After years of talk, the idea of coordinating GTA transit agencies just
got a little more real. Last Friday in Mississauga, an unprecedented
array of local, regional, provincial and even federal officials got
together for the first Greater Toronto Area Transit Summit. Of course, a
sign of real progress is usually a big cheque -- there was none. Yet
transit riders may be heartened that so many people with chequebooks at
least showed up. Mayors and regional chairs all the way from Hamilton to
Durham Region were there, as were two provincial cabinet ministers in
charge of addressing the GTA’s traffic problems. Also present was the
new federal minister of transport -- a hopeful sign.
As one who has
complained that our governments are too disorganized to properly deal
with gridlock, I must admit to being impressed that so many officials
were able to come together and agree on anything concerning the GTA’s
transport network. Only a few years ago, municipal politicians would be
lucky if the province sent a few civil servants to meetings about
regional commuting concerns. Near the end of their second mandate, the
former Conservative government under Ernie Eves started to pay more
attention to local gridlock -- but the good turnout at Friday’s summit
was probably because the governing parties at Queen’s Park and
Parliament Hill are both Liberal.
As representatives
of a provincial government that happens to have a huge deficit, Minister
of Transportation Harinder Takhar and Minister of Public Infrastructure
Renewal David Caplan may have assured the assembled officials by
speaking about a new transit authority for the GTA. Coordinating
transit is high on the agenda of municipal politicians in the 905 belt,
especially a region-wide fare system. The mayors at the meeting set out
a list of requirements for the proposed authority, but they made
it clear that new funding is just as important.
Some kind of
regional transit body may well arrive before any cheques do. In
yesterday’s Metro, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty reiterated that his
election promise of giving two cents from the gas tax to transit would
have to be phased in over several years.
That is a worry for
politicians in the City of Toronto, where the majority of the GTA’s
transit riders are found. The TTC is much more concerned with avoiding a
fare hike and replacing aging buses than it is with installing a new
fare system.
Local officials
have had some hope kindled by Ottawa in the form of a rebate on the GST
that municipalities pay. With a national election looming, the federal
government appears more willing to help resolve the region’s traffic --
and transit -- congestion.
Newly appointed
federal transport minister Tony Valeri, who hails from Hamilton, said at
the summit, “I look forward to involving MP’s at the front end of
transportation initiatives and engaging not only parliament, but all
levels of government, in an open and transparent dialogue.”
That’s a big
challenge. Ottawa is not used to helping plan improvements to Toronto’s
network of roads or train tracks. When it does get involved, the federal
government usually follows the lead of local and provincial politicians.
An example is the Toronto waterfront, where a three-way funding program
is building a new platform at Union subway station, GO rail improvements
and the controversial Front Street extension. An example of lousy
planning is the international ferry between Rochester and Toronto -- the
federally-controlled Toronto Port Authority announced that the Canadian
terminal will in fact be a tent, until a permanent building is ready.
Real dialogue
between governments is long overdue, and while it may make an already
complicated task more so, another group must be brought into the transit
discussion: riders. Commuters might be focused on simply getting from A
to B, but they should have the right to talk about the larger picture.
In turn, elected officials can prove they understand transit needs by
consulting directly with the people who ride on buses and trains every
day.
Send e-mail to
transit@eddrass.com. Include address
and phone number.