WATERLOO REGION — Coun. Jim Wideman says municipal election candidates promising to stop rapid transit are making an irresponsible pledge.

"For some people they believe it makes really good politics to run on that kind of ticket," he said.

"A person can run on that — it's a pretty hollow promise — and people vote for them thinking that's what they're going to do but they don't have the power to deliver.

"They need to convince another eight people in order to follow through with their commitment."

But Cambridge Mayor Doug Craig, who will seek re-election, has plans to make rapid transit the key issue of the Oct. 27 election. He says the project can be stopped.

Craig will put forth a motion to have the project deferred when bids on the project come forward in March.

"I'm going to suggest to regional council because there's so much upheaval in the region, it's not just in Cambridge I mean everywhere … that this project should be deferred until after the election and let that become the referendum," he said.

Craig has already put forth motions to alter the project.

His attempts to scale back or learn the cost to cancel the largest public works project in regional history have been non-starters.

"When a new council's elected it's a whole new ball game," said regional clerk Kris Fletcher.

"Right now, they'd have to reconsider their motion from June of 2011 and under a new council they would not have to reconsider it but they would need a majority.

"I'm sure there'd be lots of debate and discussion about all the money already spent."

According to the most recent regional reports available, $191 million of the $818 million estimated to build the rapid transit system has been spent or committed.

In March or April, an estimated $536-million contract to build the system will be awarded to a consortium that will design, build, finance, operate and maintain the system.

Wideman said by the time a new council would have the opportunity to cancel the project, the costs could be close to what the region has budgeted to build the system — about $253 million.

"The cost of cancelling would become equal to what it's going to cost us in the first place," he said.

Chair Ken Seiling added provincial and federal funding would also be lost, along with future opportunities for more.

"Anybody who's running to say they're going to cancel the project will have to keep in mind the fact that there's … tens of millions of dollars or more at stake here and all that money would be paid for by local taxpayers," he said.

At least two candidates have said rapid transit needs to be stopped — Dave MacDonald, Waterloo mayoral candidate, and Bob Oberholtzer, candidate for Region of Waterloo chair.

Councillors voted 10-3 in September not to request staff prepare a report detailing cancellation costs.

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