New transit panel must tell province to implement mobility pricing measures

This press release was issued by TF when the Ontario Government announced the formation of the Transit Investment Strategy Advisory Panel.

New transit panel must tell province to implement mobility pricing measures

GUELPH, September 18 — Having facilitated Ontario’s only non-partisan mobility pricing conversation since 2008, Transport Futures (TF) is ready to support the work of the province’s Transit Investment Strategy Advisory Panel (TISAP) announced by Premier Kathleen Wynne this morning.

“We are very pleased to see that all revenue tools, including road tolls and parking fees, are back on the table”, said TF founder Martin Collier. “The four politically correct tools selected by Metrolinx in May will do nothing to cut congestion, increase safety, or reduce climate change and smog – especially in the short-term.”

Collier points to the global case studies and research that have been presented by 80 international and Canadian experts to government, business, academia, NGOs and the public over the last five years.

“The extensive information we have received clearly demonstrates that comprehensive road tolls and parking fees, combined with zone-based transit fares and a new carbon tax to replace the existing provincial gas tax, achieve best results. They are the only fiscal measures that will quickly give Ontario citizens an efficient and sustainable transportation network. Reliable trip times translates into more family time, more sleep, less vehicle wear and tear and an overall better quality of life. Simply supplying more transit and roads cannot influence positive behavior and modal shift.”

According to Collier, it will take leadership, straight-forward communication skills and an updated governance model to move in a new direction.

“The time for homegrown talk and studies must come to an end. The TISAP must give all politicians the fortitude to implement mobility pricing measures that are based on a beneficiary pay model. This way we gain the biggest bang for the buck in the shortest period of time. We can’t resort to revenue tools such as a 1% sales tax, development charges and business parking levies. They are simply a tax grab and could be detrimental to the economy. ”

Collier is inviting all TISAP panel members to attend the TF Mobility Pricing Summit on November 18^th.

“I encourage them to learn directly from Swedish, US and Canadian experts who have actually implemented mobility pricing measures with great results. Being 20 years behind everywhere else in the world, we can’t continue to stick our heads in the sand or re-invent the wheel when TF experts are willing to help us solve our transport challenges.”

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