Category Archives for "Highways and Bridges"

Response to Ontario Minister of Transport Letter to Federal Government

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges , Intercity Rail and Bus , Latest News , Northern Ontario , Southwestern Ontario , Urban Transit

On June 2, 2025, Ontario Minister of Transport Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria wrote to federal Minister of Transport and International Trade Chrystia Freeland outlining several areas where federal financial and regulatory assistance is needed to modernize Ontario’s transportation infrastructure. Specific items were identified for subways, highways, rail, marine, airports, electric vehicles and critical minerals.

While Transport Action Ontario supports a number of these items, we felt we needed to comment in several areas:

• The real costs of provincial highways is high
• Need more provincial focus on southwestern Ontario
• Need to improve existing rail asset utilization
• Rail abandonments need more scrutiny
• Regional equity and rail tourism need more focus
• Descoping and delays of GO Expansion project have serious consequences
• Highway 401 tunnel in GTHA is a bad idea
• Infrastructure for critical minerals should include freight rail

Our letter can be viewed below.

Annual Meetings – April 5, 2025

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges , Intercity Rail and Bus , Latest News , Northern Ontario , Urban Transit

Transport Action Ontario (TAO) and Transport Action Canada (TAC) invite all members and supporters to join us for our annual public meeting on April 5, 2025, to be followed by the Annual General Meetings of both organizations. The meetings will be in hybrid format – in person in Kingston, Ontario and virtual using ZOOM, and will start at 1:00 pm.

The public meeting will feature key notes speakers Carl Fowler on cross-border passenger rail, Shawn Marshall on mapping Canada’s motorcoach network and a discussion of Kingston as a future regional hub for VIA Rail/Alto.

For further details and registration information for the public meeting, click here.

The public meeting will be followed by the Annual General Meetings for both organizations – between 3:00 pm and 3:45 pm for TAC and between 3:45 – 4:30 pm for TAO. Members in good standing have received separate invites for these sessions.

Transportation in the GTHA – Status and Outlook

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges , Urban Transit

Transport Action Ontario recently presented a summary update of GTHA (Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area) transportation improvements and challenges to a Toronto-based seniors group. The presentation covered both public transit and expressways. It presents a useful snapshot of the current status of this vital public service, including:

• Massive anticipated population increase and high levels of congestion are driving the need for more transportation capacity. Province is responding with both a large transit expansion program and a major plan to build more expressways.
• Over $100 Billion of rapid transit capital investment since 2010, but more needed.
• Smaller projects underway to improve transit, including priority bus features and on-request transit.
• Federal government finally investing in VIA Rail, but operating challenges continue. New High Speed Rail (Alto) project has been announced, but is proceeding at very slow pace and very high cost.
• Road widenings/new expressways are not the answer. Put the funds into transit instead.
• Transit challenges include operational funding, reliability and escalating cost of construction.

The update can be viewed below.

Truck Toll Discount on Highway 407 – Feasibility Study

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges , Latest News

Highway 413, a proposed new expressway northwest of Toronto, continues to be a very controversial project with residents. Transport Action Ontario (TAO) has been actively proposing an alternative solution – more higher order transit to move people, and a toll discount for trucks to use the existing toll Highway 407. Our studies, confirmed by others, have shown that the truck toll discount is more cost-effective than building Highway 413.

There is growing interest in utilizing Highway 407, and Ontario Premier Ford has committed to a feasibility study on a buyback of the 407 concession agreement. A motion to support the provincial study, and to include a one year pilot on a truck toll discount, was brought before the City of Vaughan Council on December 3, 2024. TAO made a deputation in support of this study and also urged a prompt one-year pilot study on a truck toll discount in a dedicated truck lane on Highway 407.

The motion was passed at Vaughan Council on December 17, 2024. Our deputation is shown below.

Stop the 413 – Briefing to MPs

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges , Latest News

Transport Action Ontario is a core member of the “Stop the 413 Now” alliance of community groups and individuals based in York Region. In August, 2024, we completed an updated “Briefing to MPs” that has been circulated and discussed with numerous federal elected officials.

We are asking the Federal Government to:

• Protect the environment using tools in its jurisdiction, including redesignation under the recently revised Impact Assessment Act, and carefully scrutinizing permits under the Species at Risk Act, Fisheries Act and Migratory Birds Act.
• Support better use of Highway 407 for trucks as an investment in supply chain competitiveness and to support smart growth principles.

The briefing can be viewed below.