2022 Municipal Election - Page 10

ScreamingViking · #**181** Posted **Nov 8, 2023, 4:14 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheRitsman

Anytime the city wants to touch something over or under a train line, or provincial road the city must consult with the rail owner or highway owner. In this case CN who are known to be difficult. My understanding is they had to ask if they can do anything or if it is the responsibility of CN. CN has essentially said they will not be doing work on the bridges, but the city has been given permission to fix them.

Having spoken to Cameron personally about this when we were out knocking on doors, I don't think he thought CN would pay for anything.

They have projects being worked on. Staff do not enjoy being directed by council members to drop their current work and do something else. There is planning that is involved in large organizations like this. I'm actually surprised they're doing it so quickly. Usually politicians wouldn't tell you about this until March when it's going to get fixed next week to make it look like they do stuff really fast, but that's not the reality of how these things work unfortunately.

CP are the difficult ones when it comes to the former TH&B tracks into the GO Centre. I had thought some of the rail crossings and their undersides were fixed up when GO service was introduced, but that was a while ago and the conditions on the streets beneath them is horrid today. Not just the bird poop, but garbage, drug paraphernalia, inadequate lighting... I walked to that station when I lived off Locke and quickly changed my route to avoid the underpass on James, not that I had much to fear personally, but it was just gross.

CP is also the entity that demanded an LRT underpass for their track east of Gage that's used maybe 2-3 times per day by trains. That has to be a very costly part of the project!

Are there still issues with the road bridges crossing the CN line around West Harbour? Many have been replaced, haven't they? (I think James is the only one that hasn't, but it seems to be in good shape at least when driving across). The level crossings in the city are generally really bad, especially at the spurs but even the ones that intersect the main line can be an adventure (Woodward, Ottawa, Gage, and Sherman, for example). I think a few have been improved in the past year or so but I imagine it was a teeth-pulling experience to have that done. CP has some iffy ones too east of downtown.

Innsertnamehere · #**182** Posted **Nov 8, 2023, 2:20 PM**

Hamilton has started to install stronger level-crossing protections lately which should help with the level of maintenance on them. They use a concrete base which should stand up better to traffic.

Victoria was done a year or two ago:

https://www.google.com/maps/@43.2634...8192?entry=ttu

They also just did Wellington a few weeks ago.

they also did it for the spur crossing of Victoria few blocks north close to Burlington St, but this one has a bunch of grade issues with the tracks not matching the road grade which causes it to become basically a massive speed hump:

https://www.google.com/maps/@43.2680...8192?entry=ttu

TheHonestMaple · #**183** Posted **Nov 8, 2023, 7:09 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere

Hamilton has huge issues with maintenance of the public realm which I honestly think is a big reason it has such a "rough" reputation visually.. It's not just the cracked asphalt, it's the day to day maintenance of public streets as well. The city is way behind other municipalities on litter collection, weed control, etc. One of the best examples is the maintenence of the downtown rail underpasses - which is hilariously poor. Good to see that changing, especially since so many visitors experience it as a result of the proximity to the GO Station.

Should we expect this to improve with the increased tax revenue we will be getting with all these condo buildings? And will the money we save on infrastructure along KLing because of the LRT help at all?

You are right, downtown Hamilton looks so rundown because it's just not looked after. I don't think downtown Hamilton actually lacks wealth, it just appears to.

Innsertnamehere · #**184** Posted **Nov 27, 2023, 3:57 PM**

https://globalnews.ca/news/10116918/...d-olivia-chow/

The province is going to upload the DVP and Gardiner in Toronto - I wonder if this could have implications for Hamilton with the RHVP and Linc.

If Horwath had half a brain she should be pushing the province to upload the highways like in Toronto. Honestly, they function more as provincial facilities than the DVP and Gardiner do anyway as they provide the most direct connection from Niagara to SW Ontario. Lots of traffic on them is not destined for Hamilton (or even Canada, with many drivers coming from the US East Coast and going to Michigan cutting through Canada along the highway), while the Gardiner / DVP almost exclusively serve trips too and from Toronto.

Lets hope she can reverse what has generally been a pretty disappointing first year of her mayorality.

PaperSun · #**185** Posted **Nov 27, 2023, 7:56 PM**

Looks like Ontario Place was part of the deal for the province to take DVP and Gardiner

ScreamingViking · #**186** Posted **Nov 27, 2023, 11:30 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere

If Horwath had half a brain she should be pushing the province to upload the highways like in Toronto. Honestly, they function more as provincial facilities than the DVP and Gardiner do anyway as they provide the most direct connection from Niagara to SW Ontario. Lots of traffic on them is not destined for Hamilton (or even Canada, with many drivers coming from the US East Coast and going to Michigan cutting through Canada along the highway), while the Gardiner / DVP almost exclusively serve trips too and from Toronto.

+1

matt602 · #**187** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 12:16 AM**

Highly doubt it'd ever happen. The RHVP and Linc are nowhere near as important to the province as the DVP and Gardiner. Hell, Hamilton itself is nowhere near as important as Toronto and as weird as it sounds, I'd dare say Ford and Chow have a far better working relationship than Ford and Horwath.

ScreamingViking · #**188** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 1:56 AM**

The politics will be fierce, and the province will point to the LRT investment and forthcoming widening of Hwy 6 South as Hamilton's "gets"... but at least lay the ground work.

Adding a lane each way to both parkways will require provincial money anyway. And the time for that is coming soon.

Linc/RHVP directly support the "trade corridors" argument that was a large basis for the Herb Gray Parkway and Gordie Howe bridge in Windsor. I think that messaging is soon going to swing around again as a key reasoning for future highway investments... and this government loves to talk about how many jobs it creates.

TheRitsman · #**189** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 2:13 AM**

The city could just threaten tolls. That would provide a push to Ford.

StuffedPouch · #**190** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 2:56 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheRitsman

The city could just threaten tolls. That would provide a push to Ford.

The City doesn’t have authority to do that. The Provincial Liberals blocked it, and our current Mayor + NDP caucus referred to any tolling scheme as “Lexus Lanes” whenever the last two Premiers even hinted at the idea.

Given that most of the part-time left leaning Councillors couldn’t even bother to show up for the Vacant Home Tax, I doubt it could ever advance even if it was legal.

Innsertnamehere · #**191** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 1:38 PM**

Threatening tolls on the Linc and RHVP would also be political suicide in this city lol. It's barely feasible politically in Toronto, where like half of voters don't even drive. Hamilton would lose it if it was proposed here.

TheRitsman · #**192** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 3:04 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere

Threatening tolls on the Linc and RHVP would also be political suicide in this city lol. It's barely feasible politically in Toronto, where like half of voters don't even drive. Hamilton would lose it if it was proposed here.

They could just toll non-residents of Hamilton and that would hit both birds with one stone. Not piss off Hamiltonians and still get the attention of Ontario. Nobody in Oakville is going to show up to destroy JP Danko because of tolls on outside residents and Janet isn't going to vote for John Smith instead of JP because of tolls that don't affect her. Problem solved.

Man, I should be a politician.

SteelTown · #**193** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 5:15 PM**

Cameras have been set up to collect data from out-of-town people using the Linc and Red Hill since 2017. But that's it; they are just collecting data.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamil...ucks-1.4173240

drpgq · #**194** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 6:40 PM**

Maybe the city could convince the Ontario NDP to put uploading these highways in their program. Maybe the Liberals too.

ScreamingViking · #**195** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 7:01 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteelTown

Cameras have been set up to collect data from out-of-town people using the Linc and Red Hill since 2017. But that's it; they are just collecting data.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamil...ucks-1.4173240

Trucks, unless the monitoring was expanded. And rightly so for the city to look into that, because large trucks cause the most damage to roads.

Did this actually get implemented? (the article notes a ratification vote was to follow) And if so, were any results or trends ever made public? That is the kind of info the city would want to take to the provincial government as evidence that uploading is warranted, or at least to ask for a bunch of financial help.

LikeHamilton · #**196** Posted **Nov 28, 2023, 8:23 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheRitsman

They could just toll non-residents of Hamilton and that would hit both birds with one stone. Not piss off Hamiltonians and still get the attention of Ontario. Nobody in Oakville is going to show up to destroy JP Danko because of tolls on outside residents and Janet isn't going to vote for John Smith instead of JP because of tolls that don't affect her. Problem solved.

Man, I should be a politician.

If you travel the Link and Red Hill a lot from out of town, there are ways around making your vehicle look like its from Hamilton.

ScreamingViking · #**197** Posted **Nov 29, 2023, 12:00 AM**

It's all a moot point. The provincial government would put the kibosh on any kind of tolling.

Remember that Toronto's proposal to toll the DVP and Gardiner was quashed by the Wynne Liberals. The PCs have even less appetite for the idea.

Personally, I think something will have to be done in future as electrics become a larger proportion of the privately-owned vehicle fleet in Ontario and fuel tax revenues wane; perhaps a charge based on km-driven. At that point, maybe the charges can be varied by place (e.g., want to drive in central Toronto? it will cost more per km) or route.