The City of Ottawa revealed the proposed plan to build the second phase of the LRT system which, among other things, will see the Confederation Line extended from Blair Station to Trim Road by 2024 and include a series of six stations at Montreal Road, Jeanne d'Arc Blvd., Orléans Blvd., Place d'Orléans and Trim Road.

The plan also calls for the Confederation Line to be extended westward from Tunney's Pasture to Algonquin College and Moodie Drive; and for the O-Train to be extended southbound to South Keys where it will split off into two spurs � one going to the airport and the other to Riverside South.

East West Connectors has been chosen as the preferred builder to do the work on the Confederation Line and TransitNext is the preferred builder to do the work on the O-Train extension which will be called the Trinity Line.

Work on both extensions is scheduled to begin later this year should council approve the plan at a special meeting this week.

The projected cost of Phase 2 has ballooned from $3.5 billion to $4.66 billion. That is alarming enough, but even more alarming is the fact that city tax- payers will be on the hook for the full amount of the additional cost. That's because the provincial and federal governments have each promised to contribute $1 billion to the project leaving $2.66 billion to be financed by the city.

That amount, which would be the biggest debt the city has ever taken on, has a lot of councillors nervous. Some are even considering delaying a decision on the project to allow further input from residents, but staff have indicated that any delay could result in an even higher price tag.

The city's director of planning for the LRT, Chris Swail, says the increase in the projected cost is due the "increased scope� of Phase 2, which added $700 million to the tab, and "market pressures� which resulted in another $500 million.

The estimates provided by the bidding companies are only guaranteed until the end of March. If city council were to delay their decision past the end of the month, the two companies would be entitled to resubmit their bids which would undoubtedly be higher.

Gloucester-Southgate ouncillor Diane Deans is leading the call for further public consulatation. She has reservations about the ballooning estimated cost and the fact that SNC Lavalin is the company chosen to complete the Trinity Line.

"It can't be LRT at any cost,� Deans recently told the Ottawa Citizen. "It has to make financial sense and we have to be able to pay the bill at the end of the day.. and I think we need to ask the taxpayers if they're still on board. After all, they're footing the bill for this.�

But Mayor Jim Watson says that any thought of delaying Phase 2, or cancelling it altogether, is "absolutely asinine�. He expects that council will approve staff's recommendation at this week's council meeting because the residents of Ottawa are "very much on board� with LRT and expect it to be completed in its entirety.

There is no doubt it will be a game-changer for the residents of Orléans who will have access to five stations along the Confederation Line which will run down the middle of Hwy. 174.

(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)