Transit challenge issued to election candidates
The transit challenge has now been issued to all candidates in the municipal election, and so far only one is on board while a few others are nibbling on the idea.
Susan Spicer, whose special needs daughter Kaytlyn relies on public transit every day, issued the challenge to council and the mayor initially, asking them to use transit exclusively for one week.
“I'll take her up on it this week starting Tuesday,” said Kris Samraj, who declared last week his candidacy in the election. “I’ll keep track of my thoughts and try to reconcile them with the current financial challenges facing the city, while also remembering that our current city’s development makes public transit difficult to deliver.”
Samraj can walk to and from work but will use transit for everything else including grocery shopping, recreation, down to the mall, Medalta and to visit friends.
No current councillors were willing to take the oneweek challenge (see Saturday’s News). A couple said they would try it on a modified schedule.
Coun. Bill Cocks’s assertion that taking the challenge would not accomplish anything because council does not design the transit system has drawn public criticism.
“It’s NOT a system, it’s ‘A Public Service’ you didn't come up with the ‘system’ but YOU and you’re (sic) fellow councillors paid out our tax dollars to have a study done and just approved it,” wrote Dave Marshall in an email to the News, adding he uses transit every day to and from work. “The public is what you were elected to assist but you think that riding ‘Public Transit’ is beneath you, our community is dependant (sic) on this service for things that you don't care about.”
Election candidate Jim Black says he will take a oneday challenge this Friday. Without specific appointments he will use various routes and note how long it takes to reach destinations.
Candidate Darren Hirsch says the challenge is rather difficult for him as a banker who needs to be out and about. Hirsch is also out of town for a little while, making it difficult to commit to a specific day, but he will give it some thought, he said.
As an electrician, candidate Charles Turner needs a truck to get to appointments for work. He is considering using the bus this weekend when he is not working and hopes he can made it happen.
Former councillor Phil Turnbull, who has already registered to run in the municipal election, is willing to take the challenge on a limited scale. Turnbull says if he has to be at the Canalta Centre there is no bus that can get him there. The closest route would still mean an extremely long walk.
He plans to use transit and then take a ride from the closest bus stop to his destination. Turnbull says he will make notes of his experiences and will probably take the challenge next week.
The News was not able to reach the following candidates on Tuesday: Myle Mylholland, Maureen Roberts and Scott Raible.