[Newsbot]

Title: John Tory says Toronto could sell assets to pay for new transit projects
Category: Economics
Posted By: shockedcanadian
Date: 2016-11-02 07:50:54
Canadian

[shockedcanadian]

Remember this mantra, it is going to repeated over and over again in various jurisdictions across Canada.

[Lemmy]

Turning public assets over for business initiatives and using the funds raised to pay for infrastructure is a bad thing, in your opinion? I thought you were championing business rather than government control over resources/markets?

[shockedcanadian]

Lemmy Lemmy:

Turning public assets over for business initiatives and using the funds raised to pay for infrastructure is a bad thing, in your opinion? I thought you were championing business rather than government control over resources/markets?

I never suggested the selling of public assets to private businesses for the sake of meeting an infrastructure demand. My belief is that the private sector always runs businesses better so first and foremost government should stay out of the free market as much as necessary and get rid of barriers for others to succeed. This is also why I am against tax payer subsidies of businesses who cannot succeed. It becomes an expectation for any large company when the provinces and feds give away money.

There are certain businesses the government should be in. Selling assets to pay for something new suggests that they are overspending in other areas. If you can't balance the books, you will constantly sell assets to pay for any new development. The city knows where their largest outlay of cash is, they had the opportunity to right the ship.

Finally, my personal opinion on this wasn't the point I was making. The point is that it will be a reality from coast to coast, as the economy is stagnant, little growth, little interest in foreign business investment outside of individuals buying homes, and much higher growth of mounting debt.

[BartSimpson]

If the assets can be better managed by private industry AND return revenue to the City then why not?

[Thanos]

Because most private businesses have better management and revenue return to the government as priorities lagging far, far behind ensuring that massive executive salaries/bonuses and boosting short-term share value increases on the stock swindle market always come first.

[Lemmy]

shockedcanadian shockedcanadian:

I never suggested the selling of public assets to private businesses for the sake of meeting an infrastructure demand. My belief is that the private sector always runs businesses better so first and foremost government should stay out of the free market as much as necessary and get rid of barriers for others to succeed.

Those are completely contradictory statements.

[BRAH]

CN workers in Alberta rebuild burned Mayerthorpe trestle bridge in 20 days

http://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/cn-workers-in-alberta-build-replacement-mayerthorpe-trestle-bridge-in-20-days
________________________

Look how fast CN Rail rebuilt the bridge in Mayerthorpe. If it was a Municipal, Provincial or Federal job it would have taken at least two years. Depending on the situation private business can do it better so Toronto selling assets might be the best solution for everyone.

[BartSimpson]

BRAH BRAH:

CN workers in Alberta rebuild burned Mayerthorpe trestle bridge in 20 days

http://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/cn-workers-in-alberta-build-replacement-mayerthorpe-trestle-bridge-in-20-days
________________________

Look how fast CN Rail rebuilt the bridge in Mayerthorpe. If it was a Municipal, Provincial or Federal job it would have taken at least two years. Depending on the situation private business can do it better so Toronto selling assets might be the best solution for everyone.

Union Pacific replaced the burned 1.2Km trestle on the American River in fourteen days. Turns out that UP actually has construction materials on hand and crews trained to execute an emergency construction project just in case such a thing happens.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/S ... 577980.php

My government agency can't even evacuate our building during a PLANNED fire drill and God only knows how we'd respond in an actual crisis.

[BRAH]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

BRAH BRAH:

CN workers in Alberta rebuild burned Mayerthorpe trestle bridge in 20 days

http://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/cn-workers-in-alberta-build-replacement-mayerthorpe-trestle-bridge-in-20-days
________________________

Look how fast CN Rail rebuilt the bridge in Mayerthorpe. If it was a Municipal, Provincial or Federal job it would have taken at least two years. Depending on the situation private business can do it better so Toronto selling assets might be the best solution for everyone.

Union Pacific replaced the burned 1.2Km trestle on the American River in fourteen days. Turns out that UP actually has construction materials on hand and crews trained to execute an emergency construction project just in case such a thing happens.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/S ... 577980.php

My government agency can't even evacuate our building during a PLANNED fire drill and God only knows how we'd respond in an actual crisis.

CN probably had the same plan in place because in both cases when the bridges are out they're losing money and didn't have time to screw around where as a Government run operation will fuck the dog as long as possible because tax payers are stuck with the bill.

We have seen how a Government responds to an actual crisis via Katrina (2005) where all levels of Government failed in every possible way.

[Lemmy]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Union Pacific replaced the burned 1.2Km trestle on the American River in fourteen days.

There's no such thing as bridge work in Ontario unless it's on weekends or holidays. Welders don't even show up on a road-crew unless they're getting double or triple time.

[herbie]

Like that bridge in Washington State the Canadian trucker knocked down, they rebuilt it in a couple weeks for $20 million.
If it was a bridge just across the border in BC they'd be talking until 2025 and the estimates for replacement would be $20 billion. Then they'd need to redo it to add future Skytrain, bicycle path, wheelchair access and animal crossing lanes....
or so it seems these days.

[BRAH]

herbie herbie:

Like that bridge in Washington State the Canadian trucker knocked down, they rebuilt it in a couple weeks for $20 million.
If it was a bridge just across the border in BC they'd be talking until 2025 and the estimates for replacement would be $20 billion. Then they'd need to redo it to add future Skytrain, bicycle path, wheelchair access and animal crossing lanes....
or so it seems these days.

There would years of bids from different contractors, architects with ground breaking designs, etc, etc.

[shockedcanadian]

BRAH BRAH:

herbie herbie:

Like that bridge in Washington State the Canadian trucker knocked down, they rebuilt it in a couple weeks for $20 million.
If it was a bridge just across the border in BC they'd be talking until 2025 and the estimates for replacement would be $20 billion. Then they'd need to redo it to add future Skytrain, bicycle path, wheelchair access and animal crossing lanes....
or so it seems these days.

There would years of bids from different contractors, architects with ground breaking designs, etc, etc.

It's interesting regarding this bridge example. I was listening to a Canadian who had lived in Germany and another European country the last decade or so, now back in Canada. he was cautious about CETA because he stated that European society is actually MORE efficient than we are, and they have an advantage because of this.

He used the bridge example to make his point, suggesting that it sometimes takes Canada 9-10 months to build a bridge that would be built in Germany in a few days. I can't speak to the validity of any of this, but having met and been in government work environments, there is definitely a major difference in work ethic, attitude and COMPETENCY compared to say, a private business competing for market share.