A 6-0 vote has moved the town's transit project out of park, as council has opted to get firm costing estimates on implementing an on-demand transit system. Coun. Pat Wilson excused himself from the debate and subsequent vote ahead of administration's presentation at Sept. 10 council due to a perceived conflict of interest, given his day job as the owner/operator of Taxi4U. While council voted unanimously to move forward to the next phase, it is too preliminary to gauge whether bus wheels will actually be set in motion when council looks at the costing during budget deliberations in November. It is most likely council would vote at the Nov. 26 meeting on whether or not to proceed with transit. Couns. Alex Reed and Marni Fedeyko remain skeptical as to whether transit will get a pass, both reiterating their concerns over the potential cost to the taxpayer – with Reed addressing mayor and council with a speech likened by a visibly annoyed Coun. Susan Flowers to "being scolded like children." Reed criticized the process as unfair, where the financials are coming last – what he feels is one of the most critical factors that council should be using to make an informed decision. "I'm concerned about the approach ... and interestingly it's similar to the approach that was used in the pool," said Reed, stressing that he is supportive of transit for the social reasons long cited, but takes considerable issue with the absence of hard financials at present. "Financially, I feel like we're standing in front of a runaway bus ... I am a transit supporter, but only if the town can afford it," he said, emphasizing that his support that evening to green light the RFP process does not mean he is supportive of the implication that the town will move ahead with putting buses on the road. He does not feel most Cochrane taxpayers will be supportive if the true cost to the taxpayer amounts to more than $5 per month on the average tax bill. Reed added that he has consulted with the University of Calgary and that he is able to get two business grad students come and look at the transit proposal with a "fresh set of eyes" – a comment that some councillors, and Mayor Jeff Genung, felt was a crass dig at administration. "I want to make sure as a council that we are doing our due diligence to look at all sides," added Fedeyko, cautioning her fellow councillors to be respectful of the range of opinion coming from the panel. Genung admitted that while he was opposed to transit last fall during his mayoral campaign, he is convinced that now is the time for transit – following the extensive work of the transit task force, on which he served as chair, and the grant dollars at hand; $6 million of the $9 million in grant dollars set aside for transit (GreenTRIP funding) must be used for transit capital costs or forfeited back to the province. For the recommended scenario, the annual gross operations is roughly $800,000 with the cost estimate, but the RFP would firm up the gross operating cost. "It's roughly a net zero risk for five years to do a transit pilot project," said Genung, adding that he is "very confident" that grant dollars won't be clawed back, regardless if there is a change in provincial government or not. "If we are going to be the community that turns around and says to the province ... 'no thank you, we do not want your money' – good luck every applying for another grant again from the province. I just think they're going to see the word Cochrane and go 'yeah, those guys take nine years to make up their mind and then give it back to you anyways.'" Genung emphasized that he believes turning down capital dollars for transit will send a message that Cochrane isn't willing to do something to help alleviate traffic concerns on its own, which could influence the province's decision to fund the cloverleaf interchange project at highways 1A/22 and future lobbying efforts to get two grade-separated railway crossings in the downtown core. "I don't think there will be a better time in the next decade. We don't want to miss the bus on that GreenTRIP funding," said Coun. Tara McFadden, adding that the grant opportunity was the "most financially responsible" chance to implement transit. She also highlighted the $1.2 million in grant dollars had already been advanced in order for the town to purchase the Esso Bulk Station lands for a possible transit hub, which would have to be paid back to the province should the town not proceed with transit. Transit Task Force Recommendations Administration is recommending the town implements a scalable on-demand transit system, which would cover 100 per cent of the town within a 400-metre bus stop walking distance through it's on-demand abilities. The town's public engagement resulted in communication with around 300 residents. Recommendations include 20 to 30 minute wait times (traditional bus wait times were 40 to 60 minutes); fully-accessible buses with bike racks that are roughly half the size of traditional buses; an adult fare price of $2.50 per trip, with a range of punch and monthly passes for different age groups; services to be provided during peak and off-peak hours, as well as Saturdays. Additional time periods for service hours would be tested, dependant on demand. Based on a low cost recovery rate of 17 per cent, the net annual operations would run at over $686,000 per year for a full service model, which translates to $4.75 per month on the average tax bill. An average cost recovery rate of 33 per cent would run $554,000 or $3.84 on the average tax bill and at 44 per cent, $463,000 or $3.21 per month. Learn more about transit at letstalkcochrane.ca.
