City seeks power to expropriate parts of 79 properties for widening of bus rapid transit roads
CTV
To keep construction of the bus rapid transit (BRT) system on schedule, dozens of property owners along the route are facing the possibility of forced expropriation.
To keep construction of the bus rapid transit (BRT) system on schedule, dozens of property owners along the route are facing the possibility of forced expropriation.
A pair of reports to council’s Corporate Services Committee recommend launching the expropriation process for portions of 31 properties along the East London Link route, and parts of another 48 properties along the Wellington Gateway route.
The 79 potential expropriations are primarily for partial properties including several feet of land in front of houses and businesses on Dundas Street East, and for permanent or temporary easements along Wellington Road.
“As we start to move out of the core with these next phases of construction, we’re getting into more widening of the road for traffic lanes, bus lanes, left turn lanes,” explained Director of Construction and Infrastructure, Jennie Dann.
Chrysanne Rankin welcomes a new sound barrier wall between Wellington Road and her home, but she has yet to agree to an easement.
She believes the city-led negotiations have provided her insufficient information.
