collecting and spending, we are always the ones that pay in the end.

What I don't like about Sarah Thompson's platform is that she hasn't faced up to any of the difficult decisions of funding priorities. If she refined her platform or admitted how underfunded her plan is, I'd vote for her.

 

[JWBF]

Ford is idiot, plain and simple, he is selling a bill of goods to anti Miller/Lastman voters. Toronto needs a non-partisan leadership, not petty muling children. Anyway, on the topic of transit...

I'm all for increasing Toronto's transit, and I do think that subways should be included in any plans; however, LRTs are needed in areas that do not have enough ridership for regular subways but more riders than regular surface transit can handle.

It's simple, there are many forms of transit vehicles, Buses (including trolley buses), "Streetcars"/"Trams" (Light Rail), ART (Medium Rail), and Subways (Heavy Rail); each have their own start-up cost, like construction, and a continuing maintaining cost. The problem even before the "down turning" economy is what money is in the war chest so to speak.

Here is how I see it:

Spadina-University Subway extended Vaughn
Yonge Subway extended to Newmarket
Eglinton: Heavy rail (underground)
Sheppard: Heavy rail (underground)
Finch: Medium rail (ROW, underground or not)
Steeles: Medium rail (convertible to heavy rail n the future)
Jane: Medium rail (ROW, underground or not)
Donmills: Medium rail (ROW, underground or not)
Kennedy: Light rail
Queen: Medium rail (ROW, underground or not)
Rathurn: Light rail (ROW, underground or not)
Scarbourgh RT: Converted to Heavy rail and extend it to Steeles
Kingston-Malvern: Light rail (ROW, underground or not)
St. Clair: Light rail (ROW, underground or not)
Markam: Light rail (ROW, underground or not)

and...

Convert all current bus routes to trolley buses, BRTs where available.

 

[spider]

Ford is idiot, plain and simple, he is selling a bill of goods to anti Miller/Lastman voters.

If, in fact Ford is an idiot, thank you for stepping up to make sure he doesn't have the field all to himself.

 

[kettal]

1. You would vote for someone partly because they're gay?

After Miller, do we really want another heterosexual in the mayors seat?

 

[lead82]

If Ford gets elected, this city will not build anything. That means no new subways and no new Lrt lines either. We will get the subway to Vaughan and lrt on sheppard but that's it. This is assuming Rob doesn't cancel anything else to save money.

Like him or hate him but Miller is only mayor in recent history to have a vision for this city. Ford on the other hand just cares about cutting costs. He doesn't give a rats ass about improving waterfront or making city beautiful through streetscaping improvements.
The candidates we have are all uninspiring and none will be good leaders.