Wednesday 5 January 2011

Rob Ford's Subway Plan vs Transit City - as we've been saying - Do The Math, Rob

Subways would cost more and serve fewer, group says - thestar.com
Excerpts:

Penny-pinching Mayor Rob Ford’s subway plan would cost three times as
much as the proposed Transit City light rail lines and attract only
half as many riders, according to a study released Wednesday by a
sustainable energy think tank.


Although Ford hasn’t officially endorsed a transit expansion plan,
the study suggests the mayor would be spending about $344 million per
kilometre on subways that would attract about 65 million rides annually.


The light rail plan Ford has disparaged would accommodate 126
million rides annually at a cost of $111 million per kilometre, says the
report, Making Tracks to Torontonians, by the Pembina Institute.

...

While both plans would serve Downsview, Agincourt and the Scarborough
Town Centre, the light rail scheme would serve an additional 22
communities stretching across the city.

...

The four light rail lines would bring transit within a six-minute walk of 290,000 people, compared to only 60,000 on subways.

...

The Pembina Institute suggests that subway would take only half as many
cars off the road and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than
200,000 tonnes by 2031, versus a 75,000 tonnes reduction for the subway
plan.


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