The purpose of my letter is to relay to the taxpayers of Orangeville my reasons for the decision not to support the Rail Trail Project. I am the Council representative on the committee, but not the chairperson.

The Trailways Committee has been working hard on a Rail Trail Project which would have seen a trail constructed alongside the active railway tracks from Townline to John Street continuing through KayCee Gardens and the Senior Centre and ending at Centre Street next to the Door. This project has been in the works for some time and has received an infrastructure grant from the Fed/Prov. governments in the amount of $220K matched by the Town’s portion of $110K. There are many steps in the process starting with a Trails Master Plan, proceeding to a site design drawing, and recently a Risk Assessment and Analysis. A public meeting was held last summer to receive input from concerned residents. Many issues brought up at that time by the residents were the same concerns that I had voiced at earlier meetings. This resulted in hiring a Risk Assessment Consultant who will attempt to address the safety issues related to the trail. The Risk Assessment remains incomplete due to the many issues that continue to be brought to our attention.

The project has been a workin progress during which time I tried to remain open-minded to its feasibility. I came to a realization that, due to the nature of the safety issues, all the concerns with the project could not be addressed. And I made a decision that I cannot support the rail trail portion of the project (from Townline to John St.). I continue to support the portion through KayCee Gardens and the Senior Centre as well as other trails in Orangeville. It was a difficult decision because I know the passion that the committee has for the project but it was the right decision for me and I believe for Orangeville. This is not just any trail - it is a trail next to an active railway.

As a child, I was always warned not to go on the tracks. As an adult, I instructed my children not to go on the tracks. I cannot in good conscience direct people of Orangeville to the tracks albeit on a trail beside the tracks. It is true that the public is walking on the tracks right now, but this trespassing activity should be prevented through enforcement.

This is an example of a remedy that has caused another issue. The Town/Committee is stating that we’re building the trail to make it safer for the trespassers currently walking on the tracks. That will then necessitate clearing of the trail in the winter otherwise we would now be directing people back onto the unsafe tracks. The trail cannot be plowed because there is nowhere to push the snow since there would be a fence on either side of the trail. The snow would have to be removed with a snowblower, which the Town does not own. Even if we did have a snowblower, we can’t blow the snow onto the tracks and we can’t blow it onto the backyards of the residents. The only option would be to remove the snow, which would be price prohibitive.

The cost of this trail is exorbitant, budgeted at $330,000. The fence alone can consume a huge amount of the budget. When looking at a capital project, the initial expense is only a small part of the ongoing operating and replacement costs. Taxpayers want reasonable services at reasonable costs. This is a very expensive trail.

I am an avid trail user and supporter of trails and I appreciate the commitment and dedication of the committee and support the other trail projects currently underway. Safe trails are important to our community. As an elected official, I take my vote on Council very seriously and I now that I made this decision, I have a clear con- science and can sleep at night. My vote is only one of seven. I will be out of the country until March 21st but I welcome your comments and concerns. I will respond as soon as I have access to communication.
Councillor Sylvia
Bradley
sbradley@orangeville.ca