Maybe the B in BRT should stand for better than nothing.

In a series of votes late Monday, politicians finalized the routes for a flawed $440-million bus rapid transit system, which will now move ahead with a push for federal and provincial funding.

What’s approved is essentially a compromise that may please no one – but at least council, meeting as the strategic priorities and policy committee, avoided city hall’s do-nothing reputation by making a decision, especially one that only offers far-off benefits.

“It’s not about me today. This is a 20-year plan,” Coun. Maureen Cassidy said. “If we want our kids to stay in London . . . we have to provide them with the things they’re looking for.

“We have to attract young people to come to the city, to stay in the city.”

But there was muted enthusiasm for the final version, which Coun. Mo Salih called “watered down.”

Here’s what was endorsed, and what goes to council for a final, formal vote Tuesday:

*the contentious north corridor of dedicated BRT lanes will remain on Richmond Street, but the tunnel planned to run below Richmond Row was killed in a 9-5 vote.

*options for bypassing the level rail crossing on Richmond Row, a system-stalling hurdle, will be studied by staff.

*one of the two BRT lines planned for King Street in the core was moved to Queens Avenue, creating a complicated “couplet” that eases the concerns of venues like Budweiser Gardens.

*the long-proposed corridors were approved: north to Masonville Place mall through Western University; east to Fanshawe College; south along Wellington Road to White Oaks Mall; and west to Wonderland Road/Oxford Street.

Those corridors – which could become the next battleground for those still opposed to BRT as planned – drew applause from one politician.

“I’m very confident in the routes (staff have) suggested,” Coun. Jared Zaifman said. “These core routes make so much sense as a spine for our community to operate on.”

The loss of the tunnel, however, marks a major change. The 900-metre span was a focus of fierce criticism and divided Londoners, a recent Free Press/Mainstreet Research poll showed.

Last week, city staff announced construction cost estimates had ballooned from an expected high of $135 million to $220 million. They withdrew their recommendation to build it.

The loss of the tunnel will ease criticism and concern about cost overruns. But it also makes the north corridor – the busiest one – less reliable due to train delays.

And critics of the plan aren’t exactly happy, either. Coun. Phil Squire’s ward, which includes Old North, was a hotbed of BRT opposition and he expressed his ongoing frustration.

“I want a BRT system. I just don’t want this BRT system,” he said.

Monday’s four-hour debate marks the end of a frenzied few months, during which a public backlash hammered BRT, fuelled by city hall’s poor public engagement. Much of the opposition is led by downtown merchants who fear the project could kill their businesses.

A year ago, city hall was eyeing an $880-million system that combined light rail and buses. Council dropped the rail, moving ahead with a $560-million bus-only rapid transit system with the tunnel.

The loss of the tunnel brings the construction cost to $440 million, exactly half the value of the original proposal. It’s still the biggest project in city history.

BRT will run on L- and 7-shaped corridors bisecting London, with the corridor of King and Clarence streets as the hub. City hall’s stake is capped at $130 million, with the rest needed from Ottawa and Queen’s Park.

NO-TUNNEL VISION

City politicians made several bus rapid transit decisions Monday night. But the biggest was voting 9-5 to get rid of the 900-metre tunnel once proposed to run beneath Richmond Row. Voting against that change: Mo Salih, Stephen Turner, Jesse Helmer, Michael van Holst. Phil Squire also voted against it, in protest of any rail bypass and the entire north corridor, which he wants moved. Josh Morgan declared a conflict. All others voted to get rid of the tunnel.

pmaloney@postmedia.com

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