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Former Mayor of Hamilton and current M.P. Bob Bratina, reached out to The Hamiltonian with the following:
Biz Mag 2013 on LRT (excerpts)--two important things....I support an LRT in the right place, and by 2013 it was not a done deal...
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Several key players say it's not a question of if, but rather when an LRT line will be built. According to Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina, the Province is waiting for the City to present it with its best-case scenario for a light rail route.
"We need to determine where best an LRT should be placed," says Bratina. "It seems to me there is more attention now being given to the so-called A-Line, which is a connector between the waterfront and the airport, going up the Escarpment. Whatever is ultimately presented to council, we must make sure that the province will agree that it is viable and can be supported by $1 billion in funding. They (the province) don't want to throw away money on something that may or may not work. That's been the mandate all along."
The A-Line corridor, which has a 10- to 15-year funding timeline, has desirable destinations for an LRT, including the airport, downtown, the James North GO station and the waterfront. But Metrolinx's preference has been given to the B-Line for funding within five years, since 50 percent of the existing transit ridership lies along the B-Line corridor, Hull explains. "Essentially, we would be converting the existing transit ridership from bus to light rail," says Hull.
The actual construction will not be even considered before 2015, after the Pan American Games, says Hull.
Mayor Bratina, however, sees the A-Line, "or some sort of connector between the waterfront and the airport," as Hamilton's first priority. Bratina says that to date, no rationale has been put forward to make a business case for the B-Line. Developers are not calling for progress updates on the LRT as they did for an all-day GO service, he notes. While he confirms that "Council is totally in support of the whole project," the mayor doesn't believe it's necessary for someone to jump on the LRT bandwagon. "Championing brings in an emotional element and this has to be a solid business plan," Bratina explains.
Metrolinx appears enthusiastic about the progress..
