First of all, I understand your opposition, but inflating figures to $1B is just not accurate. As to the Gardiner itself, it isn't just a psychological ailment - the structure itself requires constant, costly maintainence, while surrounding land uses suffer as a result of the inefficent way it is designed.
~750million in 2006, could very reasonably be ~ 1 billion by the time it's finnished. The costs on these projects a always lowballed, for every project that you can think of that come in on budget, there are 10 that go over.
With regards to land uses, it's too late, the condos are built or are planned, and I highly doubt that by the time the project is complete, the condos will be able to open onto the new 10 lane artery.
And where do you draw such conclusions from, exactly? By the way, the numbers are available from the presentation I've posted, and they refer to both rushes. In addition, just how would adding 4 minutes to a commute produce a tangible, negative effect, other than the mostly psychological need for speed?
There is a opportunity cost to travel time. Same as if there was a plan for Spadina Street Car to take 4 minutes longer to go from bloor to union. It's time that could be spend doing more productive things. Why is the "psychological need for speed" worth less then the psychological need for access to the waterfront?
That is non-sensical - reading the presentation, the Gardiner handles only 10% of the traffic in the central area, and during the construction period the Gardiner will remain at 80% of the original capacity. TTC and GO both handles far higher traffic loads, and the former hasn't even reached its' peak ridership back in the late 80s.
The Gardiner carries 25% of all Cars, The 10% includes all people on TTC and GO. I would be great if a large portion switched to GO, but, it's not realistic to expect it.
The GO trains I've been on are standing room by the time they get into Toronto and the parking lots fill up really quickly. Plus the Bloor trains from Etobicoke get really packed in the morning, a second route downtown would be beneficial. I have no idea how people dealt with the TTC in the lates 80's when it was so busy, but from my experience if there was more frequent service and more options I would support the plan (Which GO is working on with the 3rd track).
The Gardiner, is an easy scapegoat of the real barriers to the waterfront, would it be nice if it was taken down and everything went according to plan? sure. Are the costs and consequences prohibitive? In my opinion, you betcha. I personally like the idea, it's the costs, and the reasons behind it that I have reservations about.