Mayor Watson has declared war on the Ottawa taxpayer. Yes, that's right. Where else in the Western industrialized world would an elected leader rig a critical decision (as passed in the city budget) and then, after the fact, "consult" with the public about it? Mr. Watson has effectively opened up a cold war with Ottawa residents through his recent decision to cut OC Transpo service. Democracy is about fairness and transparency; I dare anyone to tell me how this recent decision is either. So now it's left to Ottawa residents to fight against Mr. Watson's egregious act of attrition. What is one of the city's most essential services on a daily basis - the very lifeblood of the city depends on its well-being - is being treated as a low priority budget item, which really doesn't need the elected Mayor's help or support.
Make no mistake about it. These cuts to Ottawa's public transit system are about one thing and one thing only: reaching the point at which the riders pay 50 % of the operating costs. This is why the fares keep going up and the service keeps going abysmally down. The logic escapes me here: the more cuts, the more inconvenient the bus service becomes, the fewer riders there are who can pay for the service.
Many who must use OC Transpo every day are those who cannot afford these increases: seniors, students, low-income groups, and those with accessibility challenges. These rider groups are being punished by Mr. Watson with the cuts to bus service. Take a closer look at the neighbourhoods where these cuts are taking place; you'll find that many are through high concentrations of areas where these disadvantaged riders use the service (perfect example, #18 Overbrook). Who else would have thought of calling these cuts a "network optimization"? Think George Orwell & his novel ''1984''.
As well, the city-hired consultants claim that Ottawa needs to bring the average access to transit down from 400 m to 800 m, which is the case throughout Canada and the USA. The problem with this thinking is that most of Canada and almost all of the USA do not share Ottawa's prolonged and severe winter weather. So, this is not a valid basis for "network optimization".
While Mr. Watson is privately grinning all the way, it is left to the riders to beg and plead their case to "Dear Leader" - actually, the mayor is hiding behind the transit commission hearings instead of being directly involved in hearing from the public. Will the emperor deign to look down upon these poor saps and give them a few scraps on April 20th by reversing these cuts? I'm not a betting man on this one.
Why is the mayor keeping his election promise of holding tax hikes to 2.45 % on the backs of transit riders, and in such an undemocratic way? What happened to the extra social housing money downloaded from the province that could have helped alleviate the OC Transpo financial woes? Did the mayor - and his well-paid consultants and advisors - review every other possible measure to bring the budget in at or below 2.45%? Oh, I dunno, simple things like trimming the number of city contractors/consultants, freezing city employee hirings and overtime, and freezing monies to city services and programs which are less of a priority than public transit?
Well, sadly, it's come to this. Given that there is no official opposition in the city like on the federal and provincial levels, the Ottawa resident effectively is the only official opposition to the likes of Mr. Watson and his cronies. Together, we need to mobilize our resources so that Mr. Watson - and not the Ottawa resident - is punished for such undemocratic behaviour. How, you might ask? Well, I strongly recommend the following strategy:
1/ the local media should be going out of their way to highlight every neighbourhood in the city which will be affected by these cuts. Yes, every day in the newspapers and every night on the TV and/or radio news, there needs to be an in-depth report on what Mr. Watson's cuts are doing to all areas of the city; keep this daily reporting ongoing until April 20 when the final decision is made by the Transit Commission. No one should be suffering in silence.
2/ the elected city councillors have to stop being Mr. Watson's "toadies". (He already has well-paid consultants and advisors to fill this role.) Start listening - really listening - to your ward constituents. Arrive at council meetings fully prepared with intelligent and probing questions for each and every vote. You are not elected - nor paid - for the sole purpose of helping the mayor beef up his resume in case he might run in the next leadership race for the provincial Liberals. Stop rubber-stamping anything and everything the mayor proposes like trained seals. Please do what you were elected to do: which is, to represent the needs of your constituents, needs such as the essential service of public transit.
3/ you, the Ottawa resident and taxpayer, have to "take back the city" by stopping Mr. Watson in his tracks. Contact the mayor and your councillor and make it loud and clear that decisions such as the one on the cuts to OC Transpo are 100 % objectionable and intolerable. Make it clear as well that support for public transit is not negotiable. It is an essential service and must always be given the highest priority in any budget discussions.
Mr. Watson, the city belongs to us, the residents and taxpayers. Not to you and your cronies. Stop your undemocratic behaviour here and now. And, while you're at it, do something to demonstrate that you're not a hired thug running the city.
A concerned Ottawa resident and taxpayer,
Len Grady
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