Kincade & Breakenridge. April 12, 2016. Calgary Sun, April 10, 2016. Calgary Herald, March 21, 2016. (March 17, 2016) (March 17, 2016) Ready to Engage has requested an apology for the Mayor’s accusations of bullying at the February 23rd open house at the Woodcreek Community Centre. (February 25, 2016) Ready to Engage has compiled the comments received via comment forms at our January Open House as the Jewish Community Centre…….there are some good ones! (February 1, 2016) Ready to Engage has sent a letter to The Honourable Kathleen Ganley, Minister of Justice regarding the City’s disregard for its own policies. (February 1, 2016) The City’s has finally released the revised Functional Planning Study for the Southwest Transityway Project. (February 1, 2016) We knew there was a utility corridor along 14th Street, but didn’t see as much info on the topic as we thought there should be. So Ready to Engage did some research. This version has a few new updates. (January 27, 2016) Subject: RE: ready to engage event – January 21, 2016 Hello Maurice, Thank you for the invitation for Mayor Nenshi to attend the community information forum on January 21, 2016. Unfortunately, due to calendar conflicts the Mayor is unable to attend and sends his regrets as he will be away. Thank you. Kind Regards, Maureen on behalf of Franca Gualtieri Executive Assistant to His Worship, Mayor Naheed K. Nenshi The Office of the Mayor A first hand and recent example of a bus crash causing a gas leak! Dear Howard, We notice that the project website has been recently updated. These changes include revising the construction timeline from four (4) years to two (2) years in addition to the removal of all references to building “terminal stations and facilities developed in Woodbine Park”. We would be interested to receive any information on how you have managed to reduce the construction timeline by 50 per cent. These are only two examples but there are several other project inconsistencies that have been either removed or revised. Please see attached letter, Yours Sincerely, ready to engage! See our recent letter to The Honourable Brian Mason, Minister of Infrastructure, Minister of Transportation, bringing him up to speed on the project. Ready to Engage has been exchanging quite a few letters with Councillor Pincott. Have a look at our correspondence over the last few months. Our latest letter to Councillor Pincott! (December 23, 2015) Info sessions scheduled for 5 months, residents got 4 days notice. (December 18, 2015) Seems to be some discrepancies in the timeline…..we would like the facts! (December 17, 2015) A letter sharing our What we heard! document with The City. (December 14, 2015) The documentation Deficiency List as at November 25th. (December 10, 2015) What we heard! Our minutes from a face to face meeting with the City held December 1st (December 1, 2015) Follow up request for documents (November 19, 2015) (November 13, 2015) Initial letter from Ready to Engage and CKE Community Association (November 4, 2015) Have a look at a document we pulled together using The City’s numbers. The numbers on this project just don’t seem to add up. Ready to Engage recently replied to a letter we received from Councillor Pincott. We found this Letter to Santa in the Calgary Sun! Ready to Engage! continues to follow up on an a detailed list of documentation we have been trying to gain access to for weeks. We followed up with Howard Kai, Project Manager, SW Transitway & Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). (December 21, 2015) Ready to Engage! sent a letter to Mr. Jeff Fielding, City Manager & CAO requesting an urgent meeting to discuss the BRT project. (December 18, 2015) The City has acknowledged that a Detailed Functional Planning Study for the SW Transitway and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) was completed in August 2015. However they haven’t shared it with us yet. We feel our stakeholders should have access to this document. We wrote a letter to Howard Kai, Project Manager, SW Transitway & Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) requesting he provide the Detailed Functional Planning Study to us. (December 17, 2015) We met Julie Yepishina-Geller, Communications Transit Projects – Transportation Infrastructure at a Lakeview Community Association meeting. She informed us of some interesting changes about The City’s engage! policy that we didn’t know. Click to read our three letters exchanged over the last couple weeks. Attachment 1 – Examples of Effective Public Engagement Best Practices (December 16, 2015) Ready to Engage! is looking for some clear information about their plans for the intersection at 14th Street and 90th Ave. From what we can find the plans are for an at grade crossing, despite the Delcan report recommending a tunnel as traffic would not flow properly with an at grade crossing. We wrote a letter to Howard Kai, Project Manager, SW Transitway & Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) requesting this information. (December 15, 2015) Ready to Engage! thought it would be important to share our Utility Corridor Report with the people who can help take appropriate action. We sent a letter to Mr. Jeff Fielding, City Manager & CAO along with a copy of our report. (December 14, 2015) We knew there was a utility corridor along 14th Street, but didn’t see as much info on the topic as we thought there should be. So Ready to Engage did some research. (December 14, 2015) A number of residents received a letter from Councillor Pincott in response to their original letters expressing concern with the Southwest Transitway and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project. Ready to Engage has sent a response to his letter in an open format. (December 10, 2015) Ready to Engage! has been diligent in reviewing all of the documentation provided by the City in relation to the projects initial stages. We have found a wide range of discrepancies in the information provided. Highlighting these has resulted in the City removing documentation from their site. We have provided the documents at the links below for your review. Stay tuned as we develop a summary document that identifies the specific discrepancies. Southwest Bus Rapid Transit Functional Study – Executive Summary Re: “Calgary’s new ‘Masked’ CTrain hits the tracks,” July 6. The city’s project to increase CTrains from three cars to four cars at a cost of $3.2 million per car has begun at unfortunately a time when ridership is down five per cent. The four-car trains will, according to Calgary Transit, increase CTrain capacity by 33 per cent. But at the same time, the city apparently intends to proceed with southwest bus rapid transit at a capital cost estimated by the city to be $68 million. Now here is the kicker. According to the office of Coun. Brian Pincott, a major proponent of southwest BRT, “Additionally, up to 75 per cent of those currently taking a bus or driving to the LRT stations from the communities south of the reservoir and north of Fish Creek have said they would immediately switch to the BRT.” Now am I the only one who thinks that at a time when CTrain capacity is increasing, and CTrain ridership is decreasing, it is a dumb idea to begin a major southwest BRT capital project, that when completed, will have the effect of drawing a majority of southwest CTrain users away from CTrain ridership to alternate bus transit? It is difficult for me to comprehend a more foolish way to throw away money, and when citizens of Calgary are already hurting from city tax hikes. Joseph Spier, Calgary Click here for original article. Calgary Herald, April 16, 2016. Calgary Herald, April 16, 2016. CBC News, April 15, 2016. Global News, April 15, 2016. Re: Public Transit users ‘silenced, groups says, April 11 Thank you Jennifer Burgess with “I Love YYC Transit” for standing up for better transit service in this City. Although I am not a member of “Ready to Engage,” I am 100 per cent sure they would agree with your position in that the City should be putting way more funding into new residential and employment areas that actually need it rather than wasting all this extra money overlapping existing service with BRT service in established areas like 14th St. S.W. and Woodbine where the majority have stated they don’t need it or want it. Click here for original article. Re: Public transit users ‘silenced’, group says,” April 11 This article talks of a “well-oiled, media-savvy group of residents and political operatives.” This is a good description of the new I Love YYC Transit group advocating for the Southwest Transitway. The group’s chair is a self-described “experienced communicator,” campaign manager for NDP Minister of Justice Kathleen Ganley, and local organizer for Rachel Notley. Board members include a former NDP candidate. Not that there is anything wrong with well-oiled, media-savvy groups of political operatives; as long as we all know what they are. I am not a member of either the Ready to Engage or I Love YYC Transit groups. I am a southwest resident, taxpayer, and Calgary Transit customer. I support further investment in transit. But the proposed Southwest Transitway is NOT the right answer. I believe there are alternatives that would be less disruptive, more flexible and would achieve similar improvements in transit service at lower cost. Steven Emond, Calgary Click here for original article. Re: “Nenshi slams petitions on transit plan,” March 22. I’m disappointed and frustrated by Mayor Naheed Nenshi’s dismissal of the petition requesting council reconsider the southwest BRT project. I am not a member of Ready to Engage, but did sign the petition, as I am opposed to this project. Seems to me the mayor is the one being disrespectful to his constituents by not listening to their legitimate concerns. City council has become a dictatorship as it continues to ram its agenda down the taxpayers’ throats. Lynne Danis, Calgary Click here for original article. I see Mayor Naheed Nenshi is questioning the validity of the of the 3,400-name BRT petition submitted on Monday. What part of the word “petition” written on top of the document all these people signed does he think they did not understand? Tom Spenceley, Calgary Re: “Nenshi slams petition on transit plan,” March 22. I think the mayor is spreading misinformation on the collection of signatures on the southwest BRT petition. The process that I saw was “open,” unlike the city’s information process that the mayor has unilaterally “closed” ahead of schedule. The information session for Haysboro, my community, has been cancelled by the World’s Greatest Mayor. Shame, shame. Mark Soehner, Calgary Letters to the Editor – BRT brings more frustration – Calgary Herald (March 18, 2016) Calgary city hall dithers over southwest BRT open houses, hundreds plan to head downtown to speak their mind – Calgary Sun (March 17, 2016) BRT bus route opponents’ plea for more public meetings rejected by city councillor – Calgary Herald (March 17, 2016) Letters to the Editor – Test the need for BRT lanes – Calgary Herald (March 17, 2016) Southwest BRT construction hinges on gas line questions, says Calgary councillor – CBC News (March 16, 2016) Colley-Urquhart says pipeline major concern in SWBRT project – Metro News (March 16, 2016) Opinion Letter – Building a better transitway – Calgary Herald (March 12, 2016) Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi is done with his southwest BRT battle but it’s not over yet – Calgary Sun (March 10, 2016) Editorial: City must consult on southwest transitway (with poll) – Calgary Herald (March 10, 2016) No charges following angry southwest open house – Newstalk 770 (March 10, 2016) No charges in alleged transitway threats: Calgary Police – Metro News (March 10, 2016) No charges in alleged assault at BRT meeting – Global News (March 10, 2016) Sam Katz, you were right. Rapid Transit is a bad idea – Spectator Tribune (July 20, 2015) Calgary Transit launches four-car train service early – Calgary Herald (November 13, 2015) City’s ‘vision’ may be a costly exercise – Calgary Sun (November 7, 2015) Municipal overspending costs each household $8,500, says taxpayer watchdog – Calgary Herald (November 3, 2015) Southwest transitway has Calgary residents wanting more public consultation on bus rapid transit – CBC (October 29, 2015)Ready to Engage News!
Listen to what the media are saying about this project!
Calgary group questioning city transit plan readier than ever to engage
Nenshi dismisses southwest BRT petition, alleging names were collected under false pretenses
Some Councillors don’t think it is necessary for elected officials to have face-to-face meetings with constituents
BRT bus route opponents’ plea for more public meetings rejected by city councillor
Save the Date – Join us on April 20th City Hall at 9:30am to have your say
Calgary city hall dithers over southwest BRT open houses, hundreds plan to head downtown to speak their mind
Press Release – Requesting an Apology from Mayor Nenshi
What we heard! – Comments from our January Open House.
A letter to the Minister of Justice
The City’s Functional Planning Study – UPDATED!
Utility Corridor Along 14th Street – UPDATED!
The conversation is heating up on CBC radio!
Click to listen to CBC’s Interview with Alan Hallman of Ready to Engage!
Click to read the article and listen to Mac Logan’s Interview in response to our concerns!
January 10, 2016.
Mayor’s Office confirms the Mayor won’t be attending our event.
January 7, 2016.
We found this article from a week back that seems relevant to some of the ongoing comments about the project!
January 7, 2016.
City’s website updated with the project schedule cut in half! How’d that happen?
December 30, 2015.
We thought the Provincial Government should know how effectively their funding is being spent.
December 28, 2015.
Talking with Councillor Pincott!
December 29, 2015.
The numbers just don’t add up!
December 28, 2015.
Our latest follow up letter to Councillor Pincott
December 23, 2015.
Following up on the information we requested!
Meeting requested with Mr. Jeff Fielding, City Manager & CAO!
Detailed Functional Planning Study completed but not shared with stakeholders!
See our correspondence with Julie Yepishina-Geller!
Looking for information on City’s plan for 14th Street & 90th Ave intersection!
Sharing our Utility Corridor Report!
Utility Corridor Along 14th Street
An Open Letter to Councillors Brian Pincott & Diane Colley-Urquhart
Varying information provided in City documentation.
In the News!
Spending on transit as ridership ebbs
City councillors speaking up as worry mounts over soaring transitway costs.
Nenshi, councillors demand answers as SW transitway cost estimates balloon
Southwest BRT estimate soars while petition against it deemed ‘insufficient’
Nenshi ‘needs answers’ after Southwest Transitway cost estimate jumps $25M
I love YYC Transit and the “Ready to Engage” groups seem to have similar stances on BRT bus routes
Tom Spenceley, CalgaryLet’s be clear about transit lobby groups
City hall isn’t listening
Petition was straightforward
Not a fan of the mayor