Putting the H in GTHA

This session was facilitated by Tom.  A summary of some background information shared was that:

-    Hamilton does not have a large, white collar business community

-    As a comparison, Mississauga has a business district - it built it from scratch

-    In contrast, Hamilton has the infrastructure for a business district but this is not where business is moving

Issues identified from the group:

1)    There is only limited counterflow transit to Hamilton (i.e. how do you get from other places to Hamilton if you work here); the priority seems to be about getting OUT of Hamilton to Toronto etc.)

2)    Hamilton is a big place; how do you get to the outer regions of Hamilton

3)    Two train stations in Hamilton (i.e. how will GO change service with 2 stations, are efforts being split between multiple hubs?)

4)    Investment/service additions may be needed to allow ridership to grow over time (i.e. sparsely used trains may be needed for some time)

5)    Parking costs, taxes, need to be tied into transit planning

6)    Creative class in Hamilton – the movement of artists to Hamilton (low cost compared to Toronto) is being held up as a structure

7)    Economic development – what types of industry and business are being attracted to Hamilton; can shifts be shaped?

8)    Big projects vs. small building blocks – the emphasis seems to be on projects like the Commonwealth Games in Hamilton versus more attainable small building blocks

9)    Land use patterns – how can we examine where people need to be moved versus freight in relation to Hamilton?

What seems to be stopping transit?

- GO doesn’t take on loss leaders

- Canadian Pacific is a business that is impacted by increasing passenger transit to Hamilton and needs to be compensated