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3 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,January 6,2022 insidehalton.com For a Free consultation call oakville: 905.842.2022 ToronTo: 416.644.3999 Denied Disabled Benefits? I canhelp. My teamof experienced lawyers can help youwith: •Disability Claims Short-TermDisability, long-TermDisability, CPP •Car accidents •Slip and Falls •Wrongful Dismissal Injured? I don't get paid unless I getYoumoneY. oFFiCeS in oakville and ToronTo eMail: sspadafora@slspc.ca Disability and EmploymEnt law Disability 905-469-3232 1459 Nottinghill Gate, Oakville delmanor.com Discover the Delmanor Difference, Choose your Suite Today! Barry Cole, the outgoing director of transit of the Town of Oakville, offered a grim outlook at the recent planning and development committee meeting. "Transit in Oakville is at a crossroads," Cole told the committee. "Vehicular congestion continues to worsen. Even with so many people still working remotely, we're seeing congestion that al- ready is starting to resem- ble pre-COVID levels." "Transit expansion in the form of increased hours of service, increased fre- quency and even some new routes in the north are go- ing to be required if we are going to reach our TMP (Transportation Master Plan) goals." In his last presentation to council before retire- ment, Cole laid out seven priorities for Oakville Tran- sit. ELECTRIFICATION OF THE TRANSIT FLEET On the surface, electrify- ing the fleet has obvious benefits. The town of Oak- ville declared a climate change emergency in June of 2019, making greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduc- tion a priority. The Town of Oakville has set a goal of an 80 per cent reduction of GHGs from 2014 levels by 2050. However, Cole revealed oth- er benefits that are less ob- vious. "The benefits of con- verting our transit fleet to battery electric are numer- ous. They include lower maintenance costs, lower operating costs, lower whole-life costs, and, as I said, lower emissions. They (also) eliminate residential noise." The Town hopes to have completed the transition by 2036. TRAFALGAR BUS RAPID TRANSIT Bus rapid transit (BRT) involves an ordinary bus, whether diesel or electric, having its own right of way that cars cannot use. York Region's VIVA and Missis- sauga's Transitway are two examples. The plan is for a bus rap- id transit to operate be- tween the Oakville GO sta- tion and the 407 Park and Ride on Trafalgar. This will provide Oakville residents with connections to Oak- ville Place, Sheridan Col- lege, the Uptown Core and the developing areas north of Dundas St. E. DUNDAS BUS RAPID TRANSIT The plan is similar to the Trafalgar project. The dif- ference lies in its sheer am- bition. The goal, in its cur- rent stage, would be to have the BRT go from Kipling Station in Toronto all the way to Hamilton's Hwy 6, covering a roughly 48 km journey spanning five mu- nicipalities. "In my view this would be an exceptionally long route posing a multitude of operational governance and funding issues," Cole warned council. "That be- ing said, an important first step could be to implement a shorter Halton version." PALERMO TRANSIT TERMINAL Plans are afoot to inten- sify the area surrounding the intersection of Bronte Road and Dundas St. W, more commonly known as Palermo. In 2010, the Town of Oak- ville identified the area of the historical Palermo Vil- lage as a location for a major transit hub. MIDTOWN AND OAKVILLE GO "The area will be home to 13,000 people, 7,000 jobs. It'll account for 23 per cent of the intensification in Oak- ville and 8 per cent of Hal- ton's intensification," Cole said. Mid-town is the area around Oakville GO sta- tion, a roughly 40 ha area. This part of Oakville is des- ignated as an Urban Growth Centre by the province. REGIONAL EXPRESS RAIL All-day-two-way GO ser- vice with trains arriving ev- ery 15 minutes along the Lakeshore West line is Met- rolinx's goal here. Cole says that the bene- fits "include reduced traffic congestion, reduced fossil fuel reliance, greenhouse gases would be reduced, fu- el consumption reduced and customer travel time is reduced." ON-DEMAND TRANSIT SERVICES Enhancements to Oak- ville Transit's three on-de- mand services -- care-A- can for people with mobility issues, Home to Hub in ar- eas where there is less tran- sit coverage and Work to Hub -- are part of council's priorities. Oakville Transit hopes to integrate the on-demand services into one, expand the service to make it avail- able for more residents and certain enhancements. These enhancements in- clude a ride sharing app, au- tomated booking and a di- versified fleet, among other things. TRANSIT IN OAKVILLE 'AT CROSSROADS' AS PRIORITIES SET OUT MANSOOR TANWEER mtanweer@metroland.com NEWS Priorities have been set out for Oakville Transit. Graham Paine/Metroland