A minister of the Crown, at least four local mayors and the head of B.C. Transit gathered in Esquimalt Thursday to announce solemnly that they will continue to do their jobs.
After getting many Victorians excited with word of an important transportation announcement, the politicians were assured of lots of attention. Visions of commuter trains danced in the heads of West Shore residents who long for a life without the Colwood Crawl.
The fact that the news conference about “commuter transportation service” was to take place at the old E&N train stop at Admirals Road and Colville Road ramped up speculation that a solution involving rail was in the cards.
But there is no money, and no commitment. A “working group” will do more thinking and talking about using the E&N rail line for some kind of commuter service. In other words, our governments will continue studying the idea. That’s it.
Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Todd Stone insists, of course, that it will be “working group” rather than a “study group.”
The ministry’s statement explained: “A working group, including representatives from the ministry, local government, B.C. Transit, the Victoria Regional Transit Commission and B.C. Safety Authority, will be established to provide input on a corridor analysis the ministry will be undertaking, which will look at the options and potential opportunities for this part of the E&N rail corridor.”
Was that announcement worth the fanfare? Was it worth it for so many officials, elected and otherwise, to take at least an hour away from work that might actually matter? And why was the announcement in Esquimalt, with the mayor of Esquimalt sharing the spotlight? A cynic might think that this was just an election ploy, one designed to boost the profile of a mayor who is running for the B.C. Liberals.
The idea of commuter rail on the E&N line has been around for years, and it remains just an idea. The most significant recent development has been not from government, but from the private sector: Developer Ken Mariash said his company would put $300,000 to $500,000 toward developing a business case.
He estimated it would cost no more than $10 million in capital costs to get the service running, with annual operating costs of $3 million to $4 million. It would require a subsidy, as fares would cover only half the costs.
Governments and the Island Corridor Foundation, which owns the track, say they are interested. The mayors and B.C. Transit created a working group to review the business case and send it to the provincial government.
If all the studying has made any headway on the most serious questions, there was little indication of that on Thursday.
Many of those questions are physical. The E&N line is a single track, which greatly limits its use for a commuter service. Twinning the tracks would be a major construction job, especially now that the E&N Rail Trail has been built along much of the line.
Probably the biggest hurdle is at the downtown end of the track. Victoria’s Blue Bridge replacement won’t carry rail lines. That means the ride starts or ends in Vic West, forcing downtown commuters to transfer to buses or bring bikes.
This will be a disincentive for a lot of people — maybe enough people to kill the viability of the service.
Stone says the government is “turning the five to seven years of talk into action,” but there is no action, just more talk, and no solutions to those obstacles.
Something needs to be done to ease our traffic woes. Despite the enthusiasm expressed Thursday, we are still waiting.
