Winnipeg City Transit/Rapid Transit

[Greco Roman]

Originally Posted by amac

In that case, I have three words for ya. Monorail. Monorail. MONORAIL! But enough fantasy talk, it will never happen in the 'Peg. The best the city can do is throw in a few articulating busses. Yipee.

It will happen in Regina and Saskatoon before Winnipeg at this rate. They will become the type of city that Winnipeg should have been in the first place, but then again, what else is new

It is absolutely heartbreaking.

[amac]

Originally Posted by Greco Roman

It will happen in Regina and Saskatoon before Winnipeg at this rate. They will become the type of city that Winnipeg should have been in the first place, but then again, what else is new

It is absolutely heartbreaking.

Yeah, it's sad. The city should have done this 20-30 years ago, then we wouldn't have ended up with that congested nightmare of a "bus mall" on Graham Ave.

[vid]

Originally Posted by Andy6

That's called a bus.

Oh, so that's why Toronto doesn't have a subway!

[1ajs]

http://www.onegreencity.com/

[LilZebra]

Originally Posted by amac

Yeah, sometimes I wonder if monorail technology is viable in our climate. Are there examples of monorail systems in other cities operating reliably in -35c temperatures? There aren't any monorail systems in Canada as far as I know. Correct me if I'm wrong.

BTW, the Seattle monorail is noisy as hell – noisy as anything on two rails. I expect something quieter for a technology that supposed have no moving parts. Perhaps more modern systems aren't so noisy, after all, the thing is almost 50 years old.

Then build it 100% underground like the Montreal Metro.

We have a much colder climate than Montreal, so it makes more sense to design for cold, inclement weather here.

[amac]

Originally Posted by jimj_wpg

Then build it 100% underground like the Montreal Metro.

We have a much colder climate than Montreal, so it makes more sense to design for cold, inclement weather here.

YES! Something like the Metro would be fantastic, but that's treading into ultimate fantasy territory. It would be the most expensive project of all, but the best for a city like Winnipeg. Imagine two lines, one running east/west, the other running north/south. The lines could converge at Portage and Main where there's already an underground concourse. I lived in Montreal for several years and getting around town was a breeze. As long as you live near a Metro station, the city is at your disposal.

[Greco Roman]

Originally Posted by 1ajs

http://www.onegreencity.com/

Building bikepaths alone does not make Winnipeg "one green city". I don't buy that. Winnipeg has a declining transit use and increasing car dependancy; how is that in any way, shape and form green?

You really want to be green? Implement strategies that cater to a variety of people; bike paths, buses, LRT, etc. Give people options and you would be amazed at what you can accomplish.

If you are going to talk the talk, then you better walk the walk. No more fucking excuses for why you "can't".

Enough with the stupidity already. Quit aiming for mediocrety and do the right thing.

[amac]

Originally Posted by Greco Roman

Building bikepaths alone does not make Winnipeg "one green city". I don't buy that. Winnipeg has a declining transit use and increasing car dependancy; how is that in any way, shape and form green?

You really want to be green? Implement strategies that cater to a variety of people; bike paths, buses, LRT, etc. Give people options and you would be amazed at what you can accomplish.

If you are going to talk the talk, then you better walk the walk. No more fucking excuses for why you "can't".

Enough with the stupidity already.

I agree. It baffles me when people start talking about bike paths when the topic of better public transport comes up. I'm all for building bike paths, but for most people it's really not a viable solution for day to day commuting.

[vid]

Especially when you consider that most businesses don't front onto bike paths.

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by vid

Oh, so that's why Toronto doesn't have a subway!

It's one reason that Toronto hasn't built more than a couple of miles of new subway in the last 30 years, despite population concentrations and traffic jam problems that dwarf those in Winnipeg. The four-stop Sheppard subway cost something like $1 billion 5-10 years ago and despite reasonable ridership is such a drain on the city's finances that there is serious talk of closing it down. Winnipeg cannot possibly afford a subway.

[vid]

They should have built a subway on Queen Street instead. Though the Sheppard Subway has had a densifying effect in the area it serves, which could save it. It definitely was a built-it-and-will-they-come? project, though, and probably shouldn't have been built.

Winnipeg doesn't need a subway, but it could certainly use light rail. Light rail, unlike subways, is something Toronto is building more of, and something that many cities in Southern Ontario (Including Hamilton, Mississauga and Kitchener-Waterloo) are planning to build. Winnipeg could only benefit from a light rail system.

[flatlander]

http://www.metro-magazine.com/images/brt/top25_2008.pdf

[The Jabroni]

Very last on that list... not that it matters.

[vid]

Of course it doesn't matter. The list is alphabetical!

[fengshui]

Transit afraid of success, may also be scared of own shadow.

Winnipeg Transit is too scared of annoying motorists to build more diamond lanes, charges the former head of the city's rapid transit task force.

Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt said he fears Winnipeg Transit does not have the stomach to designate more lanes for buses on major streets due to fears about a backlash from people in personal vehicles.

Currently, Winnipeg has 6.7 kilometres of diamond lanes near 41 busy intersections. The city is supposed to designate more lanes for buses and bicycles along commuter routes, but Winnipeg Transit is having second thoughts after conducting computer simulations on major arteries such Henderson Highway, Notre Dame Avenue, McPhillips Street and St. Mary's Road, Wyatt said.

"Basically, they say they won't work and they're concerned about potential push-back. I'm not sure if it's self-censorship or whether there's been political pressure," said Wyatt, a big fan of diamond lanes because he considers them an inexpensive way of improving transit service.

"We can't build dedicated bus-ways around the entire city (because) it would cost half a billion dollars. So diamond lanes are a way to use existing roadways and still improve transit."

Winnipeg Transit's supposed timidity is disheartening to Wyatt because he believes diamond lanes were one of the more pragmatic recommendations made by the rapid transit task force, which Mayor Sam Katz struck after a southwest Winnipeg bus-way plan was shelved in 2004.-
Wyatt suggested Winnipeg Transit's computer simulations are too pessimistic because they assume the city will never expand its fleet of buses.

"For 20 years, the fleet has operated 535 buses. But the city has grown, so that means less frequent bus service in any given place," he said. "The obvious solution is to buy more buses." Wyatt's allegations come at a contentious time for Winnipeg Transit, as the city and the province are in the midst of deciding how to spend $17.9 million worth of new federal transportation dollars.

Rapid transit advocates hope that cash will be funnelled toward the construction of a $70-million bus-way between downtown and Jubilee Avenue, but the money could also be spent on bike trails or conventional transit upgrades.

And last week, Statistics Canada released a report that suggested Winnipeg commuters are eschewing public transit while workers in most other Canadian cities are embracing it in greater numbers.

"This is embarrassing at a time when some people are predicting gas could hit $1.50 a litre this summer," Wyatt said. Winnipeg Transit declined to respond to Wyatt's allegations. Spokesman Ken Allen said more diamond-lane construction is planned for summer, but it's too early to say where the lanes will go.

A spokesman for a transit lobby group, meanwhile, called on Transit to show more spine."We're looking for the city to take a leadership role on transit issues and think long-term," said Paul Hesse of the Winnipeg Rapid Transit Coalition. "We believe dedicated bus-ways would go a lot further to making motorists happy, but diamond lanes can be part of a (modern) transit system."

bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca

[The Jabroni]

I think it's time for the city to step up. They need to aggressively advertise transit use for everyone, and I mean EVERYONE. Gas prices have already left Earth orbit, and spending double, or even triple the amount of gas we're spending on from 10 years ago to today, is beginning to be, or if not, already not worth it anymore.

[ILYR]

Originally Posted by The Jabroni

I think it's time for the city to step up. They need to aggressively advertise transit use for everyone, and I mean EVERYONE. Gas prices have already left Earth orbit, and spending double, or even triple the amount of gas we're spending on from 10 years ago to today, is beginning to be, or if not, already not worth it anymore.

Looking back on the Poll Car vesus Other, we can see the people on this forum are more or less split between using their cars and transit.

Using your car:
100% 28.57
50-75% 26.19
25-50% 14.29
0-25% 30.95
of a total of 42 votes

I think that it is a combination of the city/province stepping up to advertise/fund transit and individuals to start and take more responsibilty for their actions. The two can feed of each other and build momentum. Problem is it can also move in the opposite direction.

[amac]

"Winnipeg commuters are eschewing public transit" because our current system sucks – as do many of the half-assed proposals to improve it. Adding more bus routes... bus lanes... high-speed busses... articulating busses... bus this, bus that... it all means the same thing: freezing your ass off at the bus stop six months out of the year. If I had a car, I'd say "fuck that" too. I seriously doubt that ANY of these shitty proposals have been put forth by people who actually take – or ever intend to take – public transit. The city is just looking for the cheapest way to shut people up, but the issue will never die until they start thinking outside the bus box. Why does the city always have to do what's cheapest instead of what's best? FIND THE MONEY.

[nordique]

god damn this city is cheap. "what? build light rail transit which benefit from our province's abundant hydro electricity, which will lower fees and emissions, which will in turn look more attractive and appealing for bus riders, which will result in higher profits, in turn allowing more light rail development which will mean more trains and decreased wait times ensuring both a happy business and customer? bahahaa, that's just silly. obviously we just need to spend $275 on cans of white paint and close down lanes on major arteries that will be used 5% of the time due to lack of buses to fill said corridors, thus tying up traffic moreso, wasting more of this $1.20 gas and making the world a stupider place. look at me, i'm a city of winnipeg councillor! fiddle-dee-dee!"

[amac]

Yeah, Winnipeg: cheap, cheap, cheap. Just a side thought: Wouldn't Winnipeg seem like a more attractive option for people considering leaving larger cities because of the high cost of living (i.e. Vancouver) if we had big-city conveniences like an LRT system? Maybe this city wouldn't seem like such a backwater. Building an LRT sends the message that we're a modern, progressive, forward-thinking city. The new airport is a step in the right direction, why not an LRT? Like it or not, these are the things that separate big towns from real cities. Winnipeg won't truly evolve if we keep limping along with a lame public transportation system.