Raise the Hammer

"It's a smart, prudent investment, carefully planned and well-supported by the evidence, that will bring large net benefits to the City of Hamilton. The only way to conclude otherwise is to ignore most of that evidence."

..except that the author avoided to mention some obvious evidence.

1. Running longer LRT trains means wider headways between trains, and therefore longer wait times for customers, especially during low-demand off-peak periods. A minus for attracting ridership.

2. LRT isn't faster than buses. LRT is fast when it runs on dedicated lanes and has traffic-signal priority. Buses can run just as fast if they have the same infrastructure upgrades (http://www.humantransit.org/2009/07/streetcars-an-inconvenient-truth.html).

3. LRT can be blocked by obstacles on the tracks and cannot pass each other (http://www.blogto.com/city/2013/02/what_made_st_clair_streetcars_bunch_up_like_this/). Buses can detour around obstacles.

4. Without bypass tracks, LRT be either local or express service, but not both. The B-line LRT is meant to replace the current route 10 bus. The LRT would be less convenient for route-1 passengers because they would have to walk longer to and from LRT stops. If you run a local B-line service alongside the LRT, then the utility of having the LRT diminishes even more.

5. The high peak capacity of the LRT is a benefit only if the demand warrants. A BRT should provide sufficient capacity (7500+ per direction per hour) for the corridor at lower cost. A BRT can also have both express and local services operating on the same lane.

6. Much of the potential ridership lies outside the catchment area of the LRT. I don't believe why people would switch to transit if they had to wait up to 30 minutes for a local bus before they could transfer onto the LRT. Improvements to the local feeder service, not the LRT, is what attracts those people out of cars and onto buses.

7. High-capacity LRT trains require all-door boarding. The cost of fare evasion and fare enforcement should be factored into the cost of operating the LRT. Buses, even the artics, can often do away with front-door loading so there is little extra cost associated with fare enforcement.

8. Track maintenance needs to be done every 20 to 30 years. It can cause traffic chaos for months. Residents and businesses along the route won't be happy when that happens.

Just because LRT project looks "sexy" on paper, doesn't mean it's the only option that has "a net positive return on investment". There may be options (improvements to the bus/road network, for example) that are just as cost-effective, or even better than the LRT.