Orléans councillors bash road budget that delivers for west and south

It's the battle of the suburbs over Ottawa's roadways budget, as Orléans councillors feel they're getting shortchanged by capital plans that benefit Barrhaven and Stittsville.

Orléans East-Cumberland Coun. Matt Luloff said his roads are in "a sorry state."

"Not one priority that my community and I identified to staff has been included in the list that's before us today," he said.

"I see many projects in the south and the west, but here we are again — another budget and another example of how the east seems to be left out."

Luloff and Orléans South-Navan Coun. Catherine Kitts dissented when the capital budget came to transportation committee on Thursday.

Kitts said she wanted to "bang the drum" over what she calls long-standing under-investment in her roadways.

"When you look at investment in different parts of the city, geographically, I think there's a discrepancy when it comes to the east end," she said.

Kitts wants to see money for Brian Coburn Boulevard, where east-end councillors have been pushing for an extension to create a new link through the Greenbelt. The National Capital Commission is blocking the city's preferred option.

But Kitts said the city could still make smaller-scale improvements there while it waits for an ultimate solution.

Luloff also mentioned Brian Coburn, but added a long list of other complaints.

He called pathway renewal and road resurfacing a "desperate" need in some neighbourhoods. Pedestrians are crossing a four-lane highway to get to Trim Station, he said, while they wait for a pedestrian bridge with no new funding.

"We need to see more investment in the east end," he said. "Our festival plaza at Centrum is crumbling. Seniors are tripping and falling over broken curbs and patched sidewalks."

Barrhaven gets $20M for Greenbank Road

The 2024 capital budget dedicates about $76.5 million to road resurfacing across the city. It also funds major integrated road and waterworks projects on Bank Street, Carling Avenue and Albert and Slater streets.

But two big projects make up the bulk of funding for new roadways in the suburbs.

The budget puts $20 million toward plans to reroute Greenbank Road further west through the Half Moon Bay neighbourhood in Barrhaven. It also includes $13.4 million for extending Robert Grant Avenue further north through Stittsville.

Stittsville Coun. Glen Gower called that a long-awaited transportation link in his ward. Barrhaven West Coun. David Hill, who is not even a member of transportation committee, briefly attended the meeting to welcome the investment in his area.

He later told CBC News that the money will speed up the start of construction on the Greenbank project, which is expected to include dedicated bus rapid transit lanes. Hill views the current roadway as grossly inadequate for rapid growth in Half Moon Bay.

"It's extremely problematic," he said. "It's highly complicated for bus usage."

Hill is especially concerned about a tight curve where Greenbank Road crosses the Jock River.

"Right now, people are navigating their way along a tiny little bridge that was designed for 15 grain trucks back in the 1960s, which now is carrying probably tens of thousands of vehicles," he said.

"It breaks my heart to talk with parents and family that have friends and family members that have been hit by cars in that area."

The city's chief financial officer, Cyril Rogers, said the balance of funding shifts with every budget. He said investments are based on long-range financial plans, which he called his "guiding star."

He said staff don't look at road investments on a neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood basis. 

"We look at the priority overall, globally," he said. "You will see those kinds of ebbs and flows. Unfortunately, year over year, sometimes more investments might go to one side of town versus other sides of town."

He said there's still time to swap projects until the budget comes to council for final approval on Dec. 6.