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Metrolinx: Other Items (catch all)
- Thread starter TheTigerMaster
- Start date
crs1026
Superstar
The conspiracy theorist in me sees these departures as far less of a housekeeping than made out. With the OnExpress go-live date approaching, one would expect that the team that has conceived and negotiated the P3 structure would be wound down. The question should be, how many people can ML shed now that another consortium is managing planning and operational aspects previously managed in house.
It may be convenient for ML to allow the public imagination to perceive these moves as cleaning out deadwood, and certainly the P3 arrangements are far less satisfactory than claimed…. But unless that broom took a much deeper sweep thru the Capital Projects organization, which seems to find three-car funeral processions as too big a challenge, I would say there hasn’t been much of a house cleaning.
BTW employment law pretty much discourages any public flogging of an employee who is fired for poor performance… which is why under current circumstances ML may stay silent but milk the PR value of the departures by inference. But the back story may be very different. I would not judge these .departing folks too harshly.
- Paul
It may be convenient for ML to allow the public imagination to perceive these moves as cleaning out deadwood, and certainly the P3 arrangements are far less satisfactory than claimed…. But unless that broom took a much deeper sweep thru the Capital Projects organization, which seems to find three-car funeral processions as too big a challenge, I would say there hasn’t been much of a house cleaning.
BTW employment law pretty much discourages any public flogging of an employee who is fired for poor performance… which is why under current circumstances ML may stay silent but milk the PR value of the departures by inference. But the back story may be very different. I would not judge these .departing folks too harshly.
- Paul
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Sunnyside
Active Member
I agree, largely because a ‘Planning’ department is literally the professional planners on the team, not those doing the kinds of ‘planning’ people expect (although there’s definitely crossover). They aren’t experts on project construction- that’s for other “planners”. They likely don’t plan how infrastructure is to be finished on a day-to-day basis either. So the key issues with project delivery can’t lie with these folks.
My interpretation is that Mx is going to see if the planners do better actually working within the departments that ‘do things’. It reads like someone pointed out that planners’ expertise has been wasted by not collaborating more internally, and firing those perpetuating that. It’s not a material change for the near future, but maybe they expect to get something more out of it in the long term at little cost, especially if planners are now closer to depts like Capital Projects.
Part of the issue is obviously how Metrolinx is organized, how much work they contract out, and how opaque the work that they do do internally is. Time will tell, but this doesn’t bode well for getting the next RTP anytime soon.
crs1026
Superstar
This is certainly a very interesting commentary from a very credible observer
- Paul
I spent 12 years as the public voice of Metrolinx. This is the real reason our megaprojects keep going off the rails
- Paul
Northern Light
Superstar
I think you're being charitable Paul.
I've used many words to describe A.M.A. over the years.......I don't think credible was ever one of them.
In fairness, she was paid to obfuscate, make use of bafflegab, and otherwise explain away or excuse the conduct of Mx.
Its wonderful that she's seen the light post-Mx..........
But really, most of her observations, where true, are widely known here, and not particularly profound.
The one clearly agreeable part is that it would be nice if there were more honesty and straight-forward discussion from project inception through completion.
But her observations to to why projects run amok..........are frankly, mostly wrong, in that they miss the key details.
For everything wrong with E.A.s the public project schedule for construction is rarely stated til after they're done.
Design changes post-construction are not typically about opulent design, but first about dealing with pre-tender E&O, and then later, about VE.
As someone with moderately good insight into various project details (on some projects)......there's lots we could discuss.......but I don't find AMA's commentary on point except in so far as politicians and civil servants
make things worse by hiding and ducking accountability.
Jonny5
Senior Member
I spent 12 years as the public voice of Metrolinx. This is the real reason our megaprojects keep going off the rails
One reason is politicians have big egos with short memories and are rarely still in power for the eventual disappointments, so they make the projects unnecessarily large in scope with
www.thestar.com
I read and got the same impression. This looks at best like an introductory to the situation for people who have paid almost zero attention to Metrolinx in the past decade until very recent times where the media has finally covered their incompetence, to at worst little more than a self-absorbed windbag trying a PR career salvaging exercise because her personal brand is now so toxic.
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turbanplanner
Senior Member
A tiny bit off topic but this article brings up the insane cost of a lot of our infrastructure processes. I remember seeing Germany is spending half what we do per KM for new lines.
Amare
Senior Member
It doesnt help that our governments at every level keep choosing to deal with inept firms despite them having clear as day evidence that they bungle projects up badly. These same firms then come back to these same governments asking them for more money to complete said project.A tiny bit off topic but this article brings up the insane cost of a lot of our infrastructure processes. I remember seeing Germany is spending half what we do per KM for new lines.
[ie: At the municipal level Toronto keeps choosing Sanscon despite their abysmal record. At the provincial level we keep choosing AtkinsRealis (aka SNC-Lavalin), and Bondfield (before they went bellyup). At the Federal level we keep choosing Acciona and AtkinsRealis (which the Feds got exposed for with the SNC Lavalin scandal).]
Our governments choose to consistently ignore bad work, and they decide to go and reward inept and imcompetent firms. We then pay a price premium to fix defects, settle lawsuits, etc. It's not rocket science why infrastructure costs are shooting up more than they should, but since politicians cant do basic homework, we're all getting screwed for it.
drum118
Superstar
How do you justify the extra millions to 10 of millions over the low bidder to go to the next one because the low one has preform poorly with the 2nd one doing the same same thing????
turbanplanner
Senior Member
I totally agree! Like I don't understand why the city won't take into account the quality of work 3 or 4 years later?
Additionally, maybe I'm showing my ignorance here but one thing mentioned was needing 100 reports done to build a house in Caledon, I know that's a bit disingenuous as some "reports" actually cover multiple issues in 1 but the checks and balances we have now don't see to work too well. (look how many people have to run to the news when MX decides to blanket their cars in dust?)
crs1026
Superstar
I probably chose my words poorly - strike out "credible" and replace with "first hand".
I blame the editors (who determine headlines) for passing her piece off as an analysis of how projects fail.... which it clearly is not in any thorough sense..
My observation is that AMA was, at least, a diligent communications professional by the standards of her profession - in that she was approachable, did respond to inquiries promptly, generally respected media deadlines, and expressed herself well.
I won't judge her harshly other than to note that every communications professional has at times to convey things they may feel are short on truthfulness or completeness, and often despite a back story that would put things in a much different light. Each individual will have to draw a line as to when they feel they have stepped beyond their personal and professional integrity.
I won't speculate on why she chose to say her piece at this moment, but I find it interesting that she would speak up at all, to effectively confirm that politics are one reason why ML is not performing.
I once heard a first- hand report where a certain senior ML honcho told a roomful of ML workers that they needed to "check your integrity at the door and do as you are directed". (exact words, as related to me) The blame may lie further up the food chain.
- Paul
