Through its ‘Places to Grow’ 25 year growth plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH), the Province has made a commitment to bring future development within the GGH inline with Smart Growth principles. In particular, commitments have been made to move away from our dependence on the automobile as our primary mode of transportation, in favour of improving public transit systems.

Contrary to these commitments, a number of proposed new highways and highway expansion projects are included in the 2006-2010 Southern Ontario Highways Program. These proposed highways would cut from the Toronto region through the Greenbelt to reach outer-ring communities. Not only would such highways directly threaten the integrity of the ecological features the Greenbelt aims to protect, they also help to further entrench our dependence on auto-centric transit and development, paving the way for long commutes through the region, leapfrog development, and ultimately more urban sprawl on the outer side of the Greenbelt.

To address our concerns regarding highway expansion in the GGH, Earthroots and other local environmental groups have formed a new coalition called The Sustainable Transportation Coalition. This coalition is an alliance of organization working together to pry provincial transportation planners away from their road-building bias. Our mission is to redirect funds from unsustainable transportation infrastructure, specifically roads and highways, towards sustainable modes. These modes include: urban public transit, regional and inter-regional public transportation (bus and rail) and walking and cycling. As a new coalition, the Sustainable Transportation Coalition is aiming to build a broad-based coalition with stakeholders across Ontario, with a long run goal of placing a Moratorium on new 400 series highways and 400 series highway expansion in Ontario.

Current Highway Proposals

Earthroots and The Sustainable Transportation Coalition are very concerned with:

• The extension of Highway 407 eastward to Highway 35/115, encouraging development on some of Southern Ontario’s best agricultural lands and highly sensitive watersheds, just South of the Oak Ridges Moraine.
• The extension of Highway 404 through the Oak Ridges Moraine, and around the east and south sides of Lake Simcoe. This project would also include a Bradford Bypass, connecting highways 404 and 400, encouraging long distance commutes and low-density sprawl along its route.
• The north-east extension of Highway 427 through the Oak Ridges Moraine to Barrie, paving the way for sprawling development just north of the Greenbelt.
• The construction of a new Mid-Peninsula Highway, running over the Niagara Escarpment UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, from Burlington to the U.S. border in the Niagara region.
• The creation of a new GTA East-West Corridor from Brampton to the Guelph area, also cutting through the Niagara Escarpment. This transportation corridor would put in place a foundation for the expansion of sprawl westward from Brampton and northward from Oakville and Burlington toward the Niagara Escarpment.
• The extension of Highway 410 northwards “at least” to Highway 89, and possibly as far North as Collingwood. Current extensions towards Highway 89 encourage sprawl northward from Brampton in the direction of Caledon. Extension further North would pave the way for sprawl North of the Oak Ridges Moraine and along the boarder of the Niagara Escarpment.

For a visual representation of these proposed new highway projects, an excellent map created by the Pembina Institute and the Neptis Foundation can be found below:

http://pubs.pembina.org/reports/Pembina_Proposed_Hwys_Final_040301.pdf

For more information regarding the status of these proposals, check the 'current issues' of the Greentrans website at: http://www.greentrans.org/

Business-as-Usual: Quantifying the Need for Change

According to studies completed by the Neptis Foundation in 2002, and cited in the Pembina Institute’s September 2006 “Building Sustainable Urban Communities in Ontario: A Provincial Progress Report” business-as-usual over the next 30 years will yield very dismal results:

• Automobile ownership in the region will increase by 50% to 19 million vehicles
• The cost of delays due to traffic congestion, principally in the 905 region surrounding Toronto, will increase from about $1 billion per year to $3.8 billion per year.
• Daily vehicle kilometres of auto travel in the region will increase by 64%
• Costs associated with automobile accidents, reflecting this increase in auto travel, will rise from $3.8 billion in 2000 to $6.3 billion in 2031.
• Reflecting the low levels of public transit use in the regions outside of the City of Toronto, where most of the growth will occur, the total public transit modal share will decrease by 11%
• Emissions of transportation-related greenhouse gases are projected to increase 42%
• Reflecting reliance on the automobile for transportation, greenhouse gas emissions in new suburban areas are projected to increase 526% relative to their current levels.

We clearly need a drastic shift away from our current models of transportation and development. In its current form, the Province's ‘Places to Grow’ plan does not make a strong enough commitment to altering business-as-usual scenarios. Allowing public spending to be directed towards new highway projects and expansions, as opposed to transit, is a perfect example of this lack of commitment.

What Can You Do?

First of all, live by example: take transit, walk, and cycle more, and drive less or not at all. The next step is to use your own political voice: let your representation know how you feel about new highway and highway expansion in the GGH! Some important points to include:

• Environmental Assessment Terms of Reference for new highway projects have time and time again failed to take into account the cumulative effects of such projects on air quality, green-house gas emissions, and future development patterns.
• True protection for Greenbelt areas like the Oak Ridges Moraine and Niagara Escarpment UNESCO world biosphere reserve cannot be undermined by the expansion of highways through these areas.
• Spanning the Greenbelt with new highways paves the way for more business-as-usual sprawl and leapfrog development on the outer side of the Greenbelt, encouraging long commutes and further entrenching our on-going dependence on the automobile and auto-centric development.
• While the Province has increased funding towards public transportation under ‘Places to Grow,’ spending on roads and highways to date remains fairly consistent.
• A true commitment to the Smart Growth principles upon which the ‘Places to Grow’ plan is founded must require a moratorium on highway growth and expansion in favour of placing this funding towards better public transportation systems!

Send a copy of your concerns to any or all of the Ministers listed below:

Minister of Transportation:

Honourable Jim Bradley
Ministry of Transportation
Corporate Correspondence Unit
3rd Floor, Ferguson Block
77 Wellesley Street West
Toronto, ON M7A 1Z8
Online E-mail comments: http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/feedback/minister.htm

Minister of Public Infrastructure Renewal:

Honourable David Caplan
Ministry of Public Infrastructure Renewal
6th Floor Mowat Block
900 Bay Street
Toronto, ON M7A 1L2
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing:

Honourable Jim Watson
Municipal Affairs and Housing
777 Bay Street, 17th Floor
Toronto, ON M5G 2E5
Online e-mail comments: http://www.mah.gov.on.ca/Page350.aspx

Minister of the Environment:

Honourable John Gerretsen
Ministry of Environment
5775 Yonge St.
8th floor
North York, ON M2M 4J1
Online e-mail comments: http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/feedback/email_minister.php

Chair of the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority:

Rob MacIsaac
Greater Toronto Transportation Authority
20 Bay Street, Unit 901
Toronto, ON M5J 2N8

For more information, contact Josh Garfinkel 416-599-0152 x15 / This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or Josh Kohler 416-599-0152 x14 / This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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