The newly elected Ottawa city council will likely reject the north-south light-rail transit contract approved by the previous council, the results of two pre-election surveys suggest.

Three out of four new councillors say they will vote against the current light rail contract.
(City of Ottawa)

And Ontario's premier suggested Tuesday that the province may not make its $200-million contribution to the project if the contract changes.

The previous council voted 14-8 in July to approve a $778.2-million contract with Siemens-PCL/Dufferin to build the north-south transit line, which is to run from the University of Ottawa to Barrhaven.

But in October, Treasury Board President John Baird announced that the federal government was withholding its $200-million contribution to the project until after the Nov. 13 municipal election so that the new council could decide whether to re-approve the project.

'I believe there are some other options on the table that may be more appropriate for the city of Ottawa.'—Ottawa's mayor-elect Larry O'Brien

Now, that new council will likely vote against the project, according to the results of polls by the CBC and the Ottawa Citizen.

That's because the mayor-elect Larry O'Brien and three out of four new councillors — Marianne Wilkinson, Christine Leadman and Shad Qadri — are all opposed to the proposed rail line.

Source: Surveys by the CBC and the Ottawa Citizen. *O'Brien did not answer, but has spoken publicly against the contract.

Would you vote in favour of the current light-rail contract?
Larry O'Brien (mayor)	No*
Bob Monette (Orléans)	Yes
Rainer Bloess (Innes)	No
Jan Harder (Barrhaven)	Yes
Marianne Wilkinson (Kanata North)	No
Eli El-Chantiry (West Carleton)	Yes
Shad Qadri (Stittsville-Kanata West)	No
Alex Cullen (Bay)	No
Rick Chiarelli (College)	No
Gord Hunter (Knoxdale-Merivale)	No
Diane Deans (Gloucester-Southgate)	Yes
Michel Bellemare (Beacon Hill-Cyrville)	No
Georges Bédard (Rideau-Vanier)	Yes
Jacques Legendre (Rideau-Rockcliffe)	No
Diane Holmes (Somerset)	Yes
Christine Leadman (Kitchissippi)	No
Maria McRae (River)	Yes
Clive Doucet (Capital)	Yes
Peter Hume (Alta Vista)	Yes
Rob Jellett (Cumberland)	No
Doug Thompson (Osgoode)	Undecided
Glenn Brooks (Rideau-Goulbourn)	No
Steve Desroches (Gloucester-Southgate)	Yes
Peggy Feltmate (Kanata South)	No

O'Brien said he has already begun talking about alternatives to the contract with the incoming city council.

"I believe there are some other options on the table that may be more appropriate for the city of Ottawa," he said. "In my preliminary discussions with councillors I'm getting a nod of agreement on that."

Qadri said he learned while campaigning door-to-door in his ward of Stittsville-Kanata West that the proposed rail line is not popular.

"North-south is not the way to go for our community," he said. "We want east-west first."

Even some of the re-elected councillors who voted in favour of the rail line have since changed their minds or say they might change their minds, including Coun. Doug Thompson, who represents Osgoode.

"I'm not making any predictions now on which way I'm going to vote when it comes back to council," Thompson said Tuesday.

'We made a commitment for a specific project': McGuinty

Meanwhile, Premier Dalton McGuinty said Tuesday that the province's $200-million contribution is still on the table, but won't necessarily stay there if changes are made to the contract — as outlined in a letter released by Mayor Bob Chiarelli three days before the municipal election.

"We made a commitment for a specific project," McGuinty said.

"We look forward to moving with that commitment. If the council changes its mind, then obviously we'll have to take a look at it."

But Baird says the new council should decide carefully whether to approve the same contract or go after a new one.

"We've got to take the time to get it right," he said Tuesday.

"And I think the people of Ottawa spoke to this last night. They want to ensure that it's the right project, at the right price. That'll be a decision for the Ottawa council to make."

During the election campaign, Mayor Bob Chiarelli cautioned that delays in getting the light rail project underway could be costly.

Baird said Tuesday, as he has before, that the contract does not include penalties for delays in implementation unless the delays continue beyond Dec. 15.

He also criticized the companies contracted for not letting the public see that for themselves.

"I think it's very unfortunate — very unfortunate that Siemens would not allow for the release of the contract," Baird said. "They should have. This is a new era of accountability."