By Aloma Jardine
Business owners on Preston Street may soon find new customers in their backyards.
A proposal for a light rail transit system running from Bayview and Scott Streets to the Greenboro transitway station in South Keys was included in a new regional plan.
“It could be up and running by September 1998 if we wanted to get it done and done quickly, and if the political direction was there,” says Tim Lane, a member of Transport 2000, a group that promotes public transit.
The rail system would use track belonging to CP Rail, and cost $10 million to implement. That covers the cost of refurbishing the existing tracks and building stations, but not the cost of the trains.
The route runs almost parallel to Preston Street, then south under Dow’s Lake, through Carleton University, and Confederation Heights.
Lane says the rail system will take 10 minutes off commuting time for people from the south travelling to Carleton University, Carling and Preston, Tunney’s Pasture, or the west end of downtown.
Peter Harris, board liaison for the Preston Street Business Improvement Area, says the rail system should benefit businesses on Preston.
“Any business will really gain,” he says. “People could stop at Preston Street on the way home.”
Several business owners were also enthusiastic about the plan, although many hadn’t heard about it until they were asked to comment.
“I completely support anything that would bring more traffic into this part of the city and improve the traffic flow,” says Craig Pedersen, owner of Ristorante Il Piccolino on Preston Street.
Pedersen also believes the train would help business.
“I certainly do think it would help to improve business by improving pedestrian traffic,” he says. “It would certainly alleviate our parking problems down here.”
Pat DeGrazia, owner of Leonardo’s Restaurant, also supports the planned rail system, adding that noise shouldn’t be a concern.
“The train goes by now and we don’t really hear anything,” he says.
The rail system will bypass Bank Street, but Ed Mitchell, owner of Somerset House and chairman of the Somerset Village Business Improvement Area, says it shouldn’t hurt businesses there.
“The concept is good,” he says. “It will have a minimal effect on businesses, maybe a few less cars downtown, which is good.”
Ron Manson, associate owner of Shopper’s Drug Mart at the intersection of Bank and Laurier Streets, says the rail system would benefit businesses on Bank Street.
“If it’s viable economically, then it’s a great idea. It would be quick, and when you’re on rails, there’s no traffic at all.”
Lane says light rail transit is much more cost efficient than current plans to expand the transitway.
“We can get eight kilometres of track for a quarter of what they want to spend for two kilometres of transitway.”
The light rail transit system would be interconnected with the transitway, so people could transfer from the train to a bus or vice versa.
“The beauty of the rail system is that it’s very flexible,” Harris says. “When it comes to consumer comfort, you can’t beat rail.”