Liberal Candidate Jake Gray QA

This is part two in a series asking two simple questions to Langley federal candidates. Here is the response from Liberal candidate Jake Gray.

1. What will your party do to improve public transportation in the South of Fraser Region?
The liberal party has committed 70 billion over ten years for infrastructure reinvestment. It would be up to individual MPs to fight for this funding. As you are aware our current MP fails miserably at this task. As your MP I can assure you I will deliver.


2. Does your party support the restoration of the Interurban Rail Line?
The Interurban is not specifically mentioned in our platform, nor is it mentioned in any party's platform, so I can't say that my party supports the restoration of the Interurban. I can say the liberal party supports development of public transportation. I can say that I support the restoration of the Interurban. For that matter I can also say that I support… an integrated lower mainland transportation system incorporating rail, road and water.

Federal Candidates Question and Answer

We at South Fraser OnTrax sent requests to all the Langley federal candidates asking them two simple questions: What will your party do to improve public transportation in the South of Fraser Region? Will your government support the restoration of the Interurban Rail Line? As you are well aware the federal government does not have jurisdiction on public transit in Canada, but it does have the ability to contribute money and deal with related federal infrastructure. We will be posting the responses in the order in which we received them.

Today we wanted to inform you that we won’t be receiving a response from the Conservative Party candidate and Langley MP, Mark Warawa. He told us that they have a policy of not responding to questions unless it is major media outlet or local media like the Langley Times or Langley Advance. He also added that he does not read blogs and apparently does not view them as legitimate media or a place for constituents to find helpful information.

Our first response will be from Liberal Candidate Jake Gray.

Gateway in the News

There happened to be a copy of the Vancouver Courier in the lobby of my work today. Headline: Roads to nowhere - Opposition to the provincial government's Gateway Project is heating up. But it may be too late.

"The real irony is that right next door Vancouver is being held up as a model of high density for the world to follow," says Perl. "The Fraser Valley really needs to replicate that model. Building Gateway will lock in sprawl for at least another 20 years. These new roads will be obsolete by the time they are built. It's very expensive and totally wasteful to spend so much money on such a quick fix. What we need is more rapid transit that attracts high-density development."

Electric buses and trolleys provide the most potential to move people around, says Perl, in particular the old Interurban tracks of the B.C. Electric Railway that ran from Chilliwack to Vancouver. It's a huge hidden asset, says Perl, and will provide zero emissions at the same time as attracting new development along the line. When the old Interurban shut down in the 1958 due to a lack of passengers (many people had switched their commute to cars), the 40-year-old system still carried nearly 70,000 people.

This is a feature length report; check out the Courier’s website for the full story.

Streetcars Returning to Vancouver

South Fraser OnTrax member and Langley realtor Herb Klein reminded me this morning about my constant statements to members that anything (The Interurban, streetcars along 200th St., etc.) are all possible with political will and leadership behind it. Well, the political will is there in Vancouver and the city will see a streetcar demonstration project for 2010, as reported in today's Vancouver Sun and elsewhere.

Now its a great thing that we will see streecars in the area and people will be able to ride this line to Stanley Park and False Creek/Granville Island during the Olympic and Paralympic games. But I guess that communties south of the Fraser are not worthy of such an Olympic legacy? We have a Golden Ears bridge almost completed here in Langley. We have a growing 200th Street with shopping and other amenities surrounding the urban Township, not to mention the gems along Fraser Hwy. and 56th Avenue in Langley City.

I find it very comical that this streetcar system will be a "demonstration" and the CEO of BC Rapid Transit Co., Ltd. considers this part of a "wonderful catalyst" for transportation innovation. Folks , streetcars have been used successfully the world over and there is nothing more to demonstrate than that they work and people will get out of thier cars and ride them! As for innovation, the only thing innovative about LRT and streetcars are that if TransLink stops to think about the cost of SkyTrain expassion, we might see more of these "demonstrations" around our region.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy to see the streetcars making a much-needed comeback, but the political BS to hype it is pathetic. Vancouver is not the centre of the universe and the south Fraser will soon be home to more people than that of the City of Vancouver. Let's get moving with the creation of our light rail and streetcar legacy out here!