Tears and accusations of offensive comments and personal attacks showed just how divided town council may be when it comes time to vote on what form, if any, transit should take in Cochrane.

Council was split over an admittedly basic presentation that will be followed by a full report shortly of the town's task force work on the long-standing issue. Clearly, there were councillors leaning in different directions and some still weighing their position. Even Marni Fedeyko, who is one of council's representatives on the task force, has a number of concerns and for one wonders if the public completely understands this is a proposal for local transit, not a regional connector.

What the presentation portrayed was optimism for an on-demand system as a more affordable transit model for Cochrane than has ever been presented that administration believes will cost each household a maximum of about $48 per year in taxes in what they suggest was a worse case scenario. It was proposed rates would be set at $2.50.

Councillor Alex Reed cut to the chase in his response to the transit report, basically calling it disappointing, incomplete and believed it did not fully explore all options, including the possibility of not establishing a system at all. He expressed particular concern over the cumulative financial impact of anticipated future infrastructure projects and took particular interest in obtaining information from administration on the forecasts for annual increases in town employees wages and benefits. He also pointed out there are two outstanding settlements with firefighters and RCMP. He wondered out loud if residents will tolerate this additional burden and maintained his previous call for the town to take transit to a public vote.

In his initial comments, he took a page out of the book of both Mayor Jeff Genung and Councillor Tara McFadden, who previously compared it to deciding what type of vehicle to purchase.

"If you pardon the pun, I think we need to back the bus up a little bit. I think rather than asking how much we want to spend, the real question is what can we afford? Can we actually afford to purchase the car? Can we actually afford to run that car? Can we afford to maintain that car?"

He maintains if council felt strongly about endorsing an on-demand system they should be willing to go to a plebiscite.

"If members of council and administration are so confident in this proposal and, in the true spirit of public engagement, if they believe this is the best decision moving forward then I suggest because of the size of this commitment and the ongoing commitment---I think this is just the tip of the iceberg--that this be put to a plebiscite and that the citizens of Cochrane have the opportunity to speak up and say exactly what they think so they fully understand the associated costs of transit."

As chair of the task force, Mayor Genung said he was offended by the comments and did not appreciate Reed's approach and believes he jumped the gun. He said this was only a progress report for information and a full report will follow with extensive data. He also believes part of the reason it is essential for the town to act now is to avoid losing $6 million in GreenTRIP funding (with conditions) from the province, requiring a $3 million contribution by the town. The town has already had the timeframe extended in the past and currently it must be used by 2020.

Councilor Tara McFadden went a step further.

"While I am appreciative that we can have a difference of opinion, I often find the way you approach things with the personal attacks and the cheap shots a little bit offensive and I wish we could stay focus on talking about the facts on the table," said McFadden. "Tonight, for instance, you seemed to be eager to jump beyond in what was done in the presentation. This is an update, the next step is going to be an RFP and processes were laid out and you always seem to be eager to be rushed to be offended and angry and finally aggressively have an attack on things."

Reed was perplexed by McFadden and Genung's statements.

"I am passionate about our residential tax base increases just as my council colleagues are about transit," says Reed. "My intention wasn't to offend anyone and I plan to publicly apologize to the Transit Task Force, my fellow members of Council as well as the general public for my uninformed assumptions and apparently direct questions. I didn’t have access to the full report."

Reed isn't sure why McFadden referred to his statement as a personal attack.

"Admittedly I have no idea what Councillor McFadden was referring to, so you may have to ask her. In the end, we are all passionate about this transit issue."

McFadden explains she thought Reed's comments were out of line, given what was being presented.

"I was frustrated that this wasn't what the presentation was all about and I thought that was very clear," says McFadden. "I think it's really important we all stay open-minded going into any decision and focus on the decision at hand as impartial as we can without getting personal, and I really work very hard to do that."

Councillor Susan Flowers believes the community has waited long enough for transit and believes this proposal is the answer.

"I think that it's affordable that it's practical and it's well worth getting starting with," said Flowers.

Later on, holding back tears, she expanded her thoughts.

"As council, it's up to us to look at the social, economic and environmental situations of Cochrane. This model addresses all three. Socially, we'll move people around which connects them, reducing isolation and encouraging participation in all community events, Economics, it brings people together to get to work, go shopping and go to restaurants and spend their money. Environmentally, we'll be getting some cars off the roads and out of the parking lots. This is one of the solutions to our traffic problems."

"We have the infrastructure dollars from the province, a community of over 28,000 people, and land that has hills, trains and valleys. Why would we not do this?"

Calling it a tough decision, Councillor Fedeyko said she wasn't opposed to transit and understands it is a need for some but wants to make sure council is making the right decision and is meeting the community's needs. She particularly sought more public feedback.

"The reality is that's only a portion of taxes coming forward. We're going to see our budget come forward in the fall and I'd I really like to want to find out what's palatable to Cochrane residents when it comes to their tax bill," said Fedeyko.

"I really hope that before we ever make any decision to go to that next process, that we're meeting the needs and we're creating a system that will benefit the community entirely."

A self-proclaimed transit skeptic Councillor Morgan Nagel questioned whether the town should instead create a parking hub for a regional connector he believes would be well utilized and then focus town financial debentures towards street infrastructure, like a grade-separated crossing on Centre Ave.

He also relieved the town wasn't rushing into issuing a request for proposals (RFP) at the meeting and looked forward to seeing the balance of the report.

Chief administrative officer Dave Devana told council there was not enough time to prepare the full report for the council meeting but it would be forthcoming soon. Council, followed by the community, will have access to the report before it is presented at the Sept. 10 meeting. Should council vote to proceed with the proposal it would go to RFP in time for council to examine the cost of proposals in November-December. The intent is for the RFP to be worded in such a way the town would be able to reject any or all proposals.