Hard choices on gridlock
Taxpayers, car drivers, transit riders, homeowners, business people, workers, shoppers — in short, all of us — are being asked to engage in an adult conversation that we’d rather avoid.
No, it isn’t funeral planning. But the question is almost as grim: How will we, as a society, pay for a $50-billion road and public transit expansion essential to easing gridlock in the Greater Toronto Area?
Ten options are outlined in a report going to Toronto’s executive committee next week. None of them are perfect and no one approach alone will provide all necessary funding. A mix is needed. But what’s the right blend of taxes, tolls and other fees? In an effort to stoke discussion, the committee is being asked to approve a series of public consultations on this issue. It should do so without hesitation.
There’s no point in looking to Mayor Rob Ford for leadership here. He doesn’t support any of the alternatives. His explanation? “I’m not a tax-and-spend type of politician,” Ford told CBC Radio’s Metro Morning on Wednesday.
Whether the mayor likes it or not, this issue needs to be addressed. Metrolinx, the province’s regional transportation authority, has until next June to produce a strategy to pay for its $50-billion plan, dubbed “The Big Move.” And it’s important for Torontonians and residents across the GTA and Hamilton to voice an opinion on the best way forward. After all, they’re mainly the ones who will pay for it.
The Greater Toronto Civic Action Alliance, or CivicAction as it’s now called, is in the middle of a campaign aimed at fostering wide-raging debate on limiting traffic congestion. And, unlike Ford, prominent municipal figures like Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion have called for new “revenue tools” to ease gridlock. In McCallion’s case, she has suggested new taxes.
The report from Toronto City Hall provides an excellent starting point for discussion. It outlines some fundamental ground rules for new tolls or taxes: These must be dedicated exclusively to the transportation challenge confronting the GTA and Hamilton. Residents in all these municipalities, including Toronto, will need to bear part of the burden. And a broad willingness to help carry the load is essential. Nothing can realistically happen without the public’s trust.
As for specific money-raising proposals, for more than two years this newspaper has argued that road tolls should be part of the mix. The city hall report labelled tolls “the best policy fit” because, in addition to raising money, they discourage people from driving and nudge them toward using public transit. On the down side, collecting tolls requires considerable investment in infrastructure.
Taxes under discussion include a region-wide fuel tax, vehicle tax, income tax, sales tax, payroll tax and property tax. All would raise money but, other than fuel and car taxes, these wouldn’t deliver the added benefit of encouraging people to avoid driving. Furthermore, a sales tax could cause consumers to leave the GTA for major purchases.
A levy on commercial parking spots, if passed on to drivers, would reduce automobile use while raising money. Other options include higher land transfer fees and development charges.
There’s much to discuss. The one choice that’s unacceptable is to do nothing at all while mounting gridlock chokes our economy, damages our health and steals even more precious time from our daily lives.