By Pepper Parr
October 19th, 2024
BURLINGTON, ON
Public transit has always been a problem for Burlington.
It has been very difficult to plan transit routes with the QEW cutting through the city.
Burlington grew as a single-family housing community – the car came with the house.
Transit problems were not managed all that well until Sue Connors was appointed to the job.
When Marianne Meed Ward became the Mayor her very pro-transit views began to drive the agenda. The year before the pandemic hit the world a limited free transit use program was put in place – transit use numbers soared.
The Mayor did not have total agreement with her Council colleagues.
There is a $6 million cost to upgrade the fleet floating around that no one has every broken out.
Funding for new busses comes from the federal government – every time a new bus arrives either city staff or Council members are trotted out to the transit garage for a photo op.
New bus = photo op
New bus – staff dragged out to welcome the diesel-driven vehicle.
Transit is caught up with the transition taking place from diesel busses to electrically driven buses.
Different skill sets are needed to handle the maintenance of the buses.
It is a complex issue that gets muddled with the different views people in Burlington have on how they are going to get around the city.
They want to drive their cars – on streets that at times are in a state of gridlock.
It is going to take some very deft thinking to manage the change that will eventually take place.
On that level – Burlington is not leading.
BRAG – Burlington Residents’ Action Group is running a survey in a first stab at gathering some data. Here is the link to that survey. Your views are important click HERE
