Ottawa: Light Rail Project Approved by City Council

The city council of Ottawa, Canada, has a approved 14 to 7 a CAN$780 million light rail public transit project. "The plan would see a 29.7-kilometre, 23-station LRT line run from the University of Ottawa in the north to Barrhaven in the southwest, snaking through many neighbourhoods." Even better, the mayor of Ottawa is already working on a second project for a East-West line: "I've always said that the minute north-south is approved, east-west [from Stittsville to Cumberland] will be my immediate priority, and it is," he said. "I think it's important to express my vision for east-west and how we expect to achieve it, so that we can move forward with that as the new No. 1 transit priority." With gasoline already around CAN$1.10/liter (~$4/gallon US) in the Ottawa region and no end in sight to the increase in oil prices (peak oil), it's nice to see some leadership in future-proofing the city. Now what we need is more bike paths, bike racks and eventually a congestion charge like in London. ::Ottawa council gives green light to rail project, ::Mayor quickly sets sights on light-rail, Part II, ::Ottawa council approves light rail project