Larry's Corner

The Mid Peninsula Corridor and the City of Hamilton
By Larry Di Ianni
(posted September 27, 2007)

For the past many years, the City of Hamilton has been struggling with adequate transportation corridors. First and foremost, the city has been waging a battle with vocal opponents and obstreperous governments for the completion of the Red Hill Parkway. It took 54 years to build a road that was wanted by the community and indispensable to our transportation and economic needs. Finally, in 2003 the citizens of Hamilton spoke loudly and clearly when they voted in a quasi-referendum on this issue by electing a Council which had the intestinal and political fortitude to complete the project. It will open in November of this year. I predict that even the most ardent opponents will see the transportation, economic and environmental benefits of this corridor, though they may not openly admit it.

Now, the City and Regions of Niagara and beyond are faced with a similar conundrum. Should the Mid Peninsula corridor be approved or thwarted for many generations to come?

This week, the Council of the City and the Council of the Region of Niagara received a report on the benefits of the Mid Pen. The consultant’s study was commissioned last spring by both levels of government to kick start a project stalled in provincial processes. The report is clear. Jobs, transportation, and assessment dollars will flow if the corridor is approved. A road is part of this corridor as well as rail transportation. What was Council’s reaction to this report? A tepid response had the City of Hamilton simply ‘receive’ the report. This Council answer is the equivalent of sitting on the fence. I wasn’t at the debate to hear the full discussion but did hear one of the Councillors on radio extolling the virtues of the corridor and the report. This Councillor claimed that regardless of some nay-sayers, surely most of Council would approve the report; thereby taking a stand on the issue. Why did Council sit on its hands? Poor leadership? Confused thinking? Ideology? Pressure from the oppositional groups who hold Svengali-control over some councillors? Maybe all of the above.

The Province is moving ahead with the environmental assessment on the needs of this corridor. The Region of Niagara is very bullish on the project as well. But the classic negative forces are at play again. A Councillor questioned the ‘narrow scope’ of the recent study claiming that ‘peak oil’ and the value of the Canadian dollar should also have been studied. “When you don’t like the product, study it to death,” is his philosophy. A citizen against any roads in the region talked of the ‘800 pound gorilla: climate change’ as being reason enough to defeat the project. Her stand, of course, would keep the congestion on the QEW or maybe her preference is to prevent commerce from coming to this county because, after all, the climate is changing and everything must stop! Even railroads???? Hard to understand that logic.

The battle lines seem to be drawing again. For Hamilton, this is disastrous. It means that the city, unless it fully supports the project, isn’t willing to support an economic engine which will be a boon to our jobs and our economy. It means the City isn’t willing to partner with its regional co-terminous municipalities to enhance all our well being. It means that the city is willing to continue putting stress on an overworked Queen Elizabeth Highway and its neighbouring tender fruit lands. It means the city isn’t interested in expanding the rail network into the Niagara region and beyond. It means that the city isn’t willing to let the Province pick up the entire cost of constructing this project. Yes, the entire cost!! This is a provincial project and as such will not cost local taxpayers a penny. All benefits and no tax costs! In short it means that once again our city leaders may be turning their backs on the well being of the city, as happened so many times with the Red Hill controversy, aided and abetted by the enemies of progress and job creating investment for the city.

Our only saviour in this regard may be the Provincial government which seems intent, albeit slowly, on helping this region in spite of itself. The Minister of Transportation, the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Public Infrastructure have all at various times indicated the need for the corridor. That is good news. Stay tuned, this may be a battle worth fighting all over again, as was the successful saga of the Red Hill Parkway.

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