How much more ‘mischief’ will Surrey mayor get into?
Re: Surrey spent tens of thousands in twoweek fight against Uber
In the last election for Surrey mayor and council, the lackadaisical electorate of Surrey allowed 13 per cent of eligible voters to elect a mayor who is, at best, yesterday’s man and, at worst, modern Surrey’s nemesis.
The 13-per-cent mandate, so Mayor Doug McCallum says, gives him the right to not only follow through on campaign promises, but to refuse to have any meaningful interaction with councillors or reporters who question his actions or intentions.
At the first council meeting, the wellthought-out LRT plan from Guildford to Newton with 11 stops was cancelled. Later, the mayor introduced his plan to initiate a Surrey Police Force — at what cost is anybody’s guess. Then, he wasted thousands of tax dollars in a fight with Uber, a ride-hailing company, long awaited by the population of the Lower Mainland. We will not mention his latest involvement in a tussle between one of his “Safe Surrey” councillors and her erstwhile business partner.
How much more mischief and axe grinding will Surrey’s mayor get up to before the next election, when perhaps the “lackadaisical”
will honour their obligations and elect a mayor who will represent the other 87 per cent of voters. William Burrows, Surrey
Parks site crash no surprise
Re: B.C. Parks website crashes due to massive demand for campsite bookings
I was one of the 50,000 people on the B.C. Parks website yesterday morning. It was a hair-pulling experience that required patience and persistence. I was successful in my attempts and managed to get some camping time for my family. I didn’t get the sites that I wanted, but I got what I needed.
I’m not sure what people were expecting? We’ve been in lockdown since March. A lot of people would have normally been booking their campsites well before now and so the traffic was at maximum. Most systems, when confronted with a massive hit of 50,000, are going to crash. I kept thinking to myself, ‘Those poor IT guys’.
For the provincial opposition party to come out pointing fingers was such an unnecessary tactic and I hope most people realized how ridiculous Andrew Wilkinson looked with his smug indignation over something so “first world” in these difficult and uncertain times. To those people who didn’t get a site, keep trying. New ones come available every day and all of the out-of-province ones will he released as well. Pat Cleave, Delta
Grateful for HandyDart
I would like to express my gratitude that the service of HandyDart was saved by an influx of cash from the federal government. My friends here understand that TransLink wanted to lay off half of the HandyDart drivers (up to 200 people). We understand that TransLink is struggling, too, with the drop in ridership over the last two months. But HandyDart is considered an essential service as it has for the past 39 years.
Apart from getting people to doctors and dentists, it also helps people to connect with their families and friends, which is essential to mental health. Like a lot of people, my friends are wanting to get back to what is considered “normal life.” For some, that would include a day program that gives them something to do other than watch television. Of course, the job for the drivers is essential for them to put food on the table. None of the clients here would want the drivers to struggle as so many already are. I’m sure that the money from the government will help TransLink to keep going and many of us are grateful for that as well. Alison Peyman, Vancouver