LRT gets a thumbs up
Posted May 9, 2011 11:26:19 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Communitech is formally endorsing light rail transit for Waterloo Region.
Specifically, they’d like to see option L3 which includes trains from Conestoga Mall in Waterloo to Fairview Park Mall in Kitchener and rapid buses from Fairview Park to the Ainslie Street Transit Terminal in Cambridge.
The decision is based on a survey of technology companies in the region that found close to 90 percent of the 570 respondents believe LRT is “very or somewhat important to their company and co-workers.” 70 percent believe LRT would benefit the region overall and over 50 percent said they would use the system.
President and CEO Iain Klugman tells 570 News, companies also want to see the project move forward right now. He says, “There was a high degree of people who said…it’s not too early to move forward now and we’re going to compromise ourselves if we don’t make this investment right now.”
Klugman also says, “There is no value in doing BRT and moving to a light rail because you have basically got the costs two times.”
He says we should look to Calgary and Ottawa as examples, saying 25 years ago, there was opposition to light rail but they built it anyway and now, “people are absolutely convinced that they made the right decision.” Around the same time in Ottawa, Klugman says they opted for bus rapid transit and now they’re trying to figure out how to make the switch to light rail.
Klugman says we need light rail in order to stay competitive, not only in Canada but across North America. He says, “…this is the kind of investment that will create a livable city and people see that.”
He says LRT will help bring new talent to the region’s tech companies because, “…their expectation is that they can live and work downtown…they want a great urban experience and this is a critical component in achieving that overall experience.”
Communitech says it plans to show the survey results to regional councillors before a vote on rapid transit in June.
