The Livable Blog

Is Carole James' reversal from a "transit first" position to embracing a super-sized Port Mann Bridge and expanded Highway 1 realistic?

In the Georgia Straight story today, Carole James calls herself realistic and claims that the contract will be signed. Of course, you'll expect me to be outraged, and I am- embracing this project is wrong for so many reasons- but the more so since details have become public that a deal being signed before the election is underway is "ambitious".

A Project Finance article has been reported on by Jeff Nagel (Black Press) and Jonathon Fowlie (Sun) that shows the deal is in doubt, Kevin Falcon hedges, and another recent report indicates that Falcon and the provincial government may be respopnsible for delaying the deal. Even the Vancouver Sun editorial board has doubts about the deal. With these questions, and many more besides, it seems to me that the realistic thing to do is to get answers from the people responsible, particularly when you are leader of the Opposition, not cave to blacktop politics.

I realize that Carole James has had a bit of a rough ride with a few reporters and columnists, all assuming that there is broad support for Gateway, and a now a bloated version of it. Perhaps this negative attention has chased Ms. James to what she perceives is a safer position- vague acceptance of the project and suport of transit, allowing her to point a finger at Falcon when impacts of the project hit home and maintain appeal to the majority of us who want more and better transit. This assumption about the popularity of expanding the Port Mann and Highway 1 is primarily based upon what Vaughn Palmer reported as an unscientific opinion poll- the public feedback forms from the open houses, years ago (the results of which also showed that the most popular comment was for more transit). The Highways Minsiter also used to allude to supportive opinion polls but no proof has ever been published. By contrast, the LRC polls and the NDP's own polling has shown the public's preference for transit before freeways.

As Ben West pointed out in Matt Burrow's article, Carole James is right to raise the need for a comprehensive transportation plan and her support of rail for the Valley is encouraging, but with support of the super-sized mistake that is Gateway, the NDP have embraced a business-as-usual mindset that will not serve the residents of the Lower Mainland. Gateway is countrary to the goal of making Vancouver the greenest city on Earth and the goal of making the growing city of Surrey livable and sustainable. It will increase our greenhouse gas emissions, make our region more car-dependent and so worsening our ability to deal with peak oil and undermining the health of residents. One may trick oneself into embracing such an ugly beast to further one's political goals, but to embrace it when there are so many doubts about the project, amounts to abdication of one's responsibilities as Leader of the Opposition. The NDP has alluded to a transportation plan of their own, but at this rate it better be really, really good, or a whole constituency of support will simply get on the Green Party bus.