Mayor Larry speaking this morning at the provincial announcment of $12.3 million to Ottawa as part of the Ontario Bus Replacement Program.
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The 2006 election campaign was mostly about Light Rail Transit (LRT) and the belief, by many Citizens, that the proposed north -south LRT solution was wrong.In fact, it was this debate that convinced me to enter politics and try to stop this mistake from happening. I believe the debate on transit was a stepping-stone for my election. During the campaign I never actually offered up a solution other than saying we needed a world-class system that would solve our problems East, West and South and not add congestion to the downtown traffic corridors.
I was often pushed for my version of transit, but resisted the temptation because I knew transit would have the most impact on our City since the creation of the Greenbelt. I knew it should be developed by experts and reviewed by experts. But on the campaign trail I often said that every ride on a “world-class” transit system starts with a ride down an escalator. And here we are 18 months later, and tomorrow we will be taking the first major step towards building a world-class transit system in Ottawa.
There are many advantages of getting transit right for our City. First of all is speed. A transit system will be used if it is faster and more convenient then any other form of transportation. Tomorrow Committee should approve a solution that will eventually cut 15 minutes a day of predictable time from the daily commute of over 75,000 travelers, saving them on average a full work week of time per person each year. This increase in speed is a direct result of the tunnel through the downtown core of Ottawa.
Secondly, we will have substantial opportunity to build upon the tunnel to create our own underground walkways with stores and conveniences that we as commuters need and expect in the 21st century. For business this will represent hundreds of millions of dollars of investment opportunities and add tax dollars to the City coffers.
Tomorrow will be a good day full of consequence for Ottawa. In advance, I would like to thank Deputy City Manager Nancy Schepers and her staff. They have done a magnificent job sorting through the Mayor’s Task Force on Transportation headed by David Collenette. They have also worked with a panel of international experts who sat on a transit Peer Review Panel to develop a remarkable solution. They have worked hard and done well.
The joint Transit and Transportation Committee meeting will start at 10:00 a.m. I will not be there for the beginning of the meeting, since I have the enjoyable job of meeting Transport Minister Jim Bradley, Minister Jim Watson and other members of the Provincial government for an announcement at the OC Transpo Garage on St. Laurent Boulevard. This is sure to be positive news for our City - stay tuned. The Committee meeting will kick off with a presentation from our Peer Review panel, hear public delegations and debate the staff recommendation for transit. It will be a great day!!
Just a short note that from 12:30 p.m. until 2:30 p.m. Committee will break to allow some of my colleagues and I to attend the funeral of Mr. Aubrey Moodie at 1 p.m. Please make sure to check back tomorrow for updates.
Larry O’Brien
Mayor-City of Ottawa