Quote:
Originally Posted by kyle_olsen
I don't think you get my point that it is a political decision, not entirely a practical one in the end. There are a multitude of reasons that Ottawa could be a branch off the line, and not on the main.
Since it is unlikely this will even go anywhere in the first place, Bytowners should guard against counting their chickens before the eggs are even laid.
I wonder who pays for the loan on the new Ottawa airport after traffic likely collapses?
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What does the Ottawa airport have to do with this? I wouldn't be surprised if there is a downturn in traffic, but the airport is well managed and I don't think they will have any problems managing their debt. FWIW, September traffic showed approximately 7.5% growth over last years traffic, a slight decrease in the growth over the summer, but pretty decent results none the less. The credit crisis really began to escalate in September, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac being taken over by the government on September 7, the month ending with the passage of the $700 billion bailout package on October 1. The traffic for October will be more enlightening, but I remain fairly optimistic. I don't have the numbers on hand to support this, but my understanding is that YOW has a relatively low percentage of VFR travel, the sort which would be most vulnerable to the economic slowdown. The biggest question mark is whether Air Canada will scale back its expansion from the last year.
Nevertheless, I don't really see how any of that changes the favourability of a Montreal-Ottawa-Toronto routing for HSR.