A hearing for tolls
For years, Toronto area politicians have resisted looking seriously at road tolls as a means to help pay for the city’s transportation infrastructure and, perhaps, deal with worsening gridlock. The conversation can’t be avoided any longer, and Premier-designate Kathleen Wynne, for one, is anxious to move it along.
Although Wynne’s long-term future is far from secure, with a minority government and expectations of a provincial election some time soon, it doesn’t mean an issue she has marked as a priority should not get attention now. Wynne is right that Toronto’s infrastructure woes and transportation gridlock are urgent problems and that the only way to get new transit and infrastructure in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton area is to raise new revenues.
The rest of the province has a stake in Toronto’s transportation issues as well. It takes a massive chunk of provincial transportation funding and the cost of gridlock affects everyone.
Road tolls as a way to both pay for infrastructure and reduce gridlock are an idea whose time has come. This is true for Canada’s busiest city, the surrounding area, and other jurisdictions where it makes sense for users to pay part of the costs associated with overburdened roads and bridges. There is a growing body of evidence that Toronto’s traffic problems are costly. A 2011 report by the Toronto Board of Trade estimated that gridlock costs the Toronto area economy $6 billion a year. And transportation infrastructure, from public transit to the crumbling Gardner Expressway, needs upgrading. Finance Minister Dwight Duncan, who is retiring, told the Star that Toronto’s transit needs would eat up all the province’s money for capital projects. So alternate sources of revenue are a must.
There are a number of options used by cities around the world facing similar issues. London instituted a congestion tax to reduce the number of cars in the city centre and make those who wish to drive there pay a premium. It has made a difference but other cities have rejected the idea for fear it might lead to a business exodus from downtown — a real concern in Toronto which has high density business centres outside of downtown. Nottingham in England levied a parking fee to raise infrastructure money and discourage driving.
Tolls are not the only possible solution to Toronto’s transportation issues, and they may not be a popular one. But if implemented properly they can be a powerful policy tool.