ION Phase 2 - Cambridge's Light Rail Transit

[trainspotter139]

One of the biggest reasons why it's going through Sportsworld Crossing is because of the Highway 401 and 8 interchange as well as the big box stores that will most inevitably be redeveloped at some point (similar to SmartCentres in Cambridge will be). Homer Watson would have be nice to utilize, but it's a bit too disconnected from things for this phase of the LRT and current evolutionary stage of the city. The chosen route through Sportsworld Crossing also provides the most direct way (in terms of distance) from Kitchener-Waterloo to Cambridge which is important for a rapid transit system...the ultimate goal of transit is to move people, not just encourage development. Bytor mentioned the numbers and they're right that the ridership around Homer Watson does not yet warrant an LRT line. One of the goals in our region is to better bridge the borders between the individual cities and make travelling between them less of a hassle and the chosen route does that very well, especially with so much of this route being elevated allowing for high speeds between the cities.

However, as for the future, who knows. On the previous page I mentioned how many of my colleagues have been exploring where a future line of the LRT will go, and Homer Watson is definitely a contender. The region and a few planning/economic firms have been studying this area already. As danbrotherston mentioned, the area already has a rail corridor which could be utilized. The area around the college is considered a "major node" for intensification and transit development as well. There is another 401 connection that could be a benefit for commuters coming from the west. There is a lot of land still open for development on this side of the city too, although the limits of the city are very close here and I don't see Wilmot Township pushing for intense densification anytime soon.

If you've never seen the Regional Official Plan documents, take a look to get some insight as to where this city is going to focus on in the next couple decades when it comes to intensification and transit development: Regional Official Plan

Being more direct, but bypassing people and destinations is contrary to the goal of transporting people. I don't know why we keep saying that Homer-Watson doesn't warrant an LRT line. If Homer-Watson doesn't than Sportsworld absolutely does not. The line is bigger than just that one section. But in that case there are more people and jobs along Homer-Watson.

In my humble opinion, if LRT were to go along Homer Watson it would be better served as a replacement for the 201 rather than as a spur or diverting the 301 away from Sportsworld. Sportsworld itself has more intensification potential and also has intercity connections that don't exist on Homer Watson.