Re: NCC says any above-ground western LRT plan ‘ain’t gonna fly’

From an WLRT online discussion on the Citizen.com...

I think it can be done Michael. I know the City says it can't but I've seen it work in Europe and in Canada. While the Spadina and St. Claire lines in Toronto are street cars, they don't have any issues coordinating lights and street crossings. From an intensification perspective, Carling is badly in need of renewal through redevelopment. We have an opportunity to build a Yonge Street in Ottawa along Carling. However, its an opportunity that can only happen with some form of rail. Most of us will be dead if we have to wait until after 2031 for rail to come to Carling Ave., after the LRT plan is complete.

So, I'm hoping the City will see the light and work harder to achieve their objectives using Carling. Just like the City did with Lansdowne Live when it came up with a plan to make it revenue neutral, I believe the City can come up with a plan for Carling to meet our commuter needs to the suburbs and to bring Carling Ave. back to life, by connecting the many hospitals, shopping centres, health centres, etc. that are situated along Carling with residents in the communities boarding Carling and beyond to the South and West.

And, I believe it can be revenue neutral if not revenue-positive if the City were to include economic development data in its analysis of the potential revenue a Carling line could generate. It has not done so yet. The analysis they have done so far is very limited.

I adhere to the moniker that if there is a will, there is a way.

Peter, the PRT looks very cool: http://bit.ly/18mBJKx ! I had a similar idea while living in Europe 20 years ago. My idea was to run them along the side of the road so people don't have to walk up and down steep hills (Switzerland) or in difficult weather conditions like snow and ice (Canada). In Switzerland they use funiculars to run people up steep hills and hillsides. A PRT could be used in both contexts.

In Ottawa we're having difficulty deciding how to spend our Rail money because its not enough for a City this geographically challenged. Ottawa is the largest City (land mass) in Canada and possibly in all of North America. Some dummy in Toronto drew a circle around half of Eastern Ontario during amalgamation and called it 'Ottawa'.

We really need the federal government to recognize the Rail service is primarily to serve their workforce and to step up to pay for a proper system that will address the needs of all Ottawa residents, rather than just some.