There have been many calls to extend the O-Train service north to Gatineau, or to increase its frequency using existing equipment.
At transportation committee next week, according to the Citizen: a motion by Kanata North Councillor Marianne Wilkinson will also be debated. She wants the city to extend the O-Train line, which currently stops at South Keys, south several kilometres to Leitrim Road. This is not called for in the city’s current rapid-transit plan, but there is growing pressure from people living in the southern part of the city for better public transportation options.
What would be the purpose of extending it south through the middle of nothing to the middle of nowhere?
Any money that it would take to do that, would be better spent on the spur to Hull.
Or, I should add, in-filling a gap or two on the existing line (Gladstone, Walkley).
I favour extending the O-Train. It is an inexpensive extension of an already popular service (that is derrided as going from and to nowhere, via Carleton U). Put the transit in first and as the area develops it will attract residents who value transit, who will be able to avoid buying second or third cars, it will delay road expansion to the south, and it may even cause development to accelerate in the south instead of on the E/W Qway axis.
– Eric Darwin
But what is there in the south to extend it to, cheaply? The line as far out as Leitrim passes near the airport… sorta… but it wouldn’t be cheap to run it to the terminal. Beyond that… there’s a lot of NCC-controlled woods. Squirrels don’t ride transit.
I’m in favour of expanding the O-train, too… just not southwardly.
Forget about extending O-Train to Gatineau-Hull. It’s not what Ottawa taxpayers had in mind when they agreed in principle to O-Train expansion. They were promised O-Train will go to Ottawa airport and to Kanata-Orleans.
We do not need more francophones come to our city to take our jobs from us. Let Quebec taxpayers to build their O-Train to help their current federal employees get to work.