The federal government is on board Ottawa’s light rail rapid transit project, but the city shouldn’t expect to get any more funding for infrastructure projects from Parliament Hill.
Yesterday, federal Transport and Infrastructure Minister John Baird and Ottawa-Vanier MP Royal Galipeau announced they would be matching the province’s $600-million commitment to the city’s $2.1-billion LRT project.
This is the biggest investment the federal government has ever made in a project in Ottawa and essentially exhausts all the funds available through the Building Canada Fund, said Baird.
“We’re now putting all our eggs in one basket, but now these are the only eggs left,” he said.
The first phase of the light rail line will be a 12.3-km light rail running from Tunney’s Pasture to Blair Road through a 3.2-km tunnel under downtown. Even with the commitment from the two senior levels of government, the city would still need to pay $900 million to complete the project.
Making that LRT project affordable will require some creativity, said Mayor Larry O’Brien, but he would not consider a surface rail option. “The tunnel is a fundamental part of the plan,” he said.
Despite having to come up with nearly $1 billion of its own money for the project, Bay Ward Coun. Alex Cullen, the chair of the transit committee, said he was confident in the city’s ability to cover those costs.
“This is a city that has a triple-A credit rating, better than that of the Province of Ontario, better than the Government of Canada,” he said. “We’ll certainly be taking another look at the design plan, but if we have to, we can pick up the difference.”
The $2.1-billion estimate for the project includes the full cost of the land, which is standard in land exchanges between various levels of government.
City council will get an update from light rail planning staff on project elements, next steps and affordability today.
