mackaycartoons

Graeme MacKay's Editorial Cartoon Archive

  • Archives
  • DOWNLOADS
  • Kings & Queens
  • MacKaycartoons Inc.
  • Prime Ministers
  • Special Features
  • The Boutique
  • Who?
  • Young Doug Ford
  • Presidents

Brt

Thursday April 16, 2020

April 23, 2020 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday April 16, 2020

LRT versus BRT showdown coming to Hamilton

Thanks to the provincially appointed transportation task force, it appears we’re heading into a final showdown over whether LRT or BRT is the best rapid transit system for Hamilton.

February 1, 2020

The task force, formed after the Doug Ford government killed the planned LRT project, says the province and its transportation agency Metrolinx should now consider both systems equally and analyze which best deserves the $1 billion in capital funding that was originally earmarked for light rail.

If neither are feasible, the task force suggests plowing the money into two-way, all-day GO rail service to Hamilton.

If nothing else, there’s a kind of poetic if rough justice in all this. 

There’s always been a strong sense among light rail opponents that the bus rapid transit option was previously given short shrift by both Metrolinx and city staff.

Certainly the city’s 2008 rapid transit feasibility study discussed both systems. But Metrolinx’s 2010 case-benefit analysis basically sidelined the BRT option by concluding LRT delivered the highest economic development bang for the buck.

The problem was that a lot of Hamiltonians felt — and still feel — that the pros and cons of both systems were never fairly compared and publicly debated.

That was supposed to happen after the 2014 municipal election. It didn’t. You may recall that back then Fred Eisenberger ran for mayor on a platform that included a promise to create a citizens’ panel to study all rapid transit options and make a recommendation to council.

Coronavirus cartoons

Instead, brief months after he was elected, Eisenberger hotfooted it to Queen’s Park for private meetings with then-premier Kathleen Wynne and transport minister Steven Del Duca, at which he successfully secured provincial dollars for LRT.

In May of 2015, Wynne came to town to announce the province was providing $1 billion in capital funding. Eisenberger’s proposed citizens’ panel was reduced to window dressing. BRT supporters were suddenly marooned.

It’s been anything but smooth sailing for LRT supporters since then, of course. But no matter how controversial the issue, no matter how many stops, starts and delays the project has experienced, LRT has been the only option on the table.

Until Ford came along, that is. 

During the 2018 provincial election, Ford threw things into a tizzy by offering to let Hamilton council spend the $1 billion on other transit and infrastructure projects. It’s often forgotten, but in the heat of that election New Democrat leader and Hamilton MPP Andrea Horwath said an NDP government would also give council the option to spend the money on other transit projects.

Neither the mayor nor council seriously pursued the offer after Ford was elected. A few months later, it was taken out of their hands. The province cancelled the project because of projected cost overruns and then created the task force.

So now BRT is back on the menu as a main course not just a rejected entree.

Briefly, the task force suggests the BRT option could follow both the B-Line corridor from McMaster to Eastgate and the north-south A-Line corridor from the waterfront to the airport. Recommendations include fully dedicated bus lanes and platform boarding.

For LRT, the task force suggests if there is insufficient funding for the Mac to Eastgate route, phasing should be explored, and the province should look to Ottawa and city council for extra funding.

It’s not clear, of course, how the COVID-19 pandemic will impact the recommendation that, regardless which system wins out, the contract should be awarded or construction begin within two years.

It’s also not clear if or how COVID-19 will impact the social patterns and policy assumptions that sustain rapid transit systems.

Frankly, it’s an open question whether urban intensification, highrise living and the growth of public transit will be as appealing in a post-COVID world leery of future virus lockdowns, compared to the lure of backyards and the self-isolation of cars. (Hamilton Spectator) 

 

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: 2020-13, Brt, Coronavirus, covid-19, Hamilton, LRT, mass transit, pandemic, Transit, uncertainty

Graeme’s Gallery 2014: Hamilton

December 27, 2014 by Graeme MacKay

The tradition continues with a whole Spectator opinion page devoted to:Graeme Gallery 2014 - Hamilton

Saturday July 12, 2014
January 24, 2014
January 24, 2014
September 5, 2014
September 5, 2014
Wednesday April 29, 2014
Wednesday June 4, 2014
Saturday, January 11, 2013
July 9, 2014
July 9, 2014
January 31, 2014
January 31, 2014
August 20, 2014
August 20, 2014
November 28, 2014
November 28, 2014
Tuesday November 11, 2014
October 28, 2014
October 28, 2014
2014 Mayoral Race
2014 Mayoral Race
September 26, 2014
September 26, 2014
Wednesday September 17, 2014
Saturday, September 6, 2014
August 23, 2014
August 23, 2014
Thursday June 12, 2014
Thursday, April 17, 2014
March 10, 2014
March 10, 2014

Coming tomorrow: Graeme’s Gallery, the special world edition…

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: 2014, Best of Gallery, Bob Bratina, Bob Morrow, Brad Clark, Brian McHattie, Brt, City Motor, Copps, Foxcroft, Fred Eisenberger, Glenn de caire, GO Transit, Graeme Gallery, Grill, Hamilton, Inland waters, Juravinski, Lister, LRT, Marauders, Nathan Cirillo, stadium, Terry Whitehead, Ticats, Year in review, year-end review

Tuesday October 28, 2014

October 27, 2014 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday October 28, 2014

Tuesday October 28, 2014

Fred Eisenberger elected mayor of Hamilton

The Spectator declared him the winner over mayoralty front-runners Brad Clark and Brian McHattie about an hour after the polls closed Monday.

Voting results posted on the City of Hamilton website showed Eisenberger with 41.54 per cent to Clark’s 30.21 per cent and McHattie with 19.76.

Hamilton Mayoral RaceSince Hamilton was amalgamated in 2001, the city has only experienced one-term mayors – Bob Wade, Larry Di Ianni, Eisenberger and Bob Bratina, who leaves office in January when the new mayor takes over.

This is Eisenberger’s fourth try at mayor: He won in 2006 but lost in 2000 and 2010.

A total of 366,000 Hamiltonians were eligible to vote but total voter turnout was not yet available about an hour after the polls closed. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)


TWO WINNING CARTOONS DEFEATED

Tuesday October 28, 2014 Tuesday October 28, 2014

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: Brt, election, Fred Eisenberger, Hamilton, LRT, Mayoral Race, Transit

Saturday March 8, 2014

March 8, 2014 by Graeme MacKay

Monday, March 10, 2014By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Monday, March 10, 2014

Mayor’s LRT blog spurs confusion as he tries to reiterate his support

Attention light-rail fans: Mayor Bob Bratina says he’s always been keen on LRT.

Friday, February 28, 2014Just not along the $800-million east-west route council is asking the province to fund.

The mayor infuriated some LRT advocates Tuesday with a new blog post that outlined his 2010 election campaign pitch for a Mountain-climbing LRT route along a converted rail line that is now a popular escarpment walking and cycling trail.

Bratina, who hasn’t registered to run in the fall election, denied the blog was a salvo in what is widely expected to be a transit-heavy campaign debate.

He also said in a Wednesday interview he has “no interest” in “resurrecting” his old rail-trail proposal as an alternative to the council-approved line running 14 kilometres between McMaster University and Eastgate Square.

He said the blog, which includes a map of the rail trail proposal, was simply meant to refute the oft-repeated argument he opposes LRT.

But LRT boosters criticized the blog online for further muddying the waters around Hamilton’s support for light rail.

Raise the Hammer’s Ryan McGreal said Bratina’s musings were “calculated to sow confusion and doubt” about rapid transit planning in the city, which has been dogged in recent years by conflicting political messages.

Wednesday May 29, 2013While Bratina starts the blog by saying he “fully” supports council’s position on transit, he goes on to note perceived problems and “doubt” linked to the B Line — listing traffic, unhappy King Street businesses and property acquisition issues.

McGreal said it’s “particularly frustrating” to see the mayor suggest in a public forum his old rail trail plan has more development potential than the B Line, after Metrolinx and the city spent years on studies identifying the lower city line as the best bet for ridership and economic growth.

“It’s noise and confusion … it’s actually unhelpful,” said McGreal, who replies to the blog in a rebuttal here.

Bratina argued the only controversy over LRT is where the required $800-million will come from. The minority Liberal government is considering new tolls, development charges and fuel surtaxes. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

[slideshow_deploy id=’2950′]

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: Bob Bratina, Brt, Editorial Cartoon, Hamilton, HSR, LRT, Metrolinx, Transit

Please note…

This website contains satirical commentaries of current events going back several decades. Some readers may not share this sense of humour nor the opinions expressed by the artist. To understand editorial cartoons it is important to understand their effectiveness as a counterweight to power. It is presumed readers approach satire with a broad minded foundation and healthy knowledge of objective facts of the subjects depicted.

  • The Hamilton Spectator
  • The Toronto Star
  • The Globe & Mail
  • The National Post
  • Graeme on T̶w̶i̶t̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶(̶X̶)̶
  • Graeme on F̶a̶c̶e̶b̶o̶o̶k̶
  • Graeme on T̶h̶r̶e̶a̶d̶s̶
  • Graeme on Instagram
  • Graeme on Substack
  • Graeme on Bluesky
  • Graeme on Pinterest
  • Graeme on YouTube
New and updated for 2025
  • HOME
  • MacKaycartoons Inc.
  • The Boutique
  • The Hamilton Spectator
  • The Association of Canadian Cartoonists
  • The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists
  • You Might be From Hamilton if…
  • Young Doug Ford
  • MacKay’s Most Viral Cartoon
  • Intellectual Property Thief Donkeys
  • Wes Tyrell
  • Martin Rowson
  • Guy Bado’s Blog
  • National Newswatch
...Check it out and please subscribe!

Your one-stop-MacKay-shop…

T-shirts, hoodies, clocks, duvet covers, mugs, stickers, notebooks, smart phone cases and scarfs

2023 Coronation Design

Brand New Designs!

Follow Graeme's board My Own Cartoon Favourites on Pinterest.

MacKay’s Virtual Gallery

Archives

Copyright © 2016 mackaycartoons.net

Powered by Wordpess and Alpha.

Social media & sharing icons powered by UltimatelySocial
 

Loading Comments...