The
Toronto City Summit Alliance hosted a roundtable discussion last week underlining the coming traffic congestion crisis.
The report is the result of consultations with more than 100 stakeholders from business, non-profit, academia, labour and all three levels of government, and though this is just the first step, with no concrete solutions proposed, it's a definitive statement of a general understanding of a very big problem for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA).
Participants included Metrolinx CEO Robert Pritchard, TD economist
Derek Burleton, and planning experts
Marni Cappe and Joe Berridge.
According to the report, between 1986 and 2006, road capacity in the GTHA increased by 56 per cent, while demand increased by 106 per cent. During the same two decades, mass transit capacity grew by 18 per cent, while demand increased by 45 per cent.
According to the report, "The GTHA has become a world leader in forcing residents to waste the maximum amount of time in their vehicle of choice, whether at work or play."
The main thrust of the report is that new sources of funding to increase traffic and transit infrastructure are needed, given that the traditional ones have proven to be inadequate.
Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Rebecca Geller
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