Well the Premier had his speech today, giving a lot of explanation and information on how the Province will achieve the GHG targets set out early this year in the throne speech. There’s some great announcements and initiatives underway, which you can read about here. The one thing the Premier did not touch on was, surprisingly, considering all the rumours, transit. Federal Minister Stockwell Day gave $50 million to Translink for new buses, but that was about it. That’s not to say the funding for “major transit expansion” isn’t coming soon though. As Gordon Price mentioned, this was the earliest point an announcement would be made. And, going through the Province’s news releases, it even says:
“In the coming weeks, we will lay out our vision for transit,†said Campbell. “It will be on a scale and scope aimed at making our province a global leader in public transit. Today I can tell you we will also act to help communities across B.C. upgrade their bus fleets.â€
Campbell confirmed that the Province will ensure the Evergreen Line is built as soon possible, connecting neighbourhoods in Coquitlam, Port Moody and Burnaby with SkyTrain.
“Today, the percentage of transit ridership in the Metro Vancouver region is about 12 per cent. The leading cities of the world, be they London, Paris or Hong Kong, see ridership in the 20 to 25 per cent range,†said Campbell.
It is interesting to note the press release states the province will be a “global leader” in transit, then compares out current situation to major world cities and their ridership. To me this says a truly major funding announcement, on the scope of Toronto’s Transit City plan, is coming for both Metro Vancouver, and perhaps for other rapid transit initiatives around the province, such as Victoria’s efforts for a rail network.
There’s also this piece [below] on the UBCM by Global where Keith Baldrey also notes that the Evergreen Line will go forward, with or without federal funding. He mentions that the Line is still going through the process of creating a business case, which is interesting considering one was completed last year, and is available from Translink’s site right here. Baldrey also speculates, although I’m not sure if he has concrete info or not, that the Evergreen Line will be done with SkyTrain technology.
So, no funding today, but it’s coming soon. Shucks. And here I was all hyped up like today was a Stevenote…
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ohh3uPOK7U[/youtube]
I’ll give Campbell credit for the binding targets (still don’t know what the penalties are though) and the smartmeters – which is a great idea. But I think his plan for transportation is still hot air, and will lead to higher emissions. $50 million for transit is chump change compared to the billions going into Gateway and its mostly to replace existing buses, not expand service.
I’m optimistic that together we’ll defeat this greedy, useless plan and turn this province in the right direction.
We need to demand an end to corporate-funded government. Bias! Auto companies aren’t going to fund transit, are they…
I'm optimistic that together we'll defeat this greedy, useless plan and turn this province in the right direction.
We need to demand an end to corporate-funded government. Bias! Auto companies aren't going to fund transit, are they…