A lot of people are going to say things like: “that's it, it was never really viable anyway. we should just have highways and walking paths”.
But not only is the statement completely false, that's the attitude that got us here. That's the attitude that has brought us climate change. And worst of all, that's the defeatist and nihilistic attitude that will lead to the burning of not just more forest, but whole communities, and eventually, the likely collapse of our civilization.
After the 2021 November floods there was never a question about whether the government would spend (never accounted for!) billions on repairing the highways immediately.
The CN and CP Railways also rebuilt theirs that were heavily damaged, and did it a lot faster, because railways are a lot easier to build, and rebuild, than 4 lane, or 2 lane highways.
During the 2023 wildfire on the other side of Cameron Lake, the railway sat unused while the highway was closed for weeks, leading to massive economic losses for #PortAlberni #tofino and #Ucluelet and all the Nuchanulth Territories and huge social disconnection.
So rebuild it? Absolutely!
Electrify it? Darn right!
Run Freight and Passenger on it again for the benefit of all Islanders!? OF COURSE! It should have never been allowed to stop its 100 years of service to us in the first place!
#PortAlberni #ClimateChange #ClimateCatastrophe #EndFossilFuels #BCWildfire #WesleyRidgeFire #Railway #Transporation #Electrification
SocialBC
VIByRail (@vibyrail@socialbc.ca)
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Chooo: The latest telegrams say one of the trestles on the Alberni Subdivision at Cameron Lake has burned. The picture here migh...
