Hoping council got it right on west LRT

Re. “Residents know a better route for west-end LRT, even if council doesn’t,” David Staples, March 23

David Staples is right. At the March 21 west LRT public hearing, Coun. Aaron Paquette asked over 100 attendees who supported this LRT line. Not one person raised their hand.

In fact, one presenter said that a 2010 transportation report stated this route would have the greatest impact on traffic flow. Another presenter quoted from a city survey that 66 per cent of the public did not support this line. Nevertheless, only two councillors voted against the West Valley Line LRT.

Coun. Jon Dziadyk made the most sense, stating he wanted to wait and see first the results of the Mill Woods line. That said, we are very grateful the 149 Street underpass was not supported, which would have demolished all our community-friendly businesses.

Once the west LRT line is built, shortcutting through some neighbourhoods will be prevalent due to limited left turns. In fact, traffic lights will be installed on 156 Street at 102 Avenue so traffic can shortcut through Britannia/ Youngstown and Canora to reach Stony Plain Road.

Businesses on Stony Plain Road between 149 and 163 Street will suffer due to limited access. People are worried these impacts will close shops, and redevelopment, which was the very premise for council to support this route, will be deterred.

There is a lot of pressure on council to prove to the public they made the right decision for a $2.24-billion dollar project. We hope they did. Irene Blain, president, West Jasper/Sherwood Community League