Raise the Hammer

Metrolinx projects are completed on time and on budget?

Toronto Union Station Renos: 2 years overdue, $160 million over budget
Presto Rollout: triple its original budget at $700 million according to the AG. You read that right. Originally budgeted at $250 million. Final cost projected to be $700 million and Metrolinx refuses to confirm that that will be the final price tag
Spadina Subway extension: $800 million over budget and a projected open date 2 years overdue

That's off the top of my head. All Metrolinx projects. All over budget. I will say UPX was on time and on budget. The bad news is that it continually loses money. Imagine that. A train from Union to Pearson in a city of over 2 million and it can't even break even. Wow. Metrolinx. Top notch. UPX president had to resign over that one.

Ryan, put your money where your mouth is. I will bet you $10,000 that the Hamilton LRT will be over budget which means that it will be trimmed since the $1 billion is a hard cap. The James St spur will not be built. And I hear what you're saying about phased LRT better than none but it may surprise you to learn that the provincial debt is projected to be $350 billion by 2020. There will be no further funding for municipal transit projects. I promise you.

I echo bobby2: an LRT is nice to have and one day will even be necessary. But now is not the time. The province needs to turn its finances around first. The money simply isn't there.

I'm a Hamiltonian, born and raised, and I'm seriously considering moving out of this province. The situation in Ontario can't be sustained indefinitely. We're broke. Our debt is the largest subsovereign debt on planet Earth. Twice the debt of California with half the population. Cuts are coming. To healthcare. To education. Increases to hydro are also coming. A 1% increase in interest rates means Ontario will pay another $350 million a month on interest alone to service its debt. What do you think Hamilton will look like in 20 years if Ontario is bankrupt? Look at the big picture. We have a moral obligation to refuse this funding and tell the province it needs to start managing taxpayer money more carefully.

Comment edited by JimC on 2016-10-26 18:11:58