Dear Madame Senator

So, some senator wants to attempt to prove her relevancy by weighing in on the Quebec City Amphitheater nonsense by pooping all over the people that oppose the project (who, according to her, are 'Montrealers').

Article here.

(It pains me to be on the same as Amir Khadir on any issue. He's against the issue to attract attention to himself, period. However...)

Mme Senator wants to poop all over my opposition as though opposing the project is based on jealousy. As though Montrealers begrudge Quebec City for wanting the arena. That is simply bovine excrement.

I oppose the project because it is based on the outright lie that building the arena will magically make the Nordiques reappear in the city. Mr. Bettman has repeated time and time again that the NHL will not relocate a team to Quebec City just because they build a rink. So why the hell are we spending $200 million on a rink that will remain without a team? Hamilton learned the lesson, why does Quebec City ignore it?

Here are Gary's own words:

If there’s a new building, separate and independent from us, for whatever reason and the opportunity presents itself with respect to a franchise, it’s no different than what I said about Winnipeg. But we don’t want people building a building on our account, expecting that there’s going to be a franchise, because we’re not in the position to promise one right now.

Via Hockey News

To be unambiguous: the supporters of this project need to stop lying. Stop lying to yourselves and others. Halting the construction of the arena does NOT put the return of the Nordiques to Quebec City in jeopardy. The Nordiques are NOT returning to Quebec City, so nothing can put the return in jeopardy. Stop deluding yourselves. It really begs the question: what part of Gary Bettman's statement to the fact that there is no planned return of an NHL franchise to QC-City, and that a new arena changes nothing about that non-plan, don't you understand?

Mme Senator wants to say that I should shut up and shell out my tax money for an unneeded rink because Montreal has the Big Owe. Memo to Mme Senator: I was 5 years old when that useless waste opened for the Olympics. I would gladly pack it up and send it to Quebec City: it is ugly, it is a waste of money and we spend waaaay too much time and resources on it. I don't want it and I never wanted it, so don't tell me to be somehow grateful for it like it's a huge source of pride. And it, too, sits empty and devoid of a professional team. So because Drapeau imposed this monstrosity upon Montrealers, we now have to put up with the fantasies of the latest ego-maniacal mayor, in the person of Régis Labaume, to put up YET ANOTHER useless sports arena that will overrun its budget, cost taxpayers more than it should, line the pockets of construction contractors over-charging because it's a government project and REMAIN EMPTY. And so they refuse to learn the lessons of both Hamilton AND Montreal.

I want to see the $200 million spent on anything but this frivolous waste of money. Give it to the municipalities along the Richelieu River so that they can improve the water management systems there. Give it to the family doctors that don't stay in Quebec. Give it to the schools so they can have decent play yards and roofs that don't leak. Fix the 1-out-of-3 bridges and overpasses that are in danger of collapsing on our heads (or under our wheels). But for the love of everything good and decent, don't use it on an arena that will be built for nothing!!

Mme Senator, you say that you are embarrassed to live in Montreal, so please do Montreal a favor and move to Quebec City. The fact that you live in my city is an embarrassment to me. Your unwanted and irrelevant opinion is built upon a lie, and you insult those of us who have the three braincells left in our heads that are required to see it.

Public Transportation: it would be a great idea

We do have a sort of public transportation system in place here. I just can't qualify it as any better as "sort of". My dissatisfaction is due to a combination of factors, made worse by my experience with what is offered in European cities. I'm environmentally sensitive, more than most (I like to think) but public transportation just isn't in the cards for me. Keep reading if you're at all interested in why...

Let's say I want to go to the grocery store by bus. The closest grocery store is 4.3km away from the house, or 8 minutes driving time at most (this is the 'burbs, we have low speed limits and plenty of stop signs). The first thing I have to do is walk along the street to the closest bus stop, which according to the Tous azimuts tool on the STM website is 125m from my house. Not a problem per se, but still not entirely pleasant since my area, despite being part of the CUM, does not have sidewalks to walk on; I have to walk on the asphalt of the street, with cars whizzing by.

There's a bus that is supposed to go by at 10:51am, so to be at the shelter-less bus stop on time, I'd leave at 10:40. The bus gets to the stop closest to the store at 11:04am, and after exiting the bus I have another 185m to walk (this time I am offered the luxury of a sidewalk). At a good pace, I calculate I walk into the store by 11:10am.

My 8-minute car trip (with the convenience of a trunk to carry the groceries in) has now become a 30-minute trip (or 1 hour round-trip). And I average 4-6 shopping bags per trip, so I now have to carry that back on the bus. I could get a cart, but what I haven't mentioned is that I am traveling with a baby in a stroller already, so the shopping cart in the store, as well as a cart to carry the groceries home in, is all very problematic. Factor in the difficult entry and exit from the bus itself with a stroller, and the 3$/trip fee (6$ round-trip)... tell me honestly that you'd even consider leaving your car at home and taking the bus to go to the grocery store. Costco, at over 15km away and its mega-sized everything, is not an option by public transport. Then there's the bank, the drug store, the dry-cleaners...

Ok, so urban sprawl is what it is and I give myself a pass from using the bus for local shopping and necessities. I won't be a hypocrite, I'll admit freely and openly that I'd use public transit - as many already do - if I had to. If I had no alternative (i.e. no car, no driver's license, or if gas hits 2$+ a liter) then I would use public transport. And when I look at people waiting for buses in the rain with strollers or infants and thank the universe that I am not one of them, I also can't help but wonder if I will be among them one day simply because I won't be able to afford gas, and I honestly fear and will rue that day. I would probably sell this house and move somewhere that allows me to walk to and from basic services just to avoid the bus.

So local use of public transport is not an option right now. What about going downtown? Surely, it is much easier and economical to use public transport? You save on gas, parking and traffic frustrations, right? And I live ON the island of Montreal, not off-island, so it should be a cinch. Right? Well, a few weeks ago there was some sort of Kid's Expo at Place Bonaventure, and I considered ditching the car and going by bus. Here's what the trip what have looked like.

By car: 25.4km and 24 minutes according to the Google. Having taken the trip outside of rush-hour before, I know I can be there in about 20 minutes.

By public transport: walking, bus, 2 metro lines and a 75 minute trip. Metro stations are not adapted and you can't put the stroller onto the escalators, so you have to take baby out, fold the stroller, ride the escalator, unfold, re-seat baby, and repeat for each escalator. That is not calculated into the 75 minutes quoted to me by Tous azimuts. Round-trip, we're talking 40 minutes vs. 150+ minutes. Be honest... which would you choose?

Because I want to be thorough, I also ask myself: why not compromise and drive to the closest metro station, eliminating the need to take the bus and cutting down on travel time? Because parking at a metro station after about 6:30am is near to impossible. The free commuter parking is full by that hour, and residential streets around metro stations have parking rules that discourage metro users from parking there (either with resident-only parking, or by limiting parking times to 2 hours or less). And the closer you get to downtown, the less you and your parked car is wanted, especially in the infamous Plateau, where you aren't wanted at all.

So the public transport option is not an option for me strictly from the efficiency and convenience point of view. I ended up not attending the Expo downtown because it turned out that I didn't feel like spending gas and parking money to go there, and taking public transport was too long and too much of a hassle. Staying home - the increasingly attractive option to spending gas money - was once again my final choice. Too bad Expo, too bad merchants at the Expo, but Big Oil wins again.

But wait! Soon, very soon, the Train de l'est will be running and will surely help the situation! Well, the damn thing has been promised forever and part of it is still bogged down in conflicts, and the stations aren't built yet, so I won't hold my breath. When the thing finally does go into service, the trains will run during rush-hour, and then run about once an hour, in one direction only (inbound in the morning, out-bound in the afternoon). Not an option worth discussing right now for somebody who isn't a rush-hour commuter, and for those who are reality-based when it comes to electoral promises like commuter trains.

So I am car-dependent and readily admit to it. I wish it weren't so, but until I have public transport options that are adapted to my stroller and come somewhere in the vicinity of being somewhat as timely as hopping in the car, it just isn't an option that can be easily adopted into my lifestyle. Regrettably, I'm part of the Big Oil machine just as much as everyone else.