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Rob Ford's Transit plan

A few Ford Transportation Plan facts...in a way Ford Fans should appreciate.

-Downtown buses would cost more to run than the new streetcars, and would increase traffic
-Subway from Kennedy to STC would cost more than the current plan
-Subway from Downsview to STC would cost more to run than the current buses
-The successful sale of $1Billion worth of air rights on Sheppard would cause more traffic than currently exists in the area
-The bike plan ...blahblahblah, you don't care about the bike plan...no new bike lanes or something, except maybe downtown if they complain enough
-The road plan costs $700M, but doesn't mention a single road
-Ford plans to steal that $700M from York Region...good, suburban families with dogs and pools and crossover vehicles
-The Eglinton LRT Ford plans to cancel would have reduced traffic congestion on Eglinton, made the Allen more accessible, and made travel across midtown feasible for both upstanding drivers and transit riding dirtbags/hippies

In summary: Higher cost! More Traffic! Something about Lexus-Leninists! Can Rob Ford be trusted with your money?
 
The faster Metrolinx takes over our transit system the better! Transit is a regional issue and needs to be dealt with as such.. its not up to every little mayor from the GTA to decide the future of transportation systems for the whole Greater Golden Horseshoe.
 
SlickFranky said:
Just thought I'd point out that this is how every subway terminus works. If you need to go beyond that point you switch to another mode and continue your journey. Every morning I get off at Finch station, walk over to the bus bays and transfer to another vehicle to continue my journey north..............in the same direction as the subway!!!!.............omg!!!!

The current transfer at Don Mills is to bus. The planned transfer is to LRT. So what? At some point the subway has to end, but people still often need to continue traveling in that same direction. In this case they've decided the demand past that point doesn't justify extending the subway, but is outgrowing bus service, hence the LRT.

That said, I happen to think this line is kind of dumb too, but for very different reasons. My issues are more with the priority it's being given.
Click to expand...

But you are going onto a bus not on a $4.5 billion LRT line to a $1 billion LRT line. It's a needless and bothersome transfer to say nothing of the fact that it will require the building of a new/expanded station for the two lines. It's going out of it's way to be a pain in the ass. If Danforth subway ever makes it to STC should you still have to get off the train and go to a new station? You have to admit it is bizzare. This is why people hate the SRT. It probably faster than a subway but a pain in the ass to take.
This is how it got it's nickname "transfercity".
It could be a great seamless system with 2 lines..........Woodbine to UTScar via Finch/Sheppard via STC and a UTScar to Pearson via Eglinton. Stops every 1 to 1.5km with under/overpasses where it is not doing an at grade stop, a conversion of Stubway to LRT and a 6 to 8 km Eglinton tunnel. Fast, affordable, comfortable, reliable, and less road/traffic interaction.
 
{quote]If Danforth subway ever makes it to STC should you still have to get off the train and go to a new station? You have to admit it is bizzare.[/quote]

Rob Ford plan to build the subway to STC using the elevated SRT platform at Kennedy.

People are not as concerned about transfers as you assume. If that is the case, ridership would not be going up. To try and build a network based solely on giving a small percentage of riders a seamless trip is poor planning. It's been said many times, but transfers are a part of riding transit.
 
Ford's so called "transit expert", Mark Towhey, is the same guy who wrote this lunatic blog post earlier this year, containing such gems as:

  • Here’s what planners should do. First, they should assume the City will simply stop funding the TTC come April 1, 2011. Period
  • But how will people get to and from work, shopping, school, etc? Good question. I imagine more people may drive — so some of the billions the city saves should go to improving its roads. Others will be forced to use bicycles, hire more taxis, join car pools, etc. Apparently, that’s good for the environment, even. Bonus.
  • Many bus routes, however, would be abandoned. They’re not profitable. Such is life. The TTC should have dumped these routes long ago. But what about the people who need them? Well, life’s tough. Instead of being the only three people on a 60 passenger bus, perhaps these people will have to introduce themselves, get to know their neighbours and share a taxi.
  • I want a fast, convenient and affordable way of getting from the door of my home to the doorway of my workplace, shopping centre, school, theatre, friends’ houses, etc. That’s what the TTC should be providing: door to door solutions

Can any of you who support Ford's platform read this and honestly think that he has Torontonian's best interests at heart?
 
Swarley said:
Ford's so called "transit expert", Mark Towhey, is the same guy who wrote this lunatic blog post earlier this year, containing such gems as:

  • Here’s what planners should do. First, they should assume the City will simply stop funding the TTC come April 1, 2011. Period
  • But how will people get to and from work, shopping, school, etc? Good question. I imagine more people may drive — so some of the billions the city saves should go to improving its roads. Others will be forced to use bicycles, hire more taxis, join car pools, etc. Apparently, that’s good for the environment, even. Bonus.
  • Many bus routes, however, would be abandoned. They’re not profitable. Such is life. The TTC should have dumped these routes long ago. But what about the people who need them? Well, life’s tough. Instead of being the only three people on a 60 passenger bus, perhaps these people will have to introduce themselves, get to know their neighbours and share a taxi.
  • I want a fast, convenient and affordable way of getting from the door of my home to the doorway of my workplace, shopping centre, school, theatre, friends’ houses, etc. That’s what the TTC should be providing: door to door solutions

Can any of you who support Ford's platform read this and honestly think that he has Torontonian's best interests at heart?
Click to expand...

It would be interesting to see the credentials this guy has. I bet he's not a member of OPPI, because if he is, he shouldn't be.
 
Downtown Toronto under Rob Ford's transit plan:

ottawaoctranspo.jpg
 
Jonny5 said:
REAL cities don't use streetcars.
Click to expand...

I've copied and pasted for the people who have trouble knowing that it had a link to the NY Post.

City revamping plan for Brooklyn streetcar line

By RICH CALDER

Last Updated: 7:47 PM, September 9, 2010

Posted: 5:49 PM, September 9, 2010

A long-shelved plan to restore trolley service in Brooklyn is back on track.

The city has hired a transportation consultant to study running a mile-long trolley or light rail line from the Red Hook waterfront to Atlantic Avenue at the southern edge of Brooklyn Bridge Park.

The URS study could also look at extending the route another half-mile east along Atlantic Avenue to the transit hub at Borough Hall, sources said.

The city Transportation Dept. is finally tapping into a $295,000 federal grant Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-Brooklyn) secured for the five-month study in 2005.

"A streetcar system in Red Hook has the potential to reconnect this neighborhood with the rest of the city and greatly improve transit options for residents," Velazquez said.

The transit starved neighborhood’s only bus line is the B61 after massive transit cuts this year eliminated two others, and Red Hook has no subway; the nearest train line — the F — is more than a mile away.

Bob Diamond, president of the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association, which has lobbied to create a trolley line since 1989, has estimated the project would cost $10 million to $15 million to complete. Velazquez has requested $10 million of the funds needed for the project from a pending House transit bill.

Carl Hum, president of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, said boosting Red Hook’s transportation system is a key to its "long-term community vibrancy."

The study will include community meetings and a technical analysis of the area’s needs and demographics as well as determine how it would affect vehicle traffic on city streets where the line would run.

Nearly a decade ago, Diamond’s BHRA proposed a trolley route running from existing tracks at the Van Brunt Street waterfront, north up Richards Street and then along Columbia Street, before hitting the park at Atlantic Avenue and then heading east to Borough Hall.

Advocates say light-rail lines are much cheaper and quicker to build than subway lines and use far less energy. They run on existing streets, normally without the need to eliminate parking spots.
Click to expand...
 
ssiguy2 said:
Only the holy maker knows why the TTC could possibly present a plan where you are heading in one direction but then told to get off to go downstairs and wait for a new train using the same technology to carry you in the same direction. It's like having a subway station with two entrances and stopping, making people get off at one entrance , walk the half block to the other entrance to get back on the same subway train. I have tried to figure out the logic of this most bizzare concept and there simply isn't one.
Click to expand...

look at NYC, happens all the time, want to travel down Broadway, you can go to times square on the 1 train then transfer to N, R, W same with 8th Ave and 6th Ave. Not a huge deal, people transfer all the time.

I figure Rob Ford will replace streetcars with buses, then claim we're out of money and not build once inch of subway track.
 
I think Rob Ford will get rid of streetcars, and then claim we cannot afford to pay $750,000 for a clean bus, and not buy any new buses.
 
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