The Tunnel Syndrome

I just have to stop reading the Star, and especially Editorials, like "Tunnel vision at Queen's Park," before breakfast. I get such indigestion after reading it that I cannot enjoy my morning coffee.

Clearly the air downtown environmentally is worse than I thought. The unscrubbed, dirty exhaust coming out of the Heritage Tunnel Ventilation Building at the City-owned Detroit/Windsor Tunnel is being spewed all over the downtown it seems causing forgetfulness at City Hall and now a bad case of Tunnelitis at the Star that no amount of common sense can cure.

The Star still wants Governments to waste $4 billion on a problem that is going away and which "Air quality studies performed by the Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) team show some pollutants would increase if a tunnel is built and ventilation towers are used....[and] showed little impact on air quality in the Huron Church corridor from today's traffic volumes." In fact, the test results revealed at the recent CCG meeting show truck pollutant readings generally under the limits for concern.

Remember the story a few days ago about the internal Queen's Park memo, well the Star reported that

• "Star reporters attended the open house when health and property impacts seemingly outweighed any other resident concerns. Gil Courish, who owns a home at the corner of Cabana Road and Huron Church, typified the sentiments that day..."

Actually, read below what Gil said at the time.

I incorrectly assumed from what the story said that there was a SWAT team of Star reporters who attended who virtually interviewed everyone there and got their opinions tabulated. I guess I overlooked the word "seemingly." Anyway we find out in the Editorial that it was only a single reporter and a columnist. Hmmmmm can you guess who they were.

The Saturday Editorial goes on to demand from the Ontario Government

• "the names of the "many visitors" who voiced these concerns [opposed to a tunnel and aghast at the price] and a verbatim accounting of their comments.." After all they do admit "there can be no proof the claim is true. Neither, though, can it be categorically disproved."

Shouldn't the Star do the same.

You know what I did, silly me, I went back to the news story that the Star published at the time in December to see how many outraged people were quoted.

I assumed again that the story would be filled with anti-DRIC and anti-Government comments. You know how many pro-tunnel comments there were quoted: a hundred, fifty, a dozen? How about maybe ONE. Here's the quote:

• "Gil Courish who owns a home at the corner of Cabana Road and Huron Church, attended the DRIC open house. He said he prefers construction of a tunnel to handle border traffic.
  
  "I deal with it every day," Courish said. "I understand the cost would be a lot greater, but you can't put a price on people's health.
  
  "It should be done for the betterment of everybody and not just the cheapest way out."

All he said was that he "preferred" it, hardly a blanket endorsement. The Star story after the DRIC session certainly did not reflect what the Star said in its Editorial that "health and property concerns dominated discussions." Perhaps another disease is creeping through the downtown: "wishingitweresoitis."

However the most hilarious comment in the Star Editorial was

• "But the claim seems at odds with positions taken by municipal leaders, who are closer to local residents than bureaucrats in Toronto. Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis supports a tunnelled route to a new border crossing as does Essex County Warden Nelson Santos. This week, LaSalle council unanimously rejected at-grade feeder routes and endorsed tunnelling as the best option for the region."

Oh puhleeeeeeze. Then why did Windsor Council including our Mayor refuse to pass the simple Tunnel motion that Councillor Bill Marra put forward. Twice they had the chance to pass it but "postponed" it until who knows when. Remember the comments of local politicians at the time:

• "Council wary of tunnel vision; [Hmmm same words as the Star Editorial]
  Dave Battagello 01-29-2007
  
  A bid by Coun. Bill Marra to have city council support his motion for a border tunnel solution for Windsor may be in for a rocky ride at tonight's council meeting.
  
  Several councillors expressed concerns Sunday about Marra's motion, feeling it lacked clarity, and over the possibility it could be twisted to suit the needs of two controversial private border proponents seeking to solve the city's international traffic woes.
  
  "There has to be more discussion on this so we are not sending out a mixed message," said Coun. Fulvio Valentinis.
  
  "We have always wanted the best solution for this community, but we need to be careful as to what we are doing with this tunnelling motion so it's not misinterpreted in any way."
  
  Marra wants a tunnelled route to Windsor's next border crossing, noting the environmental, road safety and neighbourhood benefits of keeping international trucks underground.
  
  His motion in front of council tonight calls for a resolution informing the binational decision-making Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) study group that: "they must have a tunnelled solution for Windsor border traffic..."
  
  "I'm not prepared to support it," said Coun. Caroline Postma. "This new council still has not spent the time on the border like we should. I think we need to do that before a motion such as this goes forward...
  
  Coun. Alan Halberstadt said he wants more information in the motion...
  Does he mean total tunnelling from (Highway) 401 to the crossing or what does it mean?
  
  "I'm wondering if somehow it's a DRTP motion. Until that's explained to me I'm withholding my approval."
  
  The Detroit River Tunnel Partnership (DRTP) is another private border proponent seeking to build a tunnel through South Windsor for trucks and converting the city's rail tunnel for truck traffic.
  
  "There has to be discussion on the wording," Valentinis said. The surrounding municipalities passed their (tunnel) motions on the basis of support of DRTP."

So what seemed like a slam-dunk for a tunnel motion by Windsor Council turned out not to be that after all. And I was very interested in the DRTP comment by Councillor Valentinis. That reminded me that one of the big supporters of the DRTP for a long time until STOPDRTP beat them was the Editorial Board of the Windsor Star!

No worries though. The people on Talbot Road and Huron Church have won. The road to the border is Lauzon/E C Row to the DRIC Road to the enhanced Ambassador Bridge with perhaps some cut and cover tunnelling for a mile or so to silence politically the 65% of the Sandwich residents who are renters and the 35% who are owners.

This will become clearer as Ontario Minister Cansfield and Mayor Francis continue to have lunch monthly at taxpayer expense in secret and give hints about a big development of a transportation hub at the airport lands.

And we all know, even if the bureaucrats, West side activists and politicos don't, that the Bridge Co. has won too since there can never be a P3 bridge or taxpayers will have a real reason to revolt once they find out the construction and ongoing costs. Not even the new president of OMERS who wasted millions on DRTP, Michael Nobrega, would be that foolish to spend more OMERS pensioners' money in that financial P3 fiasco.

Don't worry though, we'll get another THINK BIG Vision that a reporter can get exclusive leaks about, that the Editors won't have to fume over and that a Columnist can gush over so they will all be happy to justify E C Row so Eddie won't be embarrassed. Imagine if that Marra tunnel motion passed...Eddie would be stuck with an absurdity that even Gridlock Sam barely mentioned in his Report.

It's OK...DRTP will be dead by then so that South Windsor residents won't have to worry, EC Row will be uploaded to the Province so Windsor taxpayers won't have to pay for it or maintain it so we will be saving loads of taxpayer dollars, we'll have a new Highway 401 exit, an alternative road to the enhanced Ambassador Bridge and the politicians will have a nice election issue to run on in the October provincial election.

Then watch the Star Editors flip-flop on the tunnel as they did on DRTP. They will support Eddie's Master Vision and E C Row.

Better late than never I always say.