The transit mayor? Bob Bratina wants to lead Hamilton council — and move ahead on a LRT project he has loudly opposed
Bob Bratina says he wants to be Hamilton's transit mayor" and move forward on a contentious light-rail transit project he has long opposed - so long as it is run by unionized HSR workers.
Other candidates for council's top job in the Oct. 24 election also expressed support for the idea of a city-run LRT - but not Bratina's self-styled transit champion label.
It's quite laughable," said former chamber of commerce head Keanin Loomis, who argued Bratina is well-known for doing everything he could to undermine" LRT as a past mayor and MP. He's wearing an ill-fitted suit."
Former provincial NDP leader Andrea Horwath said Bratina has shown a desire to redebate some of the arguments he already lost" when it comes to the planned 14-kilometre LRT. Transit for the city is about the future, not about trying to fight old battles."
Bratina, 78, clashed with his council over whether to prioritize light rail or GO train service when he was mayor a decade ago and later backed anti-LRT mayoral candidate Vito Sgro during a 2018 election that featured LRT as a prominent wedge issue.
As MP, Bratina also quit the federal Liberal party last year after his own government offered to pay half the $3.4-billion cost to resurrect Hamilton's cancelled LRT, a project he argued is bad for the city.
Now running once again to lead council, Bratina called himself the transit mayor" at a Thursday campaign stop and vowed to lead by example" and use the bus rather than his car as much as possible.
He said he is a fan of exploring more on-demand bus options and wants to review how HSR is managed - potentially looking at ideas like a transit authority. Bratina dismissed calls from transit advocates to end area-rated taxation for transit, however, calling the notion a cash grab."
Bratina's poor opinion of Hamilton's planned LRT does not appear to have changed. But as a realist," he acknowledged stopping the train is unlikely given new government funding and recent council support for the east-west line between McMaster University and Eastgate Square.
We don't need to think about abolishing LRT; it's in council's hands," he said. We need to move forward."
He said that means controlling local operating costs - which the city has agreed to cover - and preventing the project from turning into a debacle" similar to the problem-plagued Ottawa LRT that has spurred a public inquiry.
The only way to manage these costs is to operate the LRT ourselves," he said, specifying the city should insist on unionized HSR operators rather than relying on a private design-build-operate consortium.
Project manager Metrolinx has said it is willing to discuss the possibility of a city-run LRT line, but no decisions have been made.
Horwath said Thursday she backed a unionized, city-run LRT line when she was MPP and she still considers the idea essential" today. It needs to happen," the 59-year-old said. Public transportation is a public good ... it's about the quality of the service and the accountability of the service."
Loomis, 47, said he is open to a city-run LRT line, but also added he doesn't want to prejudge" what the best scenario is for taxpayers and transit riders ahead of an expected project bidding process.
If (the union) and the HSR are ultimately the best operators, that will show up in the bids and we should by all means go ahead and do that."
Matthew Van Dongen is a transportation and environment reporter at The Spectator. mvandongen@thespec.com