If the City of Hamilton cares about students, LRT is a no-brainer
If you have been following Hamilton city politics for the past couple weeks, you probably wish you had not been.
City council has been locked in an exhausting debate to reaffirm their interest in receiving $1-billion from the provincial government to fund a Light Rail Transit system in Hamilton. Council has recorded votes on the issue five times since 2009 and approved a plan that recommended LRT for the future of Hamilton public transit in 2013.
The vote to reaffirm has been delayed twice and is tentatively set for June 15. Dissent for LRT is mostly coming from councilors who are not in wards that would directly benefit from the project, a backwards form of “not-in-my-backyard” politics.
If city council does not support the funding of the LRT, it sends a strong message to McMaster students: you are not a priority and we do not care about keeping you around the Hammer after graduation.
LRT would benefit students almost as much as any other demographic in Hamilton. It would make access to downtown easier and encourage students to go there. It is not difficult to get downtown now; on weekdays, busses are frequent enough.
But LRT would simplify the process and could result in students feeling more comfortable hopping on the LRT to grab dinners or go for drinks downtown instead of confining themselves to the Westdale area. A McMaster study concluded the LRT would “activate” the downtown.
Council has complained about the impact on businesses along King St. during construction. If business is booming, I have missed the memo.
Hess Village is one of the areas along the proposed route, and the entertainment district has been suffering for years. According to CBC Hamilton, the number of patrons has shrunk every year since 2012. LRT would make these places more accessible for students. Short-term pain for long-term gain should not be a novel concept to council.
And speaking of the long-term, turning down LRT would show that city council is not truly concerned with the retention of McMaster graduates.
If you give a graduate the option of working in a city with a strong LRT system that makes it easy to get to work and removes the financial burden of a car, why would they leave?
Right now, students are eager to leave a city they have no affinity to because they have never felt like leaving the McMaster bubble, and they will have to buy a car anyways.
The grass is not always greener, and I think Hamilton is a city that has a lot to offer for young professionals. But this generation is always willing to find out for themselves. The creation of LRT could also create jobs for McMaster graduates, keeping more people in the city.
Students tire of Hamilton because it sells itself as an ambitious city without providing much proof. We stick around here for four or five years, see the “You Can Do Anything In Hamilton” merchandise but leave because we do not really have that opportunity or even much acknowledgement. The city has been handed a real shot at becoming a modern city, but we are pissing it away because the people in areas that are relatively wealthy do not want it.
Councilors are arguing for alternative approaches to using the provincial money, like bus rapid transit, but that form of public transport has failed in Ottawa and costs more on a per-passenger basis.
If Hamilton is serious about growing as a city, they can take the first step by reaffirming the acceptance of $1-billion from the provincial government to show interest in students, create jobs, and push the city into the future.
