Mayor Larry O’Brien’s transportation plan — in particular, his proposal to construct a ring road around Ottawa — drew withering reviews from his rivals yesterday.
O’Brien provided two main justifications for the ring road.
“You need to be able to, one, give the people in the rural and suburban areas a way of moving around the city that doesn’t take them through the core.
“Second of all, you need to be able to give transport trucks a way of getting around the city without going through the core.”
Jim Watson derided the plan as “a throwback to the 1970s.”
“Mr. O’Brien’s plan calls for a billion-dollar highway that would literally eviscerate the green belt,” he said.
“Off-ramps would be added, we’d add to urban sprawl, and massive costs would be shouldered by the taxpayers.”
Clive Doucet was equally unenthusiastic.
“Right now we desperately need relief on the 417 and that means an alternative public transit solution, not more roads,” he said.
