Metro Transit

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

Ever consider coming back and running for council?

Not really. That would mean campaigning for the possibility of winning a job with lower pay, longer hours, and many terrible coworkers. I'd be leaving my current career, which could cause problems after one or two terms as a councillor. Realistically as a councillor there's also not a ton of opportunity to make a difference on more than a really small level. If I wanted to have a positive impact on the city I'd be better off starting a business and moving back. I think hiring a dozen people and, say, moving a tech company into downtown offices is a far bigger impact than the cat and chicken bylaws.

I can understand why it's not a very appealing job and why we have councillors getting acclaimed or winning with 1,000 votes. Maybe it will get better with the smaller council.

[Nouvellecosse]

Wow, that sounds pretty dire...

But on the bright side, you sound pretty successful. So kudos for that!

[DB15]

Originally Posted by scooby074

Sort of on the LRT front.

Anybody notice the new walking trail from Upper Water (near the sewage plant) to the MacDonald bridge?

Paved too.

That would have been a great location for the LRT corridor to the dockyards.

Gotta wonder why the heck spend the money on a new, paved walking trail, complete with wooden guardrails and planted trees when there is a sidewalk not 10' away Only in Halifax

It is a multiuse pathway. Cycling on Barrington is a death trap to most. This was badly needed.

[Waye Mason]

Originally Posted by DB15

It is a multiuse pathway. Cycling on Barrington is a death trap to most. This was badly needed.

QFT.

Also - I think the LRT should go down the old railway cut, or the middle of a widened Upper Water Street/Lord Provost Drive.

[someone123]

I believe that path was also built on top of a natural gas line and paid for by a private company.

Nouvellecosse - yeah, I was being negative, mostly because I find it interesting to point out that municipal politics are only really attractive for a narrow subset of the population. I think that's why HRM regional council has such narrow demographics. I'm also not sure that I'd personally be suited to the job.

[alps]

Does that trail alongside Barrington still end abruptly at a concrete barrier at Upper Water street?

Here's a fantasy LRT map I posted a couple years back that uses both that right-of-way, and the rail cut, for LRT:



someone123, if you don't mind me asking: what field do you work in?

[DigitalNinja]

That map is really well done!

Even if we just got B line it would work out really well IMO for Halifax and would get a lot of riders!

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by DB15

It is a multiuse pathway. Cycling on Barrington is a death trap to most. This was badly needed.

The path is what, 1km at most? How is that improving cycling on Barrington? You still have to merge with traffic both before and after the new trail.

Frankly, I say screw the cyclists.. They bitched and moaned trying to get a bike lane along Agricola that would interfere with established businesses and customers.. You know the ones paying taxes there.

Cyclists.. yet another special interest group in halifax

That corridor used for LRT would be much more beneficial to the majority of citizens compared to its current use.

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by someone123

I believe that path was also built on top of a natural gas line and paid for by a private company.
.

Not sure if it's over a gas line or not. I'll look for markings next time i'm by.

Also unsure of who is paying for it. Land is owned by HRM. Estimated Budget for the project that I saw,was $147,000. Its almost comical. No mention of private partnership that I saw.

[spaustin]

Originally Posted by scooby074

The path is what, 1km at most? How is that improving cycling on Barrington? You still have to merge with traffic both before and after the new trail.

Frankly, I say screw the cyclists.. They bitched and moaned trying to get a bike lane along Agricola that would interfere with established businesses and customers.. You know the ones paying taxes there.

Cyclists.. yet another special interest group in halifax

That corridor for LRT would be much more beneficial to the majority of citizens compared to its current use.

Right, because all cyclists are leaches Have you ever looked at the bridge in the morning during rush hour? It's quite a constant string of bikes commuters going to jobs Downtown. Cycling is something we should be promoting. Our climate isn't that bad compared to a lot of places because we don't get a lot of really bone chilling cold and the snow tends to come and go. We're also blessed with a nice and compact old city that makes cycling a good way to get around. Bicycle lanes cost very little to install and maintain compared to roadways and carry obvious benefits to society in terms of moving people around efficiently and promoting healthy living. Pretty much anyone can afford a bike so they're great for those who don't have a lot of cash but still need to get around. The whole bikes versus cars or the now even sillier bikes versus LRT debate is tiresome. One does not preclude the other. If we ever had an LRT built along Barrington, the cycling lane could easily be moved. Although you're absolutely right about HRM's tendency towards useless infrastructure. HRM's scattershot approach to cycling really helps no one. We don't have an active transportation network, we have a bunch of unconnected pieces. Where do they think cyclists go when the lanes just vanish or there's no easy way to get to them? When I cycle in from Dartmouth, I come off the bridge and immediately head up Artz to Brunswick as Barrington just isn't worth going near!

[cormiermax]

Originally Posted by scooby074

The path is what, 1km at most? How is that improving cycling on Barrington? You still have to merge with traffic both before and after the new trail.

Frankly, I say screw the cyclists.. They bitched and moaned trying to get a bike lane along Agricola that would interfere with established businesses and customers.. You know the ones paying taxes there.

Cyclists.. yet another special interest group in halifax

That corridor used for LRT would be much more beneficial to the majority of citizens compared to its current use.

Rob Ford? Is that you?

[scooby074]

Take a drive some summer day from Tantallon to Hubbards along St. Margrets Bay Rd. and you'll learn all you need to know about the cyclist mentality..

3 wide, unwilling to move over and let a car by, flipping you the bird and giving dirty looks when you dare pass, because you dont want to drive 15Kph all the way back to Tantallon

Yeah.. well my fuel taxes and licensing paid for a lot of that highway.

Bikers should be required to have plates and pay license fees as well. At least if they had plates one could report their ignorant asses.

Im sure there are respectful bicyclists out there, but a few run ins with the ignorant ones can sour you for the whole breed.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by alps

someone123, if you don't mind me asking: what field do you work in?

Software stuff. Really nothing to do with politics.

[Phalanx]

Originally Posted by scooby074

Im sure there are respectful bicyclists out there, but a few run ins with the ignorant ones can sour you for the whole breed.

The same can be said for plenty of drivers...

[W.Sobchak]

Bicycles, are just another bulwark towards less cars on the road.

While I agree that some attitudes of bicyclists, walk the line of privilege, instead of a right to share the road.

While Halifax has been lucky to this point with a strong grass roots bicycle user base, who have had to knuckle down and deal with a very car focused city. The recent explosion over the last ten years of bicyclist, is a symbol of the times, and a sign for the city to take pro-active steps to encourage this trend of active transportation.

I Portlands multi-modular "bike" lanes.

http://www.streetsblog.org/wp-conten...-bikebox_1.jpg

I feel that Portland is an example of decisive long term approaches, to the North American Urban regression we've experienced, since 1949.

[RyeJay]

Gen Y doesn't buy cars: study

Kids these days. That’s the phrase on the mind of automakers looking at recent trends showing the lack of enthusiasm young people have for purchasing a car. According a recent report by CNW Group, only 27 percent of youths aged 21-34 purchase a new car, compared to 28 percent in 1985. For drivers under the age of 19, the numbers are even worse, having dropped down two thirds from only 1998.

So what’s at the root of young people’s apathy? There are plenty of theories, everything ranging from the economy to mounting student debts to low-paying jobs straight out of school. The answer is most likely a combination of factors.

For young adults coming out of school, many of who have incurred healthy debts, the idea of buying a car and adding to their debt leaves a bad taste in their mouths. Paying off student debts is seen as a priority, while owning a new car is a luxury. Add into the equation low wages and high insurance prices, and you’ve got a potent mix of reasons not to buy a new car.

Link: http://ca.autos.yahoo.com/p/2496/gen...buy-cars-study

[someone123]

There are a lot of generational differences growing that people seem slow to recognize. Most older people I know for example think that younger people have more opportunity now, but I'm not sure how true that really is. With high student debt loads and high costs for things like housing and cars I think we will see lower purchasing power for younger people, delayed child birth, etc. There might be more debt-fuelled spending right now but over the long run that does not result in higher consumer demand.

There are also some big cultural changes, and many of them are good. Smoking for example used to be the thing the cool kids did in 1980 or 1990 and it's just not anymore. Similarly I think suburban living has lost a lot of its appeal in certain cities. The vast majority of Canadian 19-30 year olds grew up in suburbia and consider it uninteresting. The answer to that used to be that the kids will grow up, have kids themselves, and then they will want the 2 car garage and minivan. Younger people aren't having as many kids though. If it weren't for immigration I don't even know if Canada's population would be growing. As it is the population in NS is not growing.

[Halifax Hillbilly]

Originally Posted by RyeJay

Gen Y doesn't buy cars: study

Kids these days. That’s the phrase on the mind of automakers looking at recent trends showing the lack of enthusiasm young people have for purchasing a car. According a recent report by CNW Group, only 27 percent of youths aged 21-34 purchase a new car, compared to 28 percent in 1985. For drivers under the age of 19, the numbers are even worse, having dropped down two thirds from only 1998.

Link: http://ca.autos.yahoo.com/p/2496/gen...buy-cars-study

That's a one percentage point drop - not even statistically significant That's not to argue against the importance of transit, walking, or biking, just to point out the absurdity of the conclusions the article tries to draw about change from 'statistics' that say nothing changed.

[RyeJay]

Originally Posted by Halifax Hillbilly

That's a one percentage point drop - not even statistically significant That's not to argue against the importance of transit, walking, or biking, just to point out the absurdity of the conclusions the article tries to draw about change from 'statistics' that say nothing changed.

For drivers under the age of 19, the numbers are even worse, having dropped down two thirds from only 1998.

You kinda have to keep reading (the entire article) for context...

Good luck.

[Halifax Hillbilly]

Originally Posted by RyeJay

For drivers under the age of 19, the numbers are even worse, having dropped down two thirds from only 1998.

You kinda have to keep reading (the entire article) for context...

Good luck.

What percentage of all car owners are under 19? Very few. What percentage of high school age kids or university freshmen own their own car? Again, not too many. A big drop in new car purchases for what is probably the smallest group of car owners doesn't really say much to me.

Paying off student debts is seen as a priority

around 30 percent of Millennials move back in with their parents

Regardless, the rest of the article goes on to explain why people coming out of university don't buy cars. That would be the age group with the shocking 1% drop in new car ownership over the last 25 years. Adding many plausible reasons for a drop in car ownership among Gen Y doesn't change the fact that the stats they quote show no real change in car ownership for that age group.