In Episode 28, we look at how a city councilor was schooled by outraged transit users, and then at the polls that the Manitoba NDP fears.
With the snow melted off of city sidewalks, St. Boniface councilor Matt Allard had to find a new topic to flog. It’s actually not ‘new’, because Allard has simply returned to his one of his ‘urban visionary’ pillars, public transit.
In a social media posting on Thursday he managed to restrain himself from the kind of climate doomsday hysteria he hectors fellow councilors about in policy debates, and stuck to the basics. I take a bus from Windsor Park a lot, he said, and here’s how I do it, and here’s what I think needs to be be improved.
Unfortunately, he also insulted the intelligence of just about everyone else in the community with this head-splitter:
“… despite all of these advantages, many Winnipeggers don’t take the bus because they don’t feel safe. The bus is a public space and like other public spaces there are safety risks. There are also safety risks when travelling by car, so much so that Manitoba Public Insurance started the Save the 100 campaign, a campaign that points out the 100 people a year that lose their lives in traffic collisions. Once on the bus, chances of fatality are almost nil.“
Marty compiled the heated reaction to Allard’s dismissive attitude from Facebook and Twitter respondents, and from a few loyal listeners who swiftly sent in their own observations. Among the highlights:
“This has got to be the dumbest comparison I have ever heard.”
“Are people getting knifed and seeing their children beaten in their own cars?”
“The last time I was on the bus, someone went unhinged and started screaming like crazy. My kid still talks about that. Not worth it. “
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Allard seems unable to grasp the obvious reasons why Winnipeg Transit is failing, but one user gave him a helpful summary – “Fares are high; Buses are off schedule constantly; Many lines come so infrequently that they can add hours to your ride; Peggo is slow to the point of uselessness.”
Hear how one woman coincidentally had tested his idea to reduce her private vehicle use – and how far short that experience fell from his utopian vision.
A few of the comments came from transit users in Allard’s own ward, where criticisms abound about poor service near St. Boniface Hospital, fare-jumpers, and filthy bus shelters commandeered by homeless addicts.
This segment reviews a laundry list of shortcomings and failures, from scheduling to routing to no service on Sundays like it’s the 1950’s. That’s aside from riders having to watch out for used needles and machetes. It was also pointed out the absurdity of Allard’s suggestions for a new app and other changes, when the entire rider experience collapsed on his watch as Public Works chair.
Lastly, a former transit operator of almost 4 decades dumped on the toxic management of Transit and spilled the beans: “There is no safety on a bus.”
This a startling example of how hard-left ideology among our elected officials is detached from the everyday ramificiations of their failed policies for working class voters- and for bus drivers too.
31:14 – Part 2 – While the headlines blare “Manitoba NDP continues to lead Tories”, the devil is in the details.
Listen to the polling numbers and the way the margin between the opposition and a provincial government facing “overwhelming dissatisfaction” (according to an Angus Reid poll) has shrunk by over 66%, from 18 points to only 5 now.
With the Liberals fading fast, Marty explains how a German word about chess tactics comes into play as Wab Kinew and Heather Stefanson enter the election period facing a sceptical electorate.
Coming soon: More good news on Manitoba mining investment, special interviews, and our new web hub for the October election.
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