That being said, it appears as though there are some
legitimate issues with the impact on traffic, assuming these projections are correct.
The situation appears to be more complex than I previously thought. The projected 12-min increase in the auto trip time is not something to just ignore.
First of all, it would be nice to understand if that estimate is correct. If no through lanes of traffic are removed to make room for LRT, then how can the LRT cause such a major impact? Is that only because of the left-turning tracks blocking the road?
In any case, subway is out of question in this corridor; there is no ridership and no funds.
Burying 2 km of LRT in the affected area is not a likely solution, either. That would require $400 to $600 million extra for the project, and that funding cannot be secured in the near future. In addition, the tunnel construction will interfere with the very same businesses we hope to support.
What options remain on the table?
1) Leaving LRT in the street median, and constructing additional road (or roads) in the area to let the trucks avoid using Finch. Maybe, new Hwy 400 off- and on-ramps can be added.
2) Leaving the LRT on surface, but shifting it away from the street median. Either it could be shifted entirely to the south side of road; or, an additional eastbound lane for left turns can be added to the north of LRT lanes, allowing the trucks to avoid crossing LRT.
3) Building BRT instead of LRT. I suppose, BRT may use curb lanes between Weston and Jane, while running in the median elsewhere. BRT should be cheaper than LRT, and hopefully can go all the way to Yonge in Phase I, instead of stopping at Keele. The disadvantage of BRT is relatively low amount of spare capacity. BRT can handle up to 3,600 pphpd (2 min headways = 30 buses per hour x 120 riders per bus), and we expect 2,800 soon after the operations start, leaving little room to accommodate future growth.
