February 6, 2004

Speaking Notes To the Canadian Urban Institute's GTA Transit Summit
by David Caplan, Minister of Public Infrastructure Renewal

Check Against Delivery

Good morning ladies and gentlemen.

Let me begin my remarks this morning by thanking you for the opportunity to appear at today’s summit.

I would like to keep my comments brief to allow some time for your questions.

The subject we are discussing today is dear to my heart. I firmly believe that our cities will fail – simply fail – if we are unable to control congestion and gridlock.

This is a quality of life issue; no one wants to spend time stuck in traffic. But it is also an economic issue.

Toronto’s Board of Trade estimates that traffic congestion costs Toronto more than two billion dollars a year, in wasted time and lost opportunity. I think it may be higher.

So we are committed to improving our communities by improving our transit and transportation systems. The real question is how will we do it?

Later today there will be a meeting in Ottawa to commence one of the approaches that we will take in the months ahead.

This will be the first of a series of finance ministry led consultations to get stakeholder input on priorities for our first budget.

In light of the massive deficit we inherited from the last government, we will be consulting Ontarians on ways to reduce the deficit, while maintaining critical public services.

The 2004 Budget will be critical to this province's future.

It is not only the first budget of our new government, but also the first budget of a new kind of government…and it is going to signal a new era of transparency and accountability.

Above all, this budget will demonstrate an absolute commitment to the public services Ontarians need and want most.

Premier McGuinty has made it very clear that our priority must be protecting and improving public services. We must regain the financial capacity to do that and sustain it.

The fiscal situation may require us to alter our timetable, but it has not altered by one iota our commitment to making that goal.

We are asking people from every walk of life – not just business people or interest groups – to talk to us.

We're going to ask them to examine their priorities…to balance the things they need against the things they have, perhaps, taken for granted.

In the next two months, I will be looking for input on strategies for infrastructure financing, investment and procurement.

This will be the first important step we will take to deal with the decline in our infrastructure over the last eight years.

So my presence here today is part of that collaborative approach. I am here to listen, much more than to talk. I am looking for your input on these serious and difficult issues.

Collaboration and cooperation are the guiding principles of this government.

And collaboration is urgently required in transit and transportation, because the challenges go beyond any single ministry – or any single government, for that matter.

In fact, the driving force behind the creation of the new Ministry of Public Infrastructure Renewal is to improve our infrastructure planning and priorities right across government.

Within a generation, we expect the GTA to grow by about 2.4 million people.

The triangle bounded by Oshawa, Barrie and Niagara Falls will be one of the most heavily urbanized regions in North America.

We have to accommodate that growth. But we can’t accommodate it in the way we always have.

In the past, our growth has been largely based on the construction of new greenfield residential developments on the boundaries of existing urban areas.

That model served us well. It provided homes for many of our people – quickly, and at a price they could afford.

But unrestricted greenfield development comes with a high price.  We see it on our roads everyday, and we also see it in the quality of community life.

Let’s face it; whole communities are built without adequate infrastructure including schools, hospital and medical services and transit.

Residents travel well outside their communities to link up with already stretched roads and transit services. Gridlock and congestion follow.

We need a new model of urban development, one that emphasizes redevelopment of urban brownfields that will make better use of existing facilities, and create more compact communities.

And we must co-ordinate our infrastructure investments – in roads and in public transit – to encourage brownfield development and to reduce urban sprawl.

This does not mean halting growth because we have to manage our changing demographics.

But it will mean managing and planning for growth in different terms. Infrastructure planning and development can direct growth, as opposed to continually trying to catch up with it.

Our infrastructure investments must consider the linkages between transportation, the environment, land use and economic development.

Careful planning across these priorities will lead to efficiencies, save us money and enhance our quality of life.

I also believe this kind of “A” list planning can lead to marked improvement in local economic investment and job creation.

Well planned, vital communities are more and more the key components of creating a competitive edge in attracting international investment. This is the essence of managing growth effectively.

One of the key components of managing growth effectively is transit choice. That will play a crucial role in reducing traffic congestion in our cities.

Other world-class cities show what will happen if we do nothing.

In the City of London, England, traffic studies showed that the average speed of vehicles in the downtown core was lower than it had been in the 18th century.

It was faster to move around London in the days of the horse and buggy than in the age of the Mini Cooper.

In downtown New York, the average speed of a car during the day is about seven miles per hour – about as fast as a brisk walk. That hasn’t changed in almost 75 years.

Toronto is not at that point. But if we do not support and strengthen our public transit systems it will be.

We need to manage the system better and we will. The McGuinty government will establish a Greater Toronto Transportation Authority to co-ordinate and integrate transportation across the region – both roads and transit.

As Minister Takhar said, we will lead the initiative to have a single integrated system. We will also work with our GTA transit partners to have a single integrated and rider friendly transit fare.

Both initiatives will help encourage people to leave their cars at home, and reduce the congestion on our highways and the gridlock on our streets.

This will be one of the key assignments of the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority.

We will also link funding for transit and transportation to the growth management plan we are developing.

To make sure that happens, we are integrating the Smart Growth Secretariat into the Ministry of Public Infrastructure Renewal, so that these ideas become part of our investment planning at the earliest stages.

We know the way we live tomorrow depends on the way we manage growth today.

It is no accident that some of our first pieces of legislation deal with exactly these issues.

The Strong Communities Act, introduced in December, is designed to ensure that land-use decisions are consistent with the province's priorities for environmental protection and community growth.

The Greenbelt Protection Act, and the one-year moratorium on agricultural zoning in the Golden Horseshoe, is the first step towards a permanent greenbelt in one of the most rapidly growing areas in Canada.

As a government, we are committed to working together with other levels of government and with private and public sector partners.

So we will ask our municipal partners to help design the programs that affect them most.

We will work with our colleagues in the federal government, to ensure Ontario gets its fair share of federal programs, and to make sure those programs address our needs and our priorities.

And we will call on private sector organizations and public agencies like those represented here today to help us develop the policies that work in the practical, real world.

The McGuinty government is committed to improving the quality of life in our communities, by tackling gridlock, containing sprawl and preserving greenspace, by promoting economic development.

The creation of the new Ministry of Public Infrastructure Renewal signals our determination to manage growth responsibly.

Our program is ambitious, but we have to set high goals. There is no point in soaring towards mediocrity!

This may be our last chance to manage growth in Canada’s most rapidly expanding regions. But we know it cannot be done overnight.

Infrastructure by its very nature demands a long-term approach. So we have to take the time to do it right. We must begin with a vision of the future. That vision must extend into the next decade, not just the next election.

I look forward to working with all of you to help shape our vision. Thank you.