City Council meetings give residents and local business owners a chance to remind city staff and elected officials who matters most. Certainly staff, council members and the myriad of paid consultants have opinions, but the rest of us are footing the bill and our interests should be paramount.
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The YRT strike has entered its 7th week and I am reminded of numerous council meetings and local community sessions touting a vision for York Region focusing on more mass transit and higher density development. While I support improved mass transit – particularly if it's a subway to downtown Toronto – I am not convinced that we will be successful in convincing many Vaughan residents to give up their cars entirely. The region's redevelopment seems to resemble the York Mills area of Toronto and less like the downtown core which can sustain a complete rapid transit system.
York Regional Councillor Deb Schulte is a trained aeronautical engineer who is passionate about public transit and preserving our green spaces. She explains that before the YRT strike, public transit in York Region was "on a good trajectory for growth." Councillor Schulte is well aware that following most transit strikes ridership remains low and is not easily rebuilt. I know of one newly married couple who chose lease a second car in response to the present strike. We may assume that there were other cars put on our overburdened roads that won't simply vanish when the crisis is resolved. It is also possible that the decreased ridership following the resumption of service is not simply a matter of resourceful residents finding other forms of transportation. We must also consider that some riders simply gave up their employment and require time to replace lost jobs once the transit system resumes.
Debbie Kelz-Wolk works at York University and relies on mass transit from her home in Thornhill. She was forced to give up driving following several small strokes earlier this year and is finding the alternate routes she must take dangerously overcrowded. Even before the strike she witnessed buses speeding by riders with disabilities who were limping to reach the stop and drivers who continuously ignored friendly greetings. Debbie's request to move her Viva bus stop across the street to a bus shelter was declined when YRT explained that they prefer to stop at the same corner as TTC than allow their riders to wait in the shelter. Perhaps customer service would improve if all YRT employees were required to travel to work on the transit system as a condition of their employment.
I would like to take this opportunity to remind YRT, all levels of government, the transit contractors and the transit unions that the the taxpayers, local business owners and the riders matter most. The holiday season is upon us and I urge all parties to find a reasonable compromise so that all YRT drivers are able to smile and wish each of their riders Happy Holidays!
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Gila Martow is an Optometrist who has resided in Thornhill for over 20 years and hosts and internet video talk show – Gila's Community – on www.alltalktv.com Join Gila Martow on Facebook, GilaJoy on Twitter or contact Gila at:
www.gilamartow.ca
