Emotions run high over Scarborough subway
Re The subway to Scarborough will bankrupt system, not fix it, March 6 When Royson James spoke strongly against the extension of the subway to Scarborough, I couldn’t help but draw parallels to what I’ve seen, and what I will continue to see, in my own neighbourhood, the Yonge-Eglinton area.
I share his frustration with an overeager desire to spend before weighing the benefits against the cost. More than half of the Eglinton Crosstown will operate underground and follow the TTC’s chosen method of traffic control. The portion of the Crosstown located above ground must follow the rules of the road. Even with a dedicated track, the Crosstown will be subject to the same red, yellow and green lights that driver and pedestrian traffic are subject to.
At peak hours of the day, Torontonians will experience bottlenecks galore and, with reduced car lanes because of the Crosstown, drivers will have to find a new route home. Evan Lee, Toronto
Having just returned from Barcelona, I was reminded what forward thinking can accomplish. Their transit system, a combination of subway, trams and buses, is amazing. The question is, when economic environments change (not enough money for transit), what do you do? Adapt.
I keep mulling it over: the province pays for a multi-stop fast tramway versus the city pays for a one-stop subway. Am I missing something here? Does one plus one really equal three?
I think that, unlike most councillors, most taxpayers just don’t get it either. I say let the next election be the seminal moment in their political careers, based on how these councillors vote on this issue. If they don’t get that they represent you, the taxpayer, if someone has the “negatives” or they are voting to repay a favour, I say turf them on this issue and let’s stop with this foolishness. David Ottenbrite, Mississauga
Royson James continues to speak with a voice of reason regarding the abomination that is the planned one-stop Scarborough subway, and I totally agree with his view that this illadvised scheme will bankrupt the system, not fix it.
To say that I’m completely disgusted with what passes for transit planning in this city would be an understatement. After years of neglect, followed by cancellation of the Eglinton West subway by Mike Harris, there was finally some hope when council, under David Miller, came up with a credible plan for a fully funded, seven-stop LRT to Scarborough, only to have it cancelled by Rob Ford in favour of a much more expensive subway with fewer stops. Every time we turn around, the cost of the Scarborough white elephant has gone up again, and I urge everyone who’s as disgusted with this colossal waste of their tax dollars as I am to protest before it’s too late. Diana Hooper, Willowdale
While I do not agree with the subway projects as listed by Royson James, he is certainly correct on his comment about the Scarborough subway project. The lack of stations will prevent development nodes from being established and whatever development would occur will have to find the present TTC service as their public transportation, which would cause more congestion. This white elephant will cost at least $6 billion and this money could help alleviate more congestion and move people if it was properly assigned to projects that are viable.
The people of Scarborough have been hoodwinked into believing this proposed subway will help them, but it is highly conceivable that perhaps no more than 2 per cent or 3 per cent of Scarborough’s population would ever be able to use it.
Someone must surely put their thinking cap on before the taxpayers pile a fortune into a quagmire that will be sucking up funds for years and prevent some advances in transportation and other meaningful projects. Norman Gardner, Toronto
The current subway versus LRT discussion should include that no new transit value will be created in Tory’s $3.35-billion subway scheme. The RT currently ends at Scarborough Town Centre and so will the proposed Kennedy line extension. This will not create anymore new riders, only direct the same ones in a different direction, whereas a new LRT will certainly serve many more users at a fraction of the cost. Richard Kadziewicz, Scarborough
Let’s get it done and quit the lobbying against the connection to Scarborough. Or be prepared to lose a few more provincial seats in the legislature. Ray Iogna, Scarborough
Being able to ride by subway from downtown all the way to Scarborough Centre is an improvement that will last for decades. It will pay big dividends every year for many years into the future.
As the SRT experiment has already demonstrated, a new LRT will reach a point of having to be upgraded to a subway to handle the growing ridership. Based on “TTC Facts,” the subway terminus at Kennedy already handles the third-largest ridership of all the terminus stations on the subway system. With Scarborough’s current population growth, transit ridership is poised for a similar increase. And with a direct subway connection to the centre and the return of transit decision stability, developers will be more comfortable with further investment in Scarborough Centre. Murray McLeod, Scarborough
I can only hope that when the vote at Toronto City Hall takes place for the approval for the increased costs of the ill-advised Scarborough subway, that every Torontonian takes note of how the mayor and their local candidate votes and then makes certain that at the next year’s election, we all vote to insure that such reckless spending and decision making totally disappear from our newly elected council. Fredrick White, Toronto
Re Retrofit, expansion of SRT more cost-effective
than subway, March 5 This suggestion is certainly more logical than the proposed one-stop subway. As a further proposal, however, why not incorporate the SRT into the forthcoming GO- SmartTrack line, which has the same track gauge as the SRT and already runs beside it for most of the SRT route?
This will provide a multi-stop Scarborough transit system with direct non-transfer access to downtown Toronto and connections to the Eglinton Crosstown and the BloorDanforth subway line, all at a lower cost than a one-stop subway or an SRT refurbishment plus the GO-SmartTrack line. William Lynn, Toronto
“Let those who clamour that we do not need a subway take the ride themselves to see how punishing it is!” MIMI KHAN TORONTO
I’ve been opposed to a one-stop subway since the beginning.
Many Scarborough residents living between St. Clair and Ellesmere will not benefit from a one-stop subway. A multistation light rail system would bring them more conveniently to their destination. Lys Laurence, Scarborough
Let those who clamour that we do not need a subway take the ride themselves to see how punishing it is! Mimi Khan, Toronto
Once upon a time in a city called Toronto, two one-stop subway extensions were added to the Bloor-Danforth line.
Kipling and Kennedy stations opened simultaneously on Nov. 21, 1980, and the combined cost of the entire project was $127 million ($2 million under budget, the TTC boasted). The Bank of Canada’s online inflation calculator tells us that $127 million in 1980 would be worth $393.5 million in 2017. Stephen Wickens, Toronto
Re Scarborough subway cost balloons to $3.35B, March 1 How about some simpler, but perhaps more cost-effective ideas that could eliminate the need to build another multibillion-dollar track from Kennedy to Scarborough Centre?
First, why not look into building brand-new, smooth-running replicas of the ancient and creaky cars that currently haunt the SRT line? Or at least custom design something compatible with the existing SRT tracks?
If it was possible to design and build these cars over 30 years ago, what’s so impossible about building more of them now to replace the ailing fleet of SRT cars? Isn’t there a manufacturer of LRT trains that has the capacity to do this or at least would be more than willing to take up the challenge of redesigning the SRT cars from the original blue prints?
Secondly, why not redirect SRT trains underground into Kennedy station adjacent to the subway tracks to make transferring between trains a little more convenient and comfortable, saving riders from walking up or down two or three flights of stairs, especially when it’s cold or damp outside?
Could ideas like these be the next best thing to building a six-kilometre subway extension and perhaps at a considerably reduced cost? Tyler Hayward, Markham