Why Hamilton's new LRT is a big deal: Coun. Aidan Johnson on CBC Radio

Yesterday's announcement of provincial funding for light rail transit has many people in Hamilton buzzing, including Coun. Aidan Johnson.

Johnson, whose ward will be greatly affected by LRT, spoke with CBC Radio's Matt Galloway on Metro Morning about the upcoming changes.

The biggest change, Johnson said, was a new outlook on public transit.

Here is an abridged and edited version of his conversation with host Matt Galloway.

How big of a deal is this?

It's a huge deal. It's not just a chunk of my ward. It starts right at the beginning of my ward and goes all the way past McMaster University, our vital economic hub, and into the downtown and out into the neighbouring wards. It's going to be a huge investment in the city and we are stoked.

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What is the state of public transit in Hamilton right now?

It's fair. I ride the bus every day and I know perfectly well from my experience that the buses in Hamilton are crowded. The buses don't come as frequently as we need them to. Their inefficiency is in the bus system. Light Rail is a way for Hamilton to re-jig its transportation system, create new excitement around public transportation, incentivize new riders to consider giving up their cars, and perhaps most importantly, link transit municipally in Hamilton to the provincial Go infrastructure. Folks can come from Toronto to McMaster more easily, and Torontonians can very quickly get to our Go centre and out to jobs, here and elsewhere in the GTA.

How seamless is that going to be for people commuting back and forth?

Seamlessness is the primary goal for the system. A major new element for our LRT vision — which has been kicking around for some years — but a new piece to our vision is the spur line. So instead of being simply along Main and King, the two primary corridors in the city, we're also going to have a connection from the King LRT line over to our James Street-Liona Station terminal. That's a key piece because it connects our Go busses and trains to municipal transit. I think seamlessness is a valuable necessity. There's no point in building transit if it's taking people to the wrong places.

How do you stoke excitement to get people to think transit is something they're not forced onto but they'll want to take?

It sounds almost funny, but I would argue visual attractiveness is a very important piece. In the LRT pictures I've seen, drawn up by artists, we're looking at sleek, futuristic trains. Most importantly, we're looking at trains that are visually attractive. I think that actually matters. As much as I love Hamilton busses, there's something kind of clunky about these busses. I think it's a lot more attractive to people deciding whether to ride public transit if it's a visually attractive option.

With construction possibly not starting until 2019, is there a possibility this project goes off the rails before it goes on the rails?

I suppose it's possible but we're not counting on it. We have a great team working on it. It's very possible that some elements of the build begin in 2017. More importantly, for all the debate around LRT in Hamilton, there's a lot of enthusiasm for this project. Hamiltonians know this city is undergoing a renaissance, and we know that we need infrastructure to match where we're at and where we're going. I have heard, and have no particular reason to doubt, that this is the largest provincial infrastructure investment in Hamilton ever. So it's that big a deal, and we're very excited.