Transit timeline 2011 - 2012:
Fall 2011 — council votes to move forward with transit between Cochrane and Calgary.
November 2011 — Nearly 1,000 Cochrane taxpayers/voters signed a petition to stop transit until the community was fully informed about costs and routes. The petition required 1,700 signatures before it could be formally presented to council to request a plebiscite on the issue.
November 2011 — Council votes to go forward without a petition being presented with a plebiscite on the transit issue. This makes continuing with the petition unnecessary as the desired result has been brought forward by council.
March 2012 – The plebiscite voted on by council is now cancelled by council in favour of public consultation and a revised implementation schedule of priorities for the town.
Spring–Fall 2012 — Public engagement opportunities on the transit issue take place throughout the spring and summer in Cochrane and at Calgary LRT stations.
The results to be presented to council at the Oct. 9 council meeting include the following feedback:
• 161 people liked it on Facebook
• 127 people followed the transit discussion on Twitter
• 145 people tweeted
• 22 posts were received on the blog
• Over 200 people attended the launch event on March 14 for Let’s Talk Transit
• 59 people attended transit cafes
• 75 people attended workshops
• 17 people attended Q & A sessions
• 155 people completed surveys in Calgary at the LRT stations
• 21 completed surveys re-ceived on the LRT survey for Calgary residents
• 12 completed non-resident LRT surveys
Nearly 1,000 resident voters of Cochrane said no to transit but are not counted in the above statistics because the petition was never presented to council. The petition was not presented to council because council voted to have a plebiscite on the transit question.
Now, 994 participants who we do not know are actually Cochrane residents or Cochrane taxpayers, nor do we know if this is 994 different participants or repeat participants, make up the statistical results regarding transit engagement for Cochrane.
We should all pay attention now to how council moves forward on this issue.
If it is students and seniors that will use transit most; will the times and days of operation meet their needs?
If it is transit between Cochrane and Calgary that is desired; what will be added that is not already offered by Southland? Is it that Southland does not stop at LRT stations? Is there a reason such as Southland being a non-union operation that prohibits them stopping at LRT stations? Can any issues be rectified without spending tax payers’ money duplicating an existing service provided by private enterprise?
If council moves ahead with local in-town service; what hours of operation will best serve user groups and at what cost to users and taxpayers?
The transit question should not divide the community as suggested by some council members. This should ultimately get people talking to each other and recognizing how all tax paid services and the costs affect everyone in Cochrane. This is not about a legacy, it’s about the right time for the right services for Cochrane, paid for by Cochrane tax dollars. The current transit grant monies from the province do not have to be used until 2017 as per the information from town administration.
Here’s hoping that we don’t have to rush to get transit in lieu of designing the best service and costs for Cochrane’s future. This is the legacy you and I as taxpayers and voters today will leave for our kids and grandkids in Cochrane.
