I find the attitude of the mayors of Langford, Colwood and Esquimalt to be very typical, not only of politicians but of North Americans in general.
Talk is easy. Talk does not require much effort.Talk is cheap. One can say anything that they want. It is cool to promote alternative transportation, and it sounds good.
To walk the walk takes real effort. It can cause some inconvenience and can cause some expense (buying a new bike, putting money into new infrastructure). Walking-the-walk is a different matter. The taxpayers will object.
I live in Saanich and I would certainly support Saanich giving money for regional transit. It is a project to benefit the whole region, and as a Saanich citizen I am proudly part of this local region.
Maybe such actions as are being demonstrated with this parochial attitude, the province may become courageous enough to force amalgamation. It would not be a first for British Columbia. The province has done it in the past in such places as Kelowna-Rutlege (now Kelowna) and Nanaimo, Wellington, Lantzville, Cedar (now Nanaimo).
Other provinces have forced amalgamations and it is long overdue in Victoria.
The boroughs around Toronto are now Toronto (names such as Streetsville, Port Credit, Lawrence Park, Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough, etc.). In the nation’s capital, Nepean, Blackburn Village, Vanier, Kanata, Orléans, etc., are now part of Ottawa. In Québec, Aylmer, Hull, Buckingham, Chelsea and Gatineau are now Gatineau.
Victoria’s time is long overdue.
We would not have this problem if only the provincial government had the courage to do what is right, what is realism even if it is not idealism.
R.D. Townsend
Saanich
