Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins sat B次元官网网址渧ery disappointedB次元官网网址� for most of Friday wondering how a study on how best to turn the E&N corridor from Langford to Victoria into a commuter route managed to get derailed.
NDP Minister of Transportation Clair Trevena indicated Thursday that the previous Liberal governmentB次元官网网址檚 review of options for the corridor, which last saw passenger train traffic six years ago, did not provide for enough consultation with local First Nations, among other things, and was therefore being scrapped.
Desjardins was chair of the Capital Regional District board last spring when then-minister Todd Stone gathered with other area mayors in Esquimalt to announce a new study and the formation of a working group. The announcement came on the heels of discussions that included Bayview Place developer Ken Mariash, railbed owner Island Corridor Foundation, BC Transit and First Nations, Desjardins said.
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While the issue of the lack of regional governance for transportation doesnB次元官网网址檛 make things any easier for the municipalities, who could otherwise put forth a unified front to deal with upper levels of government on funding and support for projects like this, the work already done should make this project easier, she said.
B次元官网网址漈he hardest thing in transportation is finding the corridor and here we have one sitting there,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淢aking something happen on it shouldnB次元官网网址檛 be this hard or this slow.B次元官网网址�
A Ministry of Transportation statement emailed to the B次元官网网址 on Friday said MOT did not move forward with the E&N feasibility study due to the extended post-election transition period, and because B次元官网网址渢he ministry was neither able to consult with First Nations nor award the contract within the announced timeframe.B次元官网网址�
When the new NDP government reviewed the situation, the statement continued, it was determined that the study B次元官网网址渃ould not proceed at that point without proper consultation with the Esquimalt and Songhees First Nations.B次元官网网址�
In the meantime, rookie Esquimalt-Metchosin MLA Mitzi Dean has been tasked with leading new discussions with First Nations and municipal partners about how to best transform the rail line into a functional transportation corridor.
Asked what the next steps are, Desjardins said the mayors likely need to band together to try and convince the three NDP MLAs along the route B次元官网网址� Finance Minister Carole James and Premier John Horgan are the others B次元官网网址� of the urgency of the situation.
B次元官网网址淭hat corridor that can unlock that gridlock,B次元官网网址� Desjardins said, adding that a solution needs to be found in a reasonable timeline before the research already done becomes obsolete.
