Is Halifax ready for commuter rail? Man behind city's transportation plan on board

The man in charge of creating a new transportation planfor Halifax says the municipality needs bus-only lanes andcommuter rail in order to reduce congestion.

Rod MacPhail,aformer transportation manager for Toronto, said Halifax'sregional plan wants to see 10 per cent fewer drivers on the road over the next 15 years.

"The public has been clear: they would love to not have to drive if they had an alternative," he said.

Reducing congestion

MacPhail saidpeople will not use transit if the busesare stuck in traffic. His team has suggested a slight widening ofBayersRoad between Windsor Street and Connaught Avenue so that a pair of bus-only lanes could be created one in each direction.

Halifax has been buying up properties along Bayers Road because of long-term plans to widen the route to six lanes, butMacPhail does not believe that will do anything to reduce congestion in the province's largest city.

Removing on-street parking

"Highway 102 is a freeway that dumps the traffic onto localroads," said MacPhail."That math will never work."

Other streets could also get bus-only lanes, or have on-streetparking removed to speed up commuter trips.

The municipality'sIntegrated Mobility Plan sees commuter rail as the onlyanswer for traffic congestion along the Bedford Highwaysince there'songoing development and no room to widen the road.

Commuter rail

Plannersbelieve the municipality may be able to take advantage of federal funding toget a commuter rail system up and running.

MacPhail said he believes Halifax is ready for it.

"I'm really, really hoping we can make commuter rail work."

The latest round of public feedback sessions will continue untilDec 8.

There will be more meetings in early spring.A final report with recommendations will be presented to regional council by the end of June 2017.

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