Is there some way we can get some action on getting the railway up and running instead of the usual Canadian inaction on projects?
This should have happened at least 10 years ago but, with the increased traffic in the past 10 months (very obvious in Parksville and Highway 19) and the fact that Qualicum Beach and Parksville have the number one and three oldest average populations in Canada, the service is becoming critical.
Many seniors have specialist medical services in Victoria, and friends and relatives to visit, and should not be attempting to drive the distance through the heavy traffic and the Malahat even in ideal conditions.
Someone suggested adding more small buses, but how does that reduce highway traffic? And the small buses do not have washrooms, a disaster for many of us old folks, especially in the event of a traffic jam like we have seen too often on Highway 19.
How difficult is it to rejuvenate an existing rail line compared to the Europeans tunneling 30 miles through a mountain and building a new rail line? Are Canadians not up to the job?
We can spend billions on a new, blue bridge in Victoria, flood acres of farmland in Northern B.C., build some fancy “fast ferries,” and yet we don’t have funds for the rail line, a mere drop in the bucket compared to these other projects?
And please get a newer, faster, more fuel-efficient engine compared to the old 1952 grain hauler from Saskatchewan.
The lack of foresight is now causing problems for many people — let’s get going now! I am 82 and would like to visit my sister in Victoria; please make it possible to safely do so and not worrying about where to park, if I make it there.
Ed Fergusson
Parksville