Memorandum

Hamilton
Public Works
Date:
To:
From:
Subject:
February 2, 2010
Mayor Fred Eisenberger, Mayor
Jillian Stephen, Director,.Strategic Planning & Rapid Transit
Public Works
Updated Memo - Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis - Discussions with
Metrolinx
Further to the memo I provided last night, please find below some additional information
and clarification for your use at this afternoon's meeting with senior Metrolinx officials
and Board Members.
January 291 2010 - Discussions with Metrolinx Staff
Carla Ippolito (Hamilton staff) did not attend the meeting with John Howe, Michael
Sutherland and Karen Woo regarding the BCA and the Metrolinx Board report
recommendations on January 29, 2010.
The "Big 5" Proiects
The "Big 5" Projects are included in the list of Priority Projects. Specifically, the "Big 5"
are:

O
O

VIVA Bus Rapid Transit (BRT);

Sheppard East Light Rail Transit (LRT);
Finch LRT;
Eglinton Crosstown LRT; and
Scarborough Rapid Transit
An update on the "Big 5" was given at the Metrolinx Board meeting on November 16,
2009. The minutes of this meeting are not yet available on-line, however, a copy of the
PowerPoint update is available. From this presentation, we can see that $9.6B has
been committed for these projects, and that there is 100% Provincial funding for eligible
capital costs. The projects will be owned and controlled by Metrolinx. Project scope
agreements are in place for VIVA, Sheppard East and Finch. Interim funding
agreements are in place to achieve 2009 groundbreaking for VIVA and Sheppard East,
and to advance PDE, utility relocation and land acquisition for the "Big 5". A retroactive
Subject: Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis - Discussions with Metrolinx
Page 2 of 2 February 2, 2010
funding agreement with TTC is in place. Agreement-in-principle regarding roles and
responsibilities of Metrolinx, Infrastructure Ontario, TorontoFFTC and York/VIVA are in
place, as is an agreement between Metrolinx and TTC regarding the Transit City LRV
procurement strategy. One of Metrolinx' immediate work plan priorities is cost
management and phasing to keep within the $9.6B committed for these projects.
Additional project details include:
Project Name
VIVA BRT
Sheppard LRT
Finch LRT
Scarborough LRT
Eglinton Crosstown LRT
Construction
Start
2OO9
2009
2011
2011
2011
In Service
2013
2013-14
2016
2015
2016-20
Total.
Committed
Funding
($B)
1,4
1.0
1.2
1.4
4.6
9.6
Length
(km)
37
15'.
24
10
31
Note: A media release and memo from John Howe on the "Big 5" noted that the
Federal Government would fund 1/3 of the estimated $1 billion cost of the
Sheppard East LRT project. The province is the 100 % capital funding source of
the remaining 4 initial projects. Subtracting 1/3 of the Sheppard LRT costs
(+/- $330M) from the above total would bring the committed funding to $9.3B.
Should you require any additional information in advance of the meeting, please do not
hesitate to contact me by email, at 4621 or on my cell (905-973-2306).
Memorandum
Hamilton
Public Works
Date:
To:
From:
Subject:
February 1, 2010
Mayor Fred Eisenberger, Mayor
Jillian Stephen, Director, Strategic Planning & Rapid Transit
Public Works
Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis - Discussions with Metrolinx
Further to our meeting this afternoon, please find below a summary of the conversations
I have had with Metrolinx staff over the past week, a listing of the Metrolinx Priority
Projects, a summary of the "Big 5" projects funded through the dedicated MoveOntario
2020 funding, and suggested questions and information to be shared at the meeting
tomorrow with senior Metrolinx officials and Board Members.
Discussions with Metrolinx Staff - Wednesday, January 27, 2010 to Monday,
February 1, 2010
January 27, 2010
On January 27, I had a long telephone conversation with John Howe of Metrolinx
regarding the Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis (BCA) and the February 19 Metrolinx
Board Meeting. The BCA numbers (not yet released publicly) show BRT as the top
performing system for Hamilton, but the LRT numbers are very close and John advised
that the case could easily be argued for LRT for Hamilton based on the BCA numbers
and the City-building aspects that would go along with LRT. He mentioned that the cost
difference between BRT and LRT could be a barrier, and that the Province was
reluctant to make a funding commitment on February 19 or shortly thereafter. John
advised that Queen's Park would defer the funding decision until the 2010/11 Budget,
or, more likely, to the 2011/12 Budget.
We also spoke about the Pan Am/Para Pan Am Games and how that could factor into
the decisions around rapid transit in Hamilton. John introduced the idea of a hybrid
decision, and we discussed how Pan Am could be a catalyst for a funding decision.
Any funding for Pan Am transportation investments, beyond what is in the Bid Book,
would come from the Province; however, indications from Queen's Park are that they
will not be pressured into transit decisions.
We then spoke about the construction critical path, and that if rapid transit was not in
place in Hamilton before 2015, construction would likely need to start after Pan Am to
avoid disruption in the King/Main corridor during the Games. This is when the
Subject: Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis Discussions with Metrolinx
Page 2 of 6
statements about a Phased LR . February 2, 2010
would run from McMaster to J T system for Ha.milton were ma
preliminary design and en. inames Street and '^ "- . de. The phased system
building Work wouH ^,, g eenng (PDE) woru in Place In time for Pan Am. The
T__F,,,=,eu Lt/recommendation the Transit EA and the capacity
announcement hl De Complete in time 'for a 2011/12 Provincial Budget
give us a project that could be designed, built and runnin b
commitment to a second from Metrolinx to their Board Would
.recommendation ,^ .... ,_, . (!lnal) phase as n, .., g,_y 2015. There wo,,.,--
between F,=h ..... ,,uu also Include =,.-.. ,"'-"' ,-,, [ne Boarri ,^-:_. u,u ue a
-,,uary Ig and the Provinca,';.a..use regarding the workt..",_ulsln. The
heard in open session at the February 19 Board Meeting, and John's "stretch goal" was
, unalnn ann ........... u oe COmpleted
o ','-'u-,.ement. the BCA would be
that Hamilton and Metrolinx would present together. Based on a phased LRT
recommendation, I advised that you and Chris Murray would likely be the City's
spokesmen at the February 19 meeting
John spoke of a 2 - 3 page "cover report" that would accompany the Board report for
Hamilton's BCA. The cover report would talk about the City-building initiatives we have
underway in Hamilton, and topics such as land value uplift, Downtown vision, Pan Am,
West Harbour, economic development and diversification, McMaster University and
McMaster Innovation Park were to be included. My understanding
report would lend support to a phased LRT project by demonstrating was that the cover
not just about transit for Hamilton; it is about all the benefits that can come along with a
that rapid transit is
rapid transit system and is one COmponent of our .strategy for implementing our
Corporate vision and Strategic Plan
The remainder of our Conversation was around the involvement of Infrastructure Ontario
in project delivery. Before ending the telephone call, I confirmed that John's plan was to
recommend phased LRT, to be in place by 2015, tothe Metrolinx Board on February
19, 2010.
January 29, 2010
John Howe, Michael Sutherland and Karen Woo
Lisa Zinkewich, Carla Ip olit came to meet with Hamilton staff ('me,
recommendatinn .... P o) regarding the BCA and the Metrolinx Board report
-..o ,-,, uanuary 29, 2010.
John began the meeting by discussing a meeting he'd had the night before with the
"Queen's Park reference group" which consists of the Deputy Minister,
Chief of Staff, representative
Infrastructure On r,., ,_,_ s from the Premier's O '. .. the Minister's
ta .... uu,n aavlsed that ,'-- - fflce and David L"': ....
ulu refer ,-.-. ............ ,v, lgston trom en..,, u,uuwas not inclined to have a
recommendation go forward regarding mode ('BRT or LRT) and that they were reluctant
to make a hard financial Commitment He discussed moving forward with the $3M Work
plan for the next 6 months to 1 year, seeing the technical results of that Work and then
.moving to a more formal BR
fiscal capacity and the influenceT or LRT decision. He also spoke about the Provincial
that that has on everything. He said that Hamilton is in
competition with the rest of the Province's fiscal plan rather than in a competition
between other BCAs.
Subject: Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis - Discussions with Metrolinx
Page 3 of 6 February 2, 2010
We then spoke about funding and John asked about the City's willingness to contribute
financially to a rapid transit project. He noted that the "Big 5" projects received 100%
Provincial funding, but that Ottawa (outside of Metrolinx' area of influence, and outside
of the MoveOntario 2020 $11.5B in allocated rapid transit funding) entered into a 1/3 -
1/3 - 1/3 funding agreement (municipal, Provincial, Federal). As noted below, $9.6B
was allocated to the "Big 5"; $1.9B of the $11.5B Provincial share of MoveOntario 2020
money still remains. John was unable to answer why some of the $1.9B could not be
used for Hamilton's project. He did note that Hamilton is furthest along in planning, that
Hamilton is the only one to get PDE funding and that developing the $3M work plan was
significant. I provided John, Michael and Karen with an overview of some of the
financial challenges we face currently, in particular focussing on the State of the
Infrastructure report that had just been presented to Council which indicated that our
infrastructure deficit alone is $140M per year. Hamilton would not be able to contribute
any significant amount of money to rapid transit, and the willingness to contribute
financially would decrease dramatically for a BRT system.
We also discussed the February 19 Metrolinx Board report and the recommendations
Metrolinx staff would be making in that report. John advised that the proposed
recommendation was now to focus on what the BCA tells us and how it informs the
work plan. Rather than recommending phased LRT (or any mode), their plan was to
formulate the report so that both BRT and LRT remained potential options. He hoped
that Hamilton would be there to support the collaborative process and to show that we
agree on the methodology that was used for the BCA.
The other recommendation of the report would be for Hamilton and Metrolinx staff to
work together in a cooperative fashion on the $3M work program. John talked about
how the Contribution Agreement didn't get a lot of profile at Metrolinx, and the February
19 meeting would be an opportunity to validate that we (Hamilton and Metrolinx) are on
the same course. I advised that the Contribution Agreement did receive a lot of profile
in Hamilton, and that the RFP for the $3M was currently out for bids (Note: 26 firms
have picked up the RFP as of February 1, 2010). I also mentioned that we already had
the direction to work together since the Contribution Agreement had been signed by
both parties. In addition, we have taken a report to Council regarding the Contribution
Agreement, and received Council direction to move forward with it. John spoke a few
times about revising the work plan, something that will be difficult to do, at best, given
that the RFP closes before the Metrolinx Board Meeting.
When asked why the report was changing from a phased LRT recommendation to a
recommendation to receive the BCA and direct Metrolinx and City staff to work together
on the $3M work program, John did not have a response. He did add that, perhaps, a
recommendation to set a timeline for a formal modal choice announcement could be
added to the staff report.
The cover report (see summary under January 27) was to be complete in advance of
the February 2, 2010 meeting between Metrolinx and your office, and would be shared
with me on February 1, 2010.
Subject: Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis - Discussions with Metrolinx
Page 4 of 6 February 2, 2010
February1, 2010
Following our meeting this afternoon, I received a message from John Howe asking that
I call him. I did call, and John advised that while the proposed content of the staff report
to the Board remained unchanged, he was no longer able to share the cover report with
me at this time. He advised that tomorrow's meeting would be political, and that the
"political-to-political" discussion was receiving higher priority than the staff discussions.
He asked that I share this with you and with Chris Murray.
The current recommendations of the Metrolinx staff report continue to be that the
Metrolinx Board receive the report, and that Hamilton and Metrolinx staff be directed to
work together on the $3M work program. I advised John that these recommendations
were going to be extremely problematic, and that Metrolinx should expect significant
media coverage and commentary from the Hamilton community regarding these
recommendations. I stressed that re-announcing the $3M would be especially difficult
for Metrolinx. John advised that he, and others at Metrolinx, were well aware that not
making a mode decision on February 19 would be problematic, and that the issues
regarding the $3M re-announcement would be left with the political advisors.
Metrolinx is still hoping that February 19 can be an opportunity for us to demonstrate
our commitment to work together. The meeting will be held in open session at 1:00 on
February 19. No location has been posted on the Metrolinx website for this meeting as
of February 1, 2010.
One of John's concluding comments was that the political discussion might change
everything.
Metrolinx Priority Projects
These 15 projects were identified as "Priority Projects" in "The Big Move", and are ones
that were envisioned (in "The Big Move") to be completed within 15 years:
,, Express Rail on the Lakeshore Line connecting Hamilton, Burlington, Oakville,
Mississauga, Toronto, Pickering, Ajax, Whitby and Oshawa
,, Rapid transit in downtown Hamilton from McMaster University to Eastgate Mall
Rapid transit on Dundas Street in Halton and Peel
,, 403 Transitway from Mississauga City Centre to the Renforth Gateway
,, Hurontario rapid transit from Port Credit to downtown Brampton
,, Brampton's Queen Street AcceleRide
,, Rail link between Union Station and Pearson Airport
,, VIVA rapid transit expanded along Highway 7 and Yonge Street through York
Region
Spadina subway extension to Vaughan Corporate Centre in York Region
Yonge Street subway capacity improvements and extension to Richmond Hill
o Eglinton Avenue rapid transit between Pearson Airport, Toronto and
Scarborough Town Centre
,, Finch/Sheppard rapid transit in Toronto from Pearson Airport to Scarborough
Centre and Meadowvale
w
Subject: Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis - Discussions with Metrolinx
Page 5 of 6 February 2, 2010
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O
Rapid transit service along Highway 2 in Durham
Improvements to existing GO Rail services and extension of GO Rail service to
Bowmanville
The "Big 5" Proiect-
The "Big 5" Projects are included in the list of Priority Projects.
are:
Specifically, the "Big 5"
VIVA Bus Rapid Transit (BRT);
Sheppard East Light Rail Transit (LRT);
Finch LRT;
Eglinton Crosstown LRT; and
Scarborough Rapid Transit
An update on the "Big 5" was givenat the Metrolinx Board meeting on November 16,
2009. The minutes of this meeting are not yet available on-line, however, a copy of the
PowerPoint update is available. From this presentation, we can see that $9.6B has
been committed for these projects, and that there is 100% Provincial funding for eligible
capital costs. The projects will be owned and controlled by Metrolinx. Project scope
agreements are in place for VIVA, Sheppard East and Finch. Interim funding
agreements are in place to achieve 2009 groundbreaking for VIVA and Sheppard East,
and to advance PDE, utility relocation and land acquisition for the "Big 5". A retroactive
funding agreement with TTC is in place. Agreement-in-principle regarding roles and
responsibilities of Metrolinx, Infrastructure Ontario, Toronto/TTC and YorkNIVA are in
place, as is an agreement between Metrolinx and TTC regarding the Transit City LRV
procurement strategy. One of Metrolinx' immediate work plan priorities is cost
management and phasing to keep within the $9.6B committed for these projects.
Additional project details include:
Project Name
VIVA BRT
Sheppard LRT
Finch LRT
...... Scarborough LRT
Eglinton Crosstown LRT
Construction
Start
2OO9
2009
2011
2011
2011
In Service
2013
2013-14
2016
2015
2016-20
Committed
Funding
($B)
1.4
1.0
1.2
1.4
4.6
Length
(km)
37
15
24
10
31
Tuesday's Meeting with Metrolinx
As discussed today, it is important that the Metrolinx Board make a decision regarding
rapid transit mode for Hamilton at the February 19, 2010 Board Meeting. City Staff,
Council and the public have been expecting that the report on the Benefits Case
Analysis would include a decision on mode, and have been anxiously awaiting the
Board's consideration of the BCA report. The BCA was originally slated to go to the
Subject: Hamilton Benefits Case Analysis - Discussions with Metrolinx
Page 6 of 6 February 2, 2010
Board in May 2009, but has been postponed a number of times before being scheduled
for the February 19, 2010 Board Meeting.
In addition, a decision regarding mode is important because:
We are proceeding on the basis of the October 2008 Council resolution to pursue
LRT on the B-Line in the short term. As noted above, the Benefits Case Analysis
was due in May 2009; we were going to report back to Council at that point and
seek further direction regarding route and two-way traffic. Each time the Benefits
Case Analysis was delayed, the report to Council was also delayed. As a result,
we have been working on rapid transit with a number of parameters that have not
yet been vetted through Council. They have been presented to Council through
Information Reports and Council Workshops, but Council has not yet been asked
to make decisions on things like two-way transit and two-way traffic on King
Street.
We need to know where rapid transit fits in terms of Corporate Priorities. The
priority could change depending on mode. In addition, if rapid transit is a high
priority, we need to assign the right resources, provide the right support, spend
more time on outreach to the community and to our staff, and ensure that it is
incorporated in the work programs of all Departments.
Important questions for Metrolinx include:
,,. Will the Board make a decision/recommendation regarding rapid transit mode for
Hamilton on February 19, 2010? If not, why not?
Why is phased LRT no longer recommended?
When will the funding announcement come?
Can any of the remaining $1.9B from the MoveOntario 2020 funds be used for
Hamilton LRT? If not, why not?
Should you require any additional information in advance of tomorrow's meeting, please
do not hesitate to contact me by email or on my cell (905-973-2306) as I will off-site at
meetings in the morning.