One of the Capital Regional District's most outspoken mayors is throwing cold water on Victoria Council's proposal for free transit for all.
Stew Young says there's simply no such thing as a free ride -- and as far as he's concerned the most immediate need is to address the region's transportation issues is getting the E&N corridor up and running:
" Let's not talk about free transit anymore. If everything was free you'd never get any infrastructure built because you'd be spending in, you know, in different areas operationally. What I want to see is the E&N corridor, as I've said for 4 or 5 years, get it off the backs of the nonprofit organization, move it into an actual government authority, you know under a transit authority under the provincial government. "
Young says the billion dollar corridor needs to be put in use and that will never happen as long as it remains in the hands of a nonprofit.
Young says the other thing that needs to happen involves the bus lanes from Langford to Victoria -- which are a priority -- but he wants to see them opened as HOV (high occupancy vehicle)lanes as well.
" But make it a bus lane with HOV. So if somebody's putting 2 or 3 people in a car let them go in that lane as well. We shouldn't have it empty, and having people in their cars in the traffic trying to get into town, if they're going to start to provide an incentive for cars. So it shouldn't just be all talking about 'bus,' we should be talking about getting more people in cars when you're travelling in and out of Victoria for work."
He wants to see them opened as HOV lanes for cars with more than 1 person, which would help encourage carpooling, and get those cars out of the traffic snarl.