The Honourable Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Transportation discussed culture shifts and challenges facing Ontario’s transportation infrastructure while speaking to OES delegates. The transportation industry is working hard to generate innovative policies and plans that not only uphold key values such as safety, but also address the changing needs of the public.

Wynne focused on three key cultural shifts:

• The new economy: Ontario is an “export-driven economy” which relies heavily on the transportation of exports and imports more so than in the past. This is extremely important to Ontario’s transportation infrastructure because 70 percent of Canada’s imports and exports travel through the Ontario/ U.S. border.  It is vital that the transportation infrastructure meets the needs of today’s new economy.
• New focus on the environment: There is an increasing desire to consider the environment when implementing plans and policies. Effort is being made to develop and encourage sustainable models of transport, including electric cars. Wynne described an ambitious goal of having 1 in every 20 cars on the road be electric by 2020. Rebates have already been put into place in order to generate more incentives for the public to make this shift to hybrid vehicles.
• Continued pursuit of safety: Safety has long been a key goal and continues to rank high in terms of importance within the transportation industry. New policies on acceptable blood alcohol levels and the move to deter people from using cell phones and other electronic devices while driving have already been put into effect.

These new policies not only reflect the transportation industry’s desire to stay on top of cultural shifts, but also a need to engage the public, as well as the government. As Wynne stated, the “government is part of the solution but not the whole solution,” an idea that has been expressed throughout the day.

Tomorrow’s keynote address will focus on changes to the global economy and what this means for Ontario.

Written by: Elizabeth Morris and Milica Petkovic

As transit networks across the province are in an ongoing cycle of unavoidable updates, expansions and repairs, funding sources are becoming more difficult to find. Transit City, a major Toronto transit project to expand and update the current rail system, is currently under discussion between municipal and provincial politicians and Metrolinx, all partners in this project, to finalize details on funding and a reasonable timeline for completion. The Province has committed $8.15 billion to this project which is slated to be completed over ten years, a revision to the original completion time of eight years. Transit infrastructure renewal is essential for the long term economic growth of Toronto – indeed many communities - and their ability to attract and retain business investment.

A report released on Wednesday by the Toronto Board of Trade outlines sixteen revenue generating ideas that could provide funding for transit within the City of Toronto, including parking surcharges, gas taxes and road tolls. The study estimates that the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) will need about $2 billion annually to fund the Metrolinx vision.

Studies like this are a great start to finding solutions, but Toronto and other municipalities across Ontario will have to continue to take a serious look at how transit is funded across all networks and develop an innovative plan to generate necessary funding to support the ongoing needs of transit infrastructure. Recently at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce Annual General Meeting, delegates from across Ontario gave their support to the exploration of alternative funding sources in light of the enormous need for transit and transportation infrastructure. The OES will be taking a critical look at alternative forms of funding for infrastructure projects in the transportation of goods, as this is vital to the future success of business within the province.

What is the best way to fund transit infrastructure in the province? Share your ideas on how to fund this investment in the future of the province.