Numbers Game

Here are some interesting numbers for you to consider. This was prompted by a reader who sent me this note:

Three minutes and Four seconds after 2 AM on the 6th of May this year, the time and date will be: 02:03:04 05/06/07.

BREATHING TUNNEL FUMES

I guess that is what the WTC must be doing as traffic volume numbers keep eroding.

I still have difficulty believing that the number, $75M, is an accurate one for the value of the American half of the Tunnel. According to Eddie, Goldman Sachs gave that valuation---but they work for Kwame. Who on our side were the advisors that Eddie said also said that this was a good number? I'd like to see how they arrived at that value!

It has been so quiet since Kwame dropped the bombshell in his budget speech. How are the talks going with the Feds? Will they produce the cash for the City OR is Eddie just waiting for them to say NO so he can denounce them and go elsewhere. It's a good strategy---get the Federal money or force the Feds to approve whomever he chooses to partner with or be the one responsible for the deal cratering

Oh well, it's that time again! And it will not be good news to justify a big value for the Tunnel

It's the time to tell you how many more vehicles that the Detroit/Windsor Tunnel lost this year compared with last year. Every month since Eddie increased the tolls, volumes have been sinking like a stone. Moreover, poor Brian Masse has such a hard time attacking the Bridge Co. for profiteering when the Cities-owned Tunnel's toll rates are higher.

The question to ask is why Alinda has not raised its tolls as it did in Alabahma. Have they done a deal so that their management agreement gets bought out so they do not care? Or do they know that if the tolls go up any more, their business will go into the toilet completely?

My information says that the Tunnel has lost in April another 75,000 vehicles compared with April, 2006. The total loss for the year so far is over 300,000 vehicles or another 16% of volume.

Here is a scarier number. The number of commerical buses has been reduced by almost 2,000 buses since last year or close to 25%. If all of these are "tourist" buses that carry 40 or 50 people each, well you can figure out how many less people are coming here.

CANADA'S ECONOMIC FUTURE

It certainly is NOT the Windsor area as can be seen by this announcement from the Prime Minister. Some pretty big numbers for our Asian Gateway but no numbers so far for Windsor.

• "Prime Minister Stephen Harper today outlined that the new investments in infrastructure in Budget 2007 are a significant element of restoring fiscal balance in Canada...
  
  Canada’s New Government will make a further investment of $410 million in the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative, a mass infrastructure undertaking that will enhance Canada’s access to Asian markets.
  
  “At the dawn of the 21st century, no country in the world is better positioned than Canada to prosper in the emerging global economy, and the Gateway Initiative is obviously critical to realizing our potential,” said the Prime Minister...
  
  “The long-overdue rehabilitation of our national economic infrastructure will go far in restoring equality of opportunity to every region of the country,” said Prime Minister Harper.
  
  Today’s announcement, which builds on last year’s investment of $591 million, brings total federal funding for The Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative to more than $1 billion.
  
  “It’s hard to overstate the importance of Asia-Pacific trade to Canada’s economic future. The Gateway Initiative is obviously critical to realizing our potential as a country,” concluded the Prime Minister."

10-11,000 MORE JOBS TO BE LOST IN WINDSOR

That is the number of direct construction and spin-off jobs that will never be created as the $300M BIF money disappears at the end of the five year program.

Go ask Eddie Francis and Council, Brian Masse, Joe Comartin, Sandra Pupatello, and Dwight Duncan why they have all sat around for five years doing nothing as the money disappears.

Had the road to the Ambassador Bridge been started, since that road fell under the program, then we would have had highpaying infrastructure jobs shielding us from the downturn in the auto industry until the Gazelle feeders could have done their task to diversify our economy.

CITY SLASHES 28 POSITIONS

Is this the beginning of bloodshed at City Hall as the Mayor and Council finally take a look at the number of Administration bureaucrats and decide how many are really needed?

The story says that around $1 M will be saved yet goes on to say:

• "Despite the cuts, it is hoped no employees end up being forced out the door after bumping rights unfold over the next several weeks, said Helga Reidel, the city’s general manager of corporate services.
  
  Such a scenario can hopefully be avoided since the city has a number of job vacancies, she said."

All that this says is that for years we have had people in unessential jobs being over-paid. So if they still work for us but in different jobs and we can still save about a million, it means on average, each of them have been overpaid by about $35,700! Now that is quite a number.

Where is Citistat????

3rd TIME LUCKY

I hear Gridlock Sam is back once again. I guess Eddie brings him out every time he wants an out-of-town traffic guru to say something significant.

I wonder if we will hear a third presentation from him...about a tunnel, a new route to the border, a criticism of the DRIC road, the transportation hub.

We'll just have to be patient until Eddie allows him to speak.