All Statements of Support
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David Reason says,
Hamilton Needs LRT so that transit evolves as out city grows larger
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Steven McKay says,
An open letter to Councillor Chad Collins
Hello Councillor Collins,
I am writing to appeal to you NOT to stand in the way of LRT coming to Hamilton. I gather that you understand the arguments for LRT, but have decided that those arguments are not strong enough to proceed with the recommendation of previous councils and the province.
Fair enough - every Councillor is meant to voice the concerns of their constituents.
You have a responsibility to more than your constituents with a proposal like this. You are actually responsible to all Hamiltonians to build a better city.
If everyone who objected to the Red Hill Valley Expressway had managed to stand in the way of its construction and funding, what would Ward 5 be like?
The positive change that the Red Hill brought to Ward 5 is essentially what’s at stake for all of us over in Ward 1, 2 and 3. We are looking at a major transformation of neighbourhoods that have been depressed for generations.
We can’t move people with an expressway cutting through the city, because we don’t have the space and we have an obligation to intensify the population downtown. LRT gives us downtown what the Red Hill gave to your constituents in Ward 5.
With that in mind, I plead that you reconsider your position on this subject.
Kind regards,
Steve McKay
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Doug Scholz says,
Council,
Please do not jeopardize the future of Hamilton to play personal politics. Your role in council is to do what is best for the city as a whole. Enough upper/lower city division. Please vote for LRT.
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Derrick Stevens says,
We need to get this done!!!!
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David Capizzano says,
The LRT is the best possible way we can grow our transit system, benefiting everyone in the city. It's time we stop accepting the status quo and move forward with a world class method of transit!
Stop the nonsense, council!
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Chris Oretiruys says,
WE NEED THIS! LRT is a transformative opportunity for the City and look forward to hearing that after so many fits and starts, we will be proceeding with construction.
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David Shim says,
I support the Hamilton LRT project. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity which will also help the outerlying regions, like WINONA!
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Leslie Klodt says,
As a proud Hamiltonian. I am thankful to the province for providing Hamilton the funding to take out remarkable city to the next level. LRT will help Hamilton in our journey to become the best place to raise a family, but the best place for all citizens. The LRT is absolutely necessary as we welcome both young people to our centres of education, and as our population ages. It is a boon to all Hamiltonians, both those who live on the Mountain, as I do, and those who live downtown.
It is time for our politicians to stand on the side of Hamilton's progress, and to help our city to become even more. I hope I can count on you to support the LRT in Hamilton.
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Jochen Bezner says,
Dear City Council,
Please support the Provincial LRT plan for Hamilton since this is a key part of a much bigger picture about improving transit in Ontario. Show leadership and a vision for what the future will bring in terms of needs but also opportunities. Let's not get caught up in narrow minded thinking and then pay the price later with congestion. Just look at Toronto as a negative example where inaction and indetermination has brought on massive gridlock.
GET HAMILTON READY FOR ALL THE NEW DEVELOPMENT IN THE LOWER CITY! -
Mara Adams says,
If the province is willing to bet $1 billion dollars on our future, then why aren't we?! Finally a chance to transform this city which will benefit all of us in the long run. You cannot say no to this kind of investment!
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Mike Murphy says,
LRT provides a great move forward. Let us not be left behind.
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Jason MacIsaac says,
Strongly advocate for LRT downtown Hamilton. Long term solution to make Hamilton a better and more progressive place for new and established residents.
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Warren Rumak says,
Let's attract higher-quality students to McMaster, who will feel more connected to the rest of the city with an LRT than they would with a bus.
Let's employ a lot of working-class people in this city on a big construction project that they can be proud of.
Let's get the "R" back into "HSR".
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Paul Raun says,
Building the light rail line provides a crucial step in building Hamilton's capacity as a resilient city, better able to respond to currently unfolding challenges related to resource depletion and economic uncertainty.
In the way of energy use, light rail makes for a highly-efficient mode of transport within an urban setting, combined with its greater capacity for carrying passengers, when we compare it to busses. On its own right-of-way, it offers a mode of transport comparable to private cars in terms of speed(Last Saturday night, in southern Etobicoke part of Toronto, my wife and I saw a 1980-vintage TTC streetcar travelling along at roughly 70 km/h between stops on Lakeshore Blvd., with light car traffic).
http://www.vtpi.org/tca/tca0512.pdfWith respect to improving bus service, light rail provides a highly-effective anchor for bus routes running north-south, especially up on the Mountain. It allows us to transfer more quickly between busses from one end of Hamilton to the other, much like the subway lines operate(and Eglinton Crosstown light rail line will operate) in Toronto.
With respect to the critical issue of resource depletion, particularly the peak in production of conventional or crude oil: easy-to-get and highest net energy source. It is essential to consider the following, not to lull ourselves into complacency over relatively low energy prices.
The drop in energy prices has arisen essentially because of a drop in demand stemming from deepening downturn in the Global Economy, not from any significant rise in production.
In the last few years, energy companies have made lowest levels of discoveries of new deposits, despite having doubled their budgets for exploration in the 2002-2012 period.
Even when energy prices were higher, over $100 a barrel for crude oil, major energy companies were in precarious financial situation, where debt has outweighed revenue by $100 billion for the world's top 127 energy companies, let alone the rash of bankruptcies happening amongst smaller companies with a focus on the once highly-touted shale oil and gas deposits in the US.
In a recent review of the 2012 Global energy Assessment, in a scholarly journal, author Michael Jefferson cited that the figure of "proved conventional oil reserves of nearly 1.7 trillion is overstated by 875 billion barrels: over the half the total figure. This overstating comes from including Canadian Tar Sands and Venezuelan heavy oil in with conventional oil, even if both sources are very different in quality, particularly in terms of their much lower net energy value when we compare them to conventional oil. Also, the higher figure came from including conventional oil reserves with a 50% probability of being proven in those having 90% probability, which started in 1984.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wene.179/epdfThe decision that you collectively as City Council members, particularly to reject provincial funding for an LRT line(to start the process of rebuilding a network of LRT lines) will have deep repercussions over the long term, in regards to coping with such longer term trends as Peak Oil and on-going Financial Crisis. Light rail provides a most effective way of travelling in an urban area(even within a regional area) within the context of declining energy production, in the way of net energy.
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Connor Horman says,
Vote to support LRT!!!
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Scott Culp says,
As a transit user I understand the importance of a connected city and the focus on reducing the congestion of motor vehicles in the downtown core.
I am also a Hamilton Airport employee and hope that eventually a North South extension will tie in to the planned East West route and re-vitalize an often overlooked alternative to Pearson International.
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Miranda Lee says,
It's time to let Hamilton grow up to be the city it's becoming. Light Rail is good for business and good for the environment. A more accessible, more densely populated urban centre yields exponentially more in tax revenue than sprawl. Our city is gaining traction as a place you can come and start your dream business, be movers and shakers, and saying no to an opportunity like this is saying that Hamilton is not that kind of city, but is a city stuck in the mindset of urban decline. Downtown is the hub of the suburbs and should not be treated as a no-man's land any more! Hamilton has highways to get you from one end of town to the other at high speeds. We don't need our arterial roads to be mini-highways; we need them to be filled with shops that supply the not only goods and services but also jobs and tax revenue.
Please, saying no to LRT is saying no to a thriving Hamilton.
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Greg McNally says,
Lrt will complete change hamilton in such a positive way not doing this project would be such a mistake. I lived in Vancouver for almost 3 yrs. I've talked with business owners and citizens of the city. During construction of the Canada line from downtown to yvr tensions were heightened. Now most would agree the city couldn't live without it.
City council needs to accept this project. Build on the momentum the city has with the younger generations wanting to make this city greater.
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Aidan Hennebry says,
BUILD THE LRT IMMEDIATELY! This is insane that we're still contemplating turning down $1 billion in infrastructure from the province!!
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Matthew Bennett says,
LRT is the future, get with the times...
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Deborah Tompkins says,
I have a simple request. Please don't screw this up for me, for my children and other Hamiltonians, present and future. Please, Councillors, think bigger than your own ward. Represent what's best for your city.
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Sarah Newman says,
I rode the HSR to and from school every day of high school. When I moved to Ottawa two years ago to attend university, the first thing I noticed was the public transit; it is just so much better here. In my opinion, the O-Train LRT line is what cinches it.
An LRT would vastly improve transit in Hamilton, and make transit a more attractive option to commuters. Here in Ottawa, I ride the O-Train to school every day, and it is vastly superior to a bus -- it cuts my travel time down exponentially, it is a comfortable and smooth ride, it is always on time, as opposed to a buses reliance on good traffic. BRT lanes are an essential facet of al large city's transit plan but they are not a substitute for an LRT, monorail, or subway system. Ottawa's LRT allows me to live in an affordable neighbourhood farther away from my university, and still be able to make it to class in 30 minutes. I believe the same could be done for many areas in Hamilton, perhaps allowing downtown core residents to easily work in affluent Stoney Creek, or allowing McMaster students to easily live outside of pricey Westdale.
When I lived in Hamilton, I hated taking transit. Now that I have access to the O-Train LRT, it's fast and easy. Take Ottawa's example and don't turn down the $1 billion LRT grant -- it's helping us build a shortcut to downtown right now.
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Jason Haggerty says,
A city as major as Hamilton deserves to have an lrt line as part of its transit network. Don't squander a good opportunity.
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Cara Carrothers says,
Progress moves us forward. We have momentum Hamilton, let's move forward United.
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Peter Scholtens says,
I'm a mountain resident. I support light rail because what's good for the lower city is good for all of us.
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Jack Wilson says,
Not like better transit is beneficial or anything...
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John Fernandes says,
I strongly support LRT in the community. Just because LRT doesn't run in every neighbourhood doesn't mean it doesn't benefit them. A stronger city benefits all its neighbourhoods. This LRT line should be just the start... I look forward to see it one day run to stoney creek and to the airport.
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Jason Morse says,
All of Hamilton is better positioned for the coming decades by accepting the LRT investment. High order rapid transit both attracts and accommodates population and job growth. Transit oriented development helps shift new transportation burden away from costly road networks. Assessment growth in already serviced areas is most effective in easing citywide budget pressure. The provincial LRT plan is a huge step towards greater vitality in Hamilton.
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Catherine Cox says,
LRT should have been built long ago - because it's 2016!
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Claire Calnan says,
This is essential for the downtown! Please support the LRT.
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