It's going to be a very busy time just keeping up with all of it, which ends at a Council meeting next June or July.
I'm supporting a modified Norman Wilson type alignment ? basically a University Line, Portage Ave., connecting the Airport and the North End.
By this Spring the Task Force is to release its Draft Report, which will likely recommend Light Rail Transit for Winnipeg.
I'm sure that LRT will attract widespread support during the Town Halls and when the Final Report is released.
University Line
At grade from University Transit Terminal, then under or over Pembina Hwy. at Bison Dr. then northward at grade to Jubilee following the CN Letellier Subdivision. After crossing the Jubilee Bridge area, the LRT would use the CN Main Line to Confusion Corner (Corydon/Pembina/Osborne). From Confusion Corner the LRT would travel under Donald St. south to Lombard Ave. & Main or would travel under Osborne St. then on Memorial Blvd. to Portage Ave.
Portage Ave. Line
The Portage Ave. Line would swing westward (continuing underground) along either Portage Ave. or at grade along Graham Ave. and become the Portage Ave. subway. Phase I or II would end at either Polo Park or at Assiniboine Park. There would be a continuation of the Portage Ave. line, to a station at the Airport. From the Airport the LRT can finish up in the McPhillips St. area.
The current Lombard Concourse could become Lombard Station, or part of it. There seems to be sufficient width for trackage, platform and ticket booth here.
Tram Routes
The Rapid Transit Task Force mandate includes metropolitan wide rapid transit, but it should also include on-street transit services. There are several cities worldwide that are (re)installing tram/streetcar services. Between the 1890s and mid-1950s streetcars opeated in Winnipeg. Some of the routes included Corydon, Ellice Ave., Main St., Academy, Stafford. The Task Force should include the (re)installation of tracks along some of these streets and use similar vehicles operating in Austria such as the Bombardier Flexity Outlook
Issues
There are issues relating to alignment that the Task Force will have to deal with.
- When the LRT operates within the downtown area, should it travel along Portage Ave. or along Graham. If Graham then where should the tunnel entrance/exit go ? near the Bay or at Waterfront Drive and Lombard?
- There seems to be a "fork in the road" issue at Confusion Corner. That is, in the past the routing for the University Line continues along the CN Mainline via Donald St. south. The Norman Wilson report and possibly the W.A.T.S. study both use Osborne St. Due to the higher density, it probably makes more sense to route underground via Osborne St. There would be an earlier ROI (Return On Investment) if it were done this way.
- After this line is built, how many diesel buses will Winnipeg require? We currently have 535. Rapid transit will make some routes moot, and having the buses reassigned to feeder bus service (for which buses serve a purpose) will mean fewer buses on the road.
- There are a lot of so-called Express bus routes to/from St. Vital, and they get good ridership. They will probably want easy access to a rapid transit line. The citizens of St. Vital may be best off though if the University Line were to connect with St. Vital via Bishop Grandin to St. Vital Centre. This project could be included in a Phase II or III.
- At one time I considered operating the Portage Ave. Line as at-grade contraflow (reverse direction in lane). However this probably won't work as "true" rapid transit as the rail vehicles would still have to stop for traffic signals. Subterranean seems the only way to go.
- Some transit routes which currently experience low ridership will no doubt become much more crowded as feeder buses to the rapid transit Stations. These routes would be:
- 12 William
- 29 Sherbrook
- 71 Arlington
- 95 Morley-Kenaston
