'A plan to get you out of traffic': McKenney says transportation plan will ease traffic on Ottawa roads
Mayoral candidate Catherine McKenney says their plan to increase OC Transpo service and build new bike lanes will help limit commuter traffic on Ottawa's roads, promoting their transportation plan on a day thousands of motorists dealt with major delays due to construction.
A five-kilometre section of the Queensway is closed for the replacement of the Rochester Street Bridge this weekend, causing traffic delays on Carling Avenue, Baseline Road, Hunt Club Road, Catherine Street and other roads across the city.
"The plan today that I revealed really is a plan for everyone," McKenney told CTV News Ottawa shortly after unveiling their commitment to ease traffic, shorten commute times and lower emissions.
"It's a plan to get you out of traffic. It includes a transit plan; it includes better, safer roads; it includes cycling. It includes something for everyone."
In a media release, McKenney said the shutdown of Hwy. 417 for construction and the domino effect on the roads is a reminder of "why diverse options for getting around save us time and stress."
The campaign says McKenney's transportation plan will make transit "more reliable and affordable", while their plan for safe cycling and building new cycling infrastructure will "free up our roads and make it easier for more people to cycle" if they are moving around the city of Ottawa.
McKenney has promised to increase transit operations by 20 per cent over the next four years and freeze transit fares, along with building 25 years worth of cycling infrastructure over four years. McKenney's campaign says the cycling infrastructure plan would be financed through a $250-million green bond, adding it would be cost-neutral.
"Anytime you put more people on transit, of course, you take them out of cars, so that opens up space on our roadways," McKenney said Saturday afternoon.
"Certainly, anytime you put in cycling infrastructure it's also an opportunity to make the roadway better, the surface of roadway better - just a little bit more than filling potholes. It really does work towards getting people out of traffic, making sure the roadway is safe and available for everyone."
While McKenney's transportation plan includes new cycling lanes, they say they will make sure Ottawa's current roads are fixed for all transportation options.
"I would suggest that people want the roads they've already paid for to be fixed. The biggest complaint that I hear from people is that the state of the roads, so fix the roads that we have before we widen more," McKenney said.
"Ensure that we are building a transportation network for everyone – getting people out of traffic means getting more people onto transit and building a transportation network that serves everyone."
McKenney is scheduled to release the full campaign financial plan on Thursday. The two-term councillor has said the financial plan will include a three per cent property tax cap.
Mayoral candidate Mark Sutcliffe has pledged to spend an additional $100 million over four years to repair and clear snow from Ottawa's roads and multi-use pathways.
Sutcliffe promised a "balanced approach" to transportation. Sutcliffe is also promising a web-based "pothole-line" where residents can report potholes, and is proposing to double city councillors’ traffic calming budgets to $100,000 per ward.
The former broadcaster and entrepreneur is also scheduled to release their campaign financial plan next week.
Bob Chiarelli, another mayoral candidate, has pledged that no new construction projects would start in his first year in office. The former mayor's campaign website says the savings would be spent on the "deplorable condition" of the existing roads.
"By cancelling planned road projects, such as the twinning of the Airport Parkway and the Alta Vista Parkway, it will free up money to address the crumbling road system," Chiarelli says on his website.
"It makes no sense to prioritize new road infrastructure when we are investing billions into LRT and targeting net zero GHG emissions."
With files from CTV News Ottawa's Colton Praill and Michael Woods
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States, injuring at least three people.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.