The future of Ottawa's Transit

[c_speed3108]

Originally Posted by Richard Eade

Remember that in 2007, the Federal Government changed the tax law to allow the cost of a transit pass to be claimed as a non-refundable tax credit. This effectively makes the bus free for pass holders anyway. The difference is that the rider must front the cash but will 'get it back' at tax time. (This is probably not true for a good number of students, though, since they may already have a low income.)

The other thing about the tax credit scheme is that it comes from all the tax payers of Canada - not just Ottawa tax payers. If the City really wanted to get money from the Feds, it should hike the cost of the worker's passes (non-student Regular and Express) and reduce the amount the City gives OC Transpo.

I don't recall any huge increase in ridership when the Feds started crediting for passes. This leads me to think that the price is not the biggest factor in ridership numbers.

The tax credit does not make the passes free. It means you pay no tax on the income you had to earn to pay for said pass. It is also applied at the lowest tax rate. At the end of the day it is a 15.5% reduction in cost if you can claim it:

What the non-refundable part means is that you also have to have enough tax left to cover the refund. In order words if you already have tons of deductions (basic exemption of 9000-something, child stuff, medical expenses, etc...) are you already down to paying no tax you won't see any advantage to it. You can also get a portion of the refund if say you have $50 bucks of tax left or something.

[lrt's friend]

I think that the tax credit system is the least effective way to draw people to transit. The amount of the saving is quite minimal and as we have seen over the last few years, fare increases have been consistently higher for monthly passes than for cash and ticket users. This is no coincidence. It has been a way for the city to claw back the federal tax credit. The net result when considering the tax credit and the city claw back through higher fare increases on monthly passes, pass holders are now paying more. If the feds really wanted to attract people to transit, they would have invested the tax credit money into transit system upgrades. It's only purpose was to attract a few voters to the Conservative Party.

[c_speed3108]

Originally Posted by Richard Eade

... we have two (three?) Universities and a college in town.

Alright it's Ottawa post-secondary educational institutions trivia hour!!!

We actually have 4 universities on the Ottawa side and 1 on the Hull side.

-University of Ottawa [35000]
-Carleton University [24000]
-St. Paul University [1000]
and the one no ever knows about (yes another religious one)...
-Dominicain University College [275]
http://www.collegedominicain.com/

They are on Empress Avenue near Somerset and Booth...and yes they are small.

And there is a Université du Québec en Outaouais on the Hull side with [6000]

On the public college side there is Algonquin (English) in the west end
[16,000 full-time + 39,956 continuing ]

and La Cite (French) in the east end.
[10000 students some in Hawkesbury]


All numbers are Wikipedia and are probably inaccurate.

[lrt's friend]

We do not have a very effective all-day network in this city and that has kept the off-peak ridership lower than it could be. I think it would be wise for the City to start to fill in its transit NETWORK by adding new all day routes where people want to go. I think that this is the point that ‘lrt’s friend’ keeps trying to hammer home.

Yes, I have been talking about investing our $4B+ so that the end result is a more extensive rapid transit network not entirely focused on downtown and to make more of our decisions based on moving people faster.

There are many benefits from implementing new rapid transit routes (faster travel times, more capacity to move passengers), but there is also a downside, especially the way we have been selecting routes. In cities like Toronto, where subways have been built along major commercial thoroughfares (Yonge, University, Bloor), you have direct replacements for former transit routes and service has been universally improved along those routes. This is also the basis for building several new LRT routes in Toronto. In Ottawa's case, we have not been building rapid transit along major commercial thoroughfares but instead along former rail corridors and along the Queensway. The result has been great for suburban commuters as buses have speeded into downtown compared to before. However, this has also drawn passengers away from former major bus routes, which have subsequently experienced significant service reductions. The result is that transit for shorter trips and to access business areas outside of downtown has deteriorated over the years or is just plain lousy.

What I have been advocating is a bit more balance, so that we invest more inside the Greenbelt to expand the transit network and to make it a little less downtown centric, so that it is easier to get from Point A to Point B without necessarily having to go through downtown. If you really look at it, this is one of the reasons that the O-Train has been a success. It allowed passengers to get to destinations bypassing downtown.

[Franky]

How about a transportation credit for every Ottawaan. It would be equivalent to the cost of a bus-pass. It would be redeemable against a bus-pass or gas or some other approved transportation uses only. It would be a (very small) guaranteed income.

[Richard Eade]

Originally Posted by c_speed3108

...-St. Paul University [1000]
and the one no ever knows about (yes another religious one)...
-Dominicain University College [275]...

I wasn't sure whether St. Paul's had full University standing but I'm glad to hear that it does.

You are right: I didn't know about the Dominicain University College. I have wondered what was in that 'Castle’ on the hill. (I missed what would have been a great photo years ago when I didn't take a picture from Albert of the small, somewhat run down, homes along Empress with the old, decrepit wooden stairs leading up to the elevated 'castle' in the back ground. The look is not the same now. Alas, we can never go back in time.)

Is Dominicain a true university or a college? I am guessing university because it gives out full degrees, but the name is a bit confusing to me.

I didn’t include the two Quebec based institutes because I was thinking about OC Transpo, but I suppose there is some cross border traffic for them.

Thanks for the info.

[c_speed3108]

Originally Posted by Richard Eade

I wasn't sure whether St. Paul's had full University standing but I'm glad to hear that it does.

Yes it is a full university. It is federated with U of O, for various historic reasons. It was created when the Oblates sold U of O to the government of Ontario for $7m in 1965. During the 50's and 60's U of O went through a huge expansion and debt and whatnot was becoming unmanageable. The Oblates moved over to other land they had bought (for expansion) beside the Rideau River and St. Paul was born. St. Paul being small piggy-backs off some things at U of O to save money and such. There is also the opportunity to take courses at the opposite institution (although U of O has this with Carleton as well). Also the Oblates kept a number of seats 8 on the U of O's board and they still have them today.

You are right: I didn't know about the Dominicain University College. I have wondered what was in that 'Castle’ on the hill. (I missed what would have been a great photo years ago when I didn't take a picture from Albert of the small, somewhat run down, homes along Empress with the old, decrepit wooden stairs leading up to the elevated 'castle' in the back ground. The look is not the same now. Alas, we can never go back in time.)

Is Dominicain a true university or a college? I am guessing university because it gives out full degrees, but the name is a bit confusing to me.

It is a university. The names of these things offer very little clue into what they actually are. Think of Asbury College...a high school.

There are university-colleges out west. Dominicain does not fit that bill. I suspect the name might be historic since they go back to 1900. There is also an English French translation in there as well.

I didn’t include the two Quebec based institutes because I was thinking about OC Transpo, but I suppose there is some cross border traffic for them.

Thanks for the info.

Indeed on the transit. (although we quickly arrive at the inter provincial transit issue) I included the Quebec one to show what a higher ed city we have become.

[lrt's friend]

A gruesome waste of money

The Ottawa Citizen


Thursday, July 10, 2008


The terrible decision by city council in late 2006 to kill the original light-rail project still continues to surprise and shock Ottawans.

Anyone who thought you can just press the reset button on the contract, as Mayor Larry O'Brien put it, with no financial ramifications for the city was badly mistaken. River Councillor Maria McRae inquired in May about the cancellation costs and last week she got her sobering answer.

In fact, the tally is $57 million or about a one-time, six-per-cent tax increase. That includes: land purchases of about $20 million; moving utilities at a cost of about $3.5 million; project office costs of $22 million; $5 million on studies; and $5 million set aside for further costs. On the bright side, the city had budgeted $68 million for closure costs so there's money left over. Cold comfort indeed.

Ms. McRae, one of the leading supporters of the north-south project, is furious about the wasted money. Almost $60 million to move absolutely no one. And the original project would have been completed in 2009 with planning for the east-west line proceeding as construction of the north-south project was under way. What an incredible waste, as gas prices rise creating fast-rising demand for public transit. The lack of foresight by council in cancelling this project is mind-boggling.

But just when you thought it couldn't get worse, it did. The $57 million doesn't include potential claims against the city for cancelling the project. Those claims (with the final figure to be decided in or out of court) amount to $277 million or about a one-time 28-per-cent property-tax increase.

There was lots of brave talk in 2006 that costs and claims could be negotiated down to reasonable amounts -- that the city could bully the claimants into submission. Well that's not how the court system works. It should have been clear that such a course was likely to be financially difficult.

Those who thought it wouldn't be were the same "experts" who bought Mayor Larry O'Brien's campaign boast of "zero means zero" when it came to property-tax increases. As we all know now, the real boost this year was just south of five per cent. The skyrocketing cost of running the city could not be wished away by finding real or imagined waste at city hall. Too many witch hunts over the past seven years had found the big savings on Laurier Avenue.

The City of Ottawa is strapped for cash and now is wasting millions of dollars paying for a preventable mistake. There are many to blame for this massive error, such as then-treasury board president John Baird who created the opportunity for council to vote again on a project it had already approved. As well, there is Mr. O'Brien who pushed the reset button and voted to create this mess. And then there were councillors such as Peggy Feltmate and Alex Cullen whose natural inclinations are to support transit, but changed their minds on this workable, well-designed project.

The north-south price tag was $919 million. Instead a project to be completed in 2031 that doesn't go to Kanata, Orléans or Barrhaven has been approved for around $4 billion. What magic produces that money? And for what?

Council has failed miserably on the light-rail file. Now residents are paying for it.

© The Ottawa Citizen 2008

They have just been arguing about this on CFRA .......... passionately

For those of you who think that this was not a waste of money and we will end up making use of the ROW, think again. Diane Deans representing my ward, has conceded that the likely outcome will be an extension of the O-Train and the purchased ROW will not be used for decades.

[c_speed3108]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

They have just been arguing about this on CFRA .......... passionately

For those of you who think that this was not a waste of money and we will end up making use of the ROW, think again. Diane Deans representing my ward, has conceded that the likely outcome will be an extension of the O-Train and the purchased ROW will not be used for decades.

The ROW we might be able to use. At the very least it protects it and we buy it at todays prices....but it is only 20 million of the cost. The other 37 million is more less a total loss....even IF we find some way to wiggle out of said lawsuit.

[Richard Eade]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

...In fact, the tally is $57 million or about a one-time, six-per-cent tax increase. That includes: land purchases of about $20 million; moving utilities at a cost of about $3.5 million; project office costs of $22 million; $5 million on studies; and $5 million set aside for further costs. On the bright side, the city had budgeted $68 million for closure costs so there's money left over. Cold comfort indeed...

For those of you who think that this was not a waste of money and we will end up making use of the ROW, think again. Diane Deans representing my ward, has conceded that the likely outcome will be an extension of the O-Train and the purchased ROW will not be used for decades.

This $57M figure is, it seems, the cost of closing out all of the previously agreed upon deals - excluding the big contract. It would be in addition to the estimated $70-75M that staff aired last year as having already been spent on the project since 2003.

$20M in land? What land did they need to buy once they knew the project wasn't going through? Is this land used for the extension to BTC (maybe money to Urbandale)? Is that land still useful for Option 4? Does it lower the estimate for the N-S component of Option 4? Does this lower the BRT cost of Option 4? This money might not be lost if the land is usable or salable.

$3.5M for moving utilities. I expect that those utilities would have needed to be moved for the N-S component of Option 4. This money might not be lost.

$22M on office costs? That's a lot of folders, and paper-clips! I expect that it includes buying out of leases, etc., but it does seem very high for closing down a project that would have been finished in 2009. This money is lost. I think the auditor should look into why it is so high.

$5M for studied probably payed off consultants for the closing of open EAs, etc.. If studies were finished and are useful for the N-S link, then the money is not lost. If the money just covered the expected profits of consultants and resulted in no useful reports, then it is wasted.

$5 for any bills yet to come in? It has been 1.5 years: shouldn't staff have a handle on this yet? We don't know about this yet.

Do you think the unused $11M (and anything left of the $5M) will be turned over for building transit infrastructure?

I notice that the $57M is calculated to be about a 6% tax increase. This would be based on a $1B tax base. This seems to be a common thing when Staff are estimating tax implications. But isn't Ottawa's budget a $2B budget? Does this mean that about half of Ottawa's income is from sources other than the residential tax base? And that those other sources can not be expanded so that any increase must come from residential taxes?

[Cre47]

From Councillor Leadman in today's Citizen

Originally Posted by Christine Leadman

Let's be careful with the Ottawa River Parkway
The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Thursday, July 10, 2008

Re: The three-kilometre controversy, July 1.

The use of light rail on the Ottawa River Parkway is a pivotal issue that has not been properly addressed. It was the only route identified by staff for this section of the new transit plan with no alternatives properly investigated. One councillor has already said this is the only choice. The National Capital Commission has not ruled out its use; however, they suggest it should be considered a last resort.

As an environmental jewel, the parkway should be protected and all viable alternatives considered, even if it means a substantial route alteration. The use of rail on the parkway is not only a risk to the character and quality of life of the impacted communities, and the entire national capital region, but also places the entire plan in a precarious position. All concern over this critical component of the western portion of the new plan has been referred to a future environmental assessment.

To compound the planning difficulties of this plan, the initial unconfirmed and rough estimate of more than $4 billion for the plan has since grown by many billions. There is no accurate cost currently associated with the project. This plan appears to be nonviable even with substantial funding from partner governments and private industry.

While I voted against the plan for the above reasons, I eagerly await additional information on the plan's specifics from city staff. These will be available this fall and will detail the implementation plan including project selection, full cost-benefit analysis and proper examination of routes. I will work with my colleagues to ensure effective interim and secondary projects that can be advanced today that will provide new improved transit in a cost effective manner without harmful disruptions to the community.

Christine Leadman,

Ottawa

Councillor, Kitchissippi Ward

[lrt's friend]

Well, Alex Cullen was just on CFRA with Georges Bedard and Steve Desroches and the discussion over transit got very heated. I think this is just a taste of the debate that will occur this fall. When the CFRA host mentioned that the track would have been fully laid within weeks and opened next year, if the original project had not been abandoned, it just animated the discussion further.

It is quite clear that there are going to be some major differences of opinion on how priorities will be set. Alex Cullen was determined that downtown must be first while the others want it based on what is ready to be built.

This money might not be lost if the land is usable or salable.

I think it would be foolhardy to sell the land now, effectively abandoning rapid transit in the south entirely at any point in the future. This would be like compounding one mistake on another. At the same time, it is quite predictable that this rapid transit route will be given the lowest priority.

I took a drive out to Barrhaven recently and development around the LRT corridor is proceeding quickly.

[Dado]

Originally Posted by Richard Eade

This $57M figure is, it seems, the cost of closing out all of the previously agreed upon deals - excluding the big contract. It would be in addition to the estimated $70-75M that staff aired last year as having already been spent on the project since 2003.

Funny you should mention that... it's actually the same, except it isn't the same because it's a different amount.

$20M in land? What land did they need to buy once they knew the project wasn't going through? Is this land used for the extension to BTC (maybe money to Urbandale)? Is that land still useful for Option 4? Does it lower the estimate for the N-S component of Option 4? Does this lower the BRT cost of Option 4? This money might not be lost if the land is usable or salable.

I'd like to know what the $20M was for as well. It was my understanding that through Riverside South and Nepean South the developers ceded the land, hence the winding route and stations every 250 m to maximize frontage and land right next to stations. It possibly includes land from the NCC, but the most likely suspect is in fact the rail corridor itself because it wasn't acquired until 2005 as it had been leased from CP since 2001. Also, in 2006, the rest of the former Prescott Subdivision between Leitrim and Hwy 416 was acquired. In other words, not anything to get excited about as being "wasted" given that it includes a bridge across the Ottawa River, a tunnel under Dow's Lake, a bridge across the Rideau and another across Sawmill Creek.

See
http://www.railways.incanada.net/can...ttawa.htm#2000
for references on railway acquisitions

The question that I really want to know is how did the City manage to blow as much on offices ($22M) in a few months as they spent to get the entire O-Train project running in the first place?

[waterloowarrior]

they had to do a bunch of expropriations

for example



^^$1 million


park and ride lots like woodroffe would have been expensive (privately owned),bowesville (leased/bought from Transport Canada)
letrim park and ride phase 1 was privately owned
property for electrical substations
several long term leases that may have needed to be broken (river road park and ride?)
maintenance yard

[lrt's friend]

Hospital link not necessary: Hume

by Sheena Bolton

The News EMC

July 11, 2008

There are mixed emotions regarding the proposal for a hospital link transit corridor that would run along Innis Rd., link to the Ottawa Hospital and travel to the Riverside Transitway.

A motion to start an environmental assessment (EA) statement of work on the surrounding area was approved at the July 2 transit committee.

"I don't think the hopital link is necessarily needed, but I do think, in the corridors that they have identifed, they need to broaden the review so there are other potential corridors," said Alta Vista ward Coun. Peter Hume. "I think it's too narrow near the Browning Ave. area. In fact it's so narrow it will have a devastating effect on the community."

In the past the community went to the Ontario Municipal Board and asked for this proposal to be eliminated.

Howerver, city staff have identifed the corridor as being an asset for serving the growing hospital needs.

"This project was identified in the 2003 Transportation Master Plan to basically serve the future land development along the hospital lands and also extending it to Innis Rd. and eventaully to Blair Station to connect to the rest of the Transitway network. And with the OMB ruling we need to finish this (environmental assessment) by the end of 2009. We are starting this study now to be able to comply with that fully," said Mohammad Tayyaran, program manager for the EA.

Mr. Tayyaran said he expects the EA to be completed by December 2009, which will include the area east from Hurdman Station, along the hospital campus to Innis Rd. and then north along Blair Rd. to Blair Station.

The EA study will look at the area, as well as the impacts, both positive and negative, for the potential alignments of the corridor. A preferred alignment for the project will then be developed on the findings.

A multitude of community associations are invovled with this project, many of whom have different opinions on the necessity of the corridor.

"The Alta Vista Community Association has gone on record opposing the use of the corridor, as it was developed in a rather whimsical way," said John Lark, president of Alta Vista Community Association (AVCA). "The EA has been scoped so narrowly that it won't consider alternatives."

Mr. Lark said he believes the city should look to see if the corridor can run down Industrial or other roads that are more buiness oriented rather than residential.

"It's the most ridiculous thing you've ever seen when there are so many other opportunities," Mr. Lark stated.

He hopes the project is taken out of the city's Transporation Master Plan.

"Doing this when every single adjacent neighbour is terribly opposed, the hospital is opposed, the citizens are opposed, the community association is opposed, it seems to fly in the face of reasonableness and intelligence in terms of planning," said Mr. Lark. "Also because it goes smack through some Ottawa Hydro property and through the fire suppression system for the hospital; it's not thought through."

The Faircrest Heights Community Association (FHCA), on the other hand, would like to see the corridor happen because they believe it's needed to accomodate the future growth of the hospital.

"The FHCA was really established becaused of the problem associated with something so big (the hospital lands) growing up to something so close to a communtiy homes," said Don Melick, past president of FHCA. "In context we were involved in worrying about access to the hospital for quite a while. One reason for that is people who are not well have trouble getting there by public transportation. The other thing is that the city bus service is aligned for the government offices."

The hospital shifts start at 7 a.m. so buses don't fully support that shift change. The community around the hospital has also grown. Their association used to be 550 homes and in the last three years has grown to 750.

Currently the proposal would see a two-lane corridor implemented, with the option to go to four lanes, which would allow for buses and cars. The FHCA would like to see the new city public transit system be able to come through the corridor but also understands the concerns of the Browning Ave. residents.

"But there would be real problems east of the hospital near Browning Ave. because there isn't room for a Transitway without tearing down (around 30) homes, said Mr. Melick. "We understand that other people are concerned about it, first of all because of the issues of what's going to happen if the Alta Vista Transitway goes through, which again depends on how the city does on providing public transportation."

Mr. Melick doesn't feel there is another alternative to the corridor and therefore the project needs to continue.

"We have to realize, this has been hard, that the hospital has to grow, it's going to grow, it has to be well supported by all the community that uses it, which is greater Ottawa and beyond."

I had not heard that this was proceeding so soon. I had suggested this corridor to Mr. Hume's office a few years ago with a similar reaction. Obviously, Mr. Hume will be in a difficult position to oppose the Alta Vista Community Association and therefore his opposition to this project is predictable. Of course, the Alta Vista Community Association will strongly oppose anything that will appear to be the beginning of the Alta Vista Parkway. I believe that the lack of hospital access in Ottawa's rapid transit system has been one of its major weaknesses. Use of this corridor will link in the largest hospital complex in the city and with an aging population, growth of that complex is inevitable. The Alta Vista Community Association is taking a very narrow view of the situation. If they are successful in killing this project, they are going to be encouraging further growth in traffic on Alta Vista Drive, Smyth Road and many other residential streets never designed for such traffic. Regarding Browning Avenue, would it be necessary to expropriate houses if the parking lot for the Perley Hospital was relocated?

[Cre47]

http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&hl=en...=16&iwloc=addr

If they get rid of part of that parking lot, there is pretty much the same space then near Abbey, Cluny Acton and Braydon Streets (if the trees don't get chopped).

This link is necessary to improve service to the hospital as only two routes including with lousy weekend service (the 16) serves the hospital and the route that will replace the 85 will have less Sunday service as well during the afternoon not to mention that it will stop at Elmvale and not at St-Laurent.

[p_xavier]

It was the first time I took the O-Train on the weekend. I was alone... well beside the driver, obviously.

I took the 97 to come back DT, it was full. I really don't understand the arrangement of rapid transit in the South. It's not like the frequency of the 97 was much higher on weekends.

[lrt's friend]

Originally Posted by d_jeffrey

It was the first time I took the O-Train on the weekend. I was alone... well beside the driver, obviously.

I took the 97 to come back DT, it was full. I really don't understand the arrangement of rapid transit in the South. It's not like the frequency of the 97 was much higher on weekends.

I am not surprised by your experience. First, Carleton University is pretty well closed for the summer. Second, the O-Train doesn't go where people want to go on weekends. Third, the 97 runs twice as frequently as the O-Train on Saturdays. Fourth, the 97 goes to the Rideau Centre and Billings Bridge without transfer and connects quickly to St. Laurent at Hurdman. Transfers and service frequency do make a big difference. I do understand that some people use the O-Train to go to and from Bluesfest.

The O-Train is designed to serve people in my community, yet I have used it only once and I don't expect to use it again in the forseeable future. On the other hand, I have used the 97 many times. The many people who believe that an extension of the O-Train to Leitrim is enough for the next 20 years (they almost always live in other parts of the city) fail to understand that the O-Train does not serve the main transit needs of our community.

[lrt's friend]

If they are successful in killing this project, they are going to be encouraging further growth in traffic on Alta Vista Drive, Smyth Road and many other residential streets never designed for such traffic.

Ironically, in the very same issue of the The News EMC, there was an article on a transportation study for Alta Vista Drive and the very same Mr. Lark comments about the necessity of finding ways to restrict traffic on Alta Vista Drive. If Mr. Lark is opposed to rapid transit and cars, how exactly will people access the hospital complex in the future? The General is the closest hospital to my house and the most direct route is via Alta Vista Drive. Forget about transit, it is far too awkward and slow from this end of town.

[Franky]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

Ironically, in the very same issue of the The News EMC, there was an article on a transportation study for Alta Vista Drive and the very same Mr. Lark comments about the necessity of finding ways to restrict traffic on Alta Vista Drive. If Mr. Lark is opposed to rapid transit and cars, how exactly will people access the hospital complex in the future? The General is the closest hospital to my house and the most direct route is via Alta Vista Drive. Forget about transit, it is far too awkward and slow from this end of town.

There is both a transit corridor (which makes no sense to anyone) and a road (part of the AVTC - Alta Vista Transportation Corridor) named "Hospital Link" which leads to much confusion.

Neither are needed for successful public transit. There better alternate routes. A simple connection to Alta-Vista drive at the Hospital Lands would suffice.

The Hospital Link (AVTC) does not improve traffic along Alta-Vista south of Smyth road. Intensive development of the Hospital Lands will in fact increase traffic along Alta-Vista Drive (south) and Smyth road whether the road is there or not.

This article (as submitted) was printed in Riverviews Newspaper (May or June edition)
---
A Hospital Link Alternative
Or - How to save a community from heavy traffic and save the city 60 million dollars.

First we'll look at the city's plans, then look at the proposed alternative. The Hospital Link (shown as crosses in the picture below) is a portion of the Alta Vista Transportation Corridor (AVTC) as defined in the City's Official Plan (large dots). It will connect the General Hospital area to Riverside and the Transitway that flanks it with a tunnel under the Via Rail line, then a bridge over the Transitway and Riverside Drive (which will be realigned to accommodate the structures) then cut through along the bicycle path and wooded area that lines the Rideau River to connect with Riverside Drive at an intersection. It's obvious from the plan that the “Hospital Link” isn't about linking the Hospitals, but in fact simply the first phase of construction on the AVTC.

http://www.ottawa.ca/public_consult/...index_en.shtml

The city's Transportation Master Plan also contains a Transitway for Buses that would use the Hospital link alignment to connect Hurdman station to the East end of Ottawa (triangles). A volume of traffic from Orleans is scheduled to be routed from Innes along the Browning corridor continuing along Balena Park and hooking up to the infrastructure of the Hospital Link and on to the Transitway heading to Hurdman.

The AVTC has been planned since the days of superhighways and cheap gas. Times have changed. People are starting to understand that more and bigger roads into a small area don't make transit faster. They find themselves queued up on a stretch of highway idly waiting for the small downtown streets and limited parking areas already at capacity to clear and fill up. These bottlenecks don't change much and we get longer and longer rush “hours”.

Transit into the downtown section makes sense because it alleviates the need to park vehicles. Large numbers of passengers can be dropped off in relatively little time, using up little space on the crowded inner city streets.

The Alternate Transitway route doesn't cut through the quiet neighbourhood of Riverview Park. It would use an abandoned rail line that went to the train yards (short dashes). Starting at Innes, there is an unused railway bridge just east of St. Laurent. Then the alignment would take the existing St. Laurent underpass. It can be connected to the New Bus Depot, alleviating the load the depot will place on Industrial and speeding up access to the Transitway. Then it would go by the Train Yards which means that a busy transit link will bring patrons to the otherwise drive-to strip mall. The alignment would continue on Terminal Rd. and use the existing bridge to access Hurdman station and the existing Transitway. This alignment would save taxpayers a good $60 million in infrastructure destined for the Hospital Link. It would improve access to and from the new bus depot. It would provide transit bound customers to the Train Yards. The Alternate Transitway route would also avoid chopping up Riverview Park.

It is also possible to extend the Innes end of this alignment all the way to Walkley road (long dashes) which should eliminate the need for the AVTC completely.
---

Alternate route 85 (in purple):