Calgary Public Transit - Discussion

[frinkprof]

Originally Posted by Ironhorse

Can anyone tell me what they are doing to the bus stops along 18th street in Quarry Park? They are filling in the bus stop indentations (where the bus pulls in so as to not hold up traffic) with concrete, and building a new higher than regular road curb that looks similar to an LRT station edge (but lower), complete with yellow safety strip on the top edge. How is this better than what was there previously?

It's for the South Crosstown BRT.



http://www.calgary.ca/Transportation...%28BRT%29.aspx

[Wormius]

So, I see most city council candidates for NW, NE wards are saying they are going to fight to get the Green Line constructed all the way to the original route to North Pointe. Is there actually anything they can do, or are they just blowing hot air?

[Ironhorse]

I imagine it means fighting for more money then. Phase 1 (16th to Shepard) has to be built that way because of the station / tunnelling downtown, and the maintenance facility at Shepard. I don't see how they can scale that down in order to build further north instead.

[Amethyst]

I heard somewhere (can't remember) that one proposal was to build a maintenance facility in the north instead, so it could go all the way north to start.

[frinkprof]

Originally Posted by Wormius

So, I see most city council candidates for NW, NE wards are saying they are going to fight to get the Green Line constructed all the way to the original route to North Pointe. Is there actually anything they can do, or are they just blowing hot air?

There is certainly much that the future council, given the right makeup, can do to fully build out to Northpointe. Green Line further south and other transit projects too for that matter - extensions to the NE, South and West lines, airport LRT, BRT projects/extensions/improvements.

There may be a symbolic push by some for changing the composition of the first phase of Green Line, with proposals to move the maintenance facility from Shepard to Aurora (north). I think that ship has sailed though and it would be a hard sell to pull up those stakes, especially with Shane Keating likely to be re-elected in Ward 12.

A 4 year term for the next council with possible changes to higher orders of government during that time is plenty of time to find funding for adding phases to Green Line that could follow on the heels of the first phase or possibly be built concurrently with the first phase. Especially with the 2020 construction start on the first phase. I fully expect the line to be added to - both north and south - before construction of the first phase is complete.

Olympics/no Olympics is another variable that could play in.

[You Need a Thneed]

Changing phase 1 isn't going to happen at this point.

Starting a phase 2 that could be operational as soon as the same time as phase 1 is operational is still very much possible, if there is money for a phase 2, which direction it goes will be partially dependant on which councillors can convince the others that their direction is the better plan. Going north will take significantly more money though, so how much money can be made available will be a factor as well. It's probably 2 billion to extend from 16th to North Pointe, but it's probably only 1 billion to extend from Shepard to Seton.

1-2 station mini extensions should be possible in either direction. If I had to guess, I would guess that 1 or 2 mini extensions are added to the project to open at the same time, or shortly after. The upcoming council will have their entire term to try to find funding for those extensions, and still have time to get them done by 2026.

[getbak]

With a new Council in place, Councillors Farkas and Colley-Urquhart put forward a motion to suspend the bid process for the next phase of the SWBRT construction (from the hospital to Woodbine).

The vote required a supermajority of 10 votes in order to pass. Instead, it received 11 votes against and failed.

Spoiler!

Construction/completion of the SWBRT will continue as planned.

[nik-]

It's hilarious that Colley-Urquhart didn't when show up to vote on the motion she put forward. What a stellar councillor.

[Jimmy Stang]

Well, he campaigned to the "BRT = Satan's spawn" crowd, so now he can say that he kept his promise to try and throw a stick in the spokes. Time to get it built.

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by nik-

It's hilarious that Colley-Urquhart didn't when show up to vote on the motion she put forward. What a stellar councillor.

No kidding. Bring a controversial motion and not even bother to show up to promote it, effectively throwing your co-sponsor under the bus? Awful.

[Joborule]

These are such a waste of time to even bother.

[KelVarnsen]

Calling it now. Farkas will be an absolute disaster and attention whore.

[You Need a Thneed]

Originally Posted by KelVarnsen

Calling it now. Farkas will be an absolute disaster and attention whore.

I think he's capable of being a good councillor. He just has to get over wanting to do this pointless showboating.

The city's legal team had some legal issues to disclose to the councillors, which couldn't be shared with the public, so they need to go in camera. Farkas continues his crazy promise of getting a recorded vote on every vote to go in camera (which wastes 2-3 minutes every time) and actually votes against going in camera, the only one to do so.

The city's legal team has important information that will help councillors make an informed decision, and Farkas literally voted against recieving it, as had council not gone in camera, the information wouldn't have been shared. He'll govern blind simply to keep his campaign promises.

All that, and I think he can be good when he actually thinks about issues, instead of following his campaign promises, which the majority in his ward voted against.

[leah12]

In fairness to Cooley-Urquhart, she’s dealing with a family issue and couldn’t make it today. Not throwing Farkas under the bus at all.

[simmer2]

Nenshi's comments on this project reveal his arrogance and smugness that I am getting really tired of.

"You mean the ones who voted for me in 3 elections as I've been talking about the importance of this project? Yes."

Regardless of whether you are right or not Nenshi, get over yourself.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by You Need a Thneed

I think he's capable of being a good councillor. He just has to get over wanting to do this pointless showboating.

The city's legal team had some legal issues to disclose to the councillors, which couldn't be shared with the public, so they need to go in camera. Farkas continues his crazy promise of getting a recorded vote on every vote to go in camera (which wastes 2-3 minutes every time) and actually votes against going in camera, the only one to do so.

The city's legal team has important information that will help councillors make an informed decision, and Farkas literally voted against recieving it, as had council not gone in camera, the information wouldn't have been shared. He'll govern blind simply to keep his campaign promises.

All that, and I think he can be good when he actually thinks about issues, instead of following his campaign promises, which the majority in his ward voted against.

Sounds like a plan to run for mayor next election

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by simmer2

Nenshi's comments on this project reveal his arrogance and smugness that I am getting really tired of.

"You mean the ones who voted for me in 3 elections as I've been talking about the importance of this project? Yes."

Regardless of whether you are right or not Nenshi, get over yourself.

Not to victim blame here, but if people didn't want to be the butt of his arrogance, they could act a little more intelligently.

In any event, I hope that Chu's vote against the SW BRT was because there is some slim chance that a cancelled SW BRT would mean more money for the Green Line expansion to the north, though I don't think he was thinking that far ahead actually.

[ken0042]

I don't think the money from the SW BRT would have made that much of an impact towards the Green Line. IIRC the SW BRT project is $60M, and the Green Line is over $4B. Adding $60M might add one more station. However that brings up an interesting point- how much would it cost to cancel the project now? They have the right of ways mostly established, including a shortcut for the bus through the north part of Lakeview. if the argument is that the $60M project will be under-used, is it better to have spent $20-30M on absolutely nothing?

[Tyler]

Originally Posted by ken0042

I don't think the money from the SW BRT would have made that much of an impact towards the Green Line. IIRC the SW BRT project is $60M, and the Green Line is over $4B. Adding $60M might add one more station. However that brings up an interesting point- how much would it cost to cancel the project now? They have the right of ways mostly established, including a shortcut for the bus through the north part of Lakeview. if the argument is that the $60M project will be under-used, is it better to have spent $20-30M on absolutely nothing?

Director of Transportation Infrastructure said the savings wouldn't even buy 1km of track.

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by ken0042

if the argument is that the $60M project will be under-used, is it better to have spent $20-30M on absolutely nothing?

The reason for the opposition to the BRT is people don't want 3-4 more years of constructions in an area of the city that already has serious congestion problems, and that is already facing years of construction and road closures with the ring road. The money being better spent elsewhere is just the justification for why the rest of the city should care about the project.

And while I'm still onboard with the BRT, I have to admit I've gone from strongly supportive to marginally supportive.

People who don't live in this part of the city maybe don't realize how bad construction has been for the last year. This area of Calgary is basically a wedge enclosed on three sides by the reservoir, the Tsuu T'ina, and Fish Creek. The only way in or out of Bayview, Oakridge, Palliser, Pump Hill, Braeside, and Cedarbrae is three East-West roads that all connect to one north-south road - 14th street. Simultaneous work on three of those four roads has cut road capacity in this part of the city by 40 per cent for the better part of a year. And those constructions projects haves not increased capacity or helped ease congestion in any way - they've been tearing up and upgrading all the utility lines in the area.

And this is before work has really got started on the ring road or BRT. The prospect of 4-5 more years of it taking an extra 10 minutes to go anywhere in my car is not especially appealing.