Category Archives for "Highways and Bridges"

May 13

Submission to Toronto Council Committee on Gardiner Expressway Reconfiguration

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges

 

Transport Action Ontario (TAO) has been participating as a member of the Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC) in the consultations for the Gardiner East EA since its inception in 2009.   Our last position paper was published in March, 2014, where we supported the “Remove” option.  Subsequently, Council directed staff to undertake several additional studies – primarily to evaluate a new “Hybrid” option, and to study traffic mitigation steps for the “Remove” option.

 

During the past year, the SAC continued to meet to review the new findings.    A public meeting on the new results was held in April, 2015.   The matter came before Toronto’s Public Works and Infrastructure Committee on May 13, and will go to Council in June.   As input to these deliberations, TAO issued an updated public paper.

 

The paper concluded that the “Hybrid” option is not appreciably different than the “Maintain” option, other than relocated access ramps.  It also noted that a small reconfiguration of the urban boulevard in “Remove” has reduced the auto and truck travel time penalty to only 3 to 5 minutes, as verified in two independent studies.    Therefore TAO continues to urge Council to advance the “Remove” option as the preferred alternative for completing the Gardiner East EA.

 

Our updated position paper can be viewed here:  TAO-GardinerEast2015-05-11

 

 

Feb 25

Commentary on Canada’s decision to pay for U.S.customs plaza at NITC

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges

 

 

On February 18, 2015, the Toronto Globe and Mail announced that the government of Canada had failed to get Washington to pay the roughly $250 million (U.S.) needed to build a U.S. customs plaza on the Michigan side of the New International Trade Crossing, a proposed new Detroit-Windsor bridge.    Ottawa will be responsible for financing the entire cost of the $2.1-billion bridge, including access roads on both sides of the Detroit River as well as U.S. border installations.

 

Transport Action Ontario has long opposed this project.   Our commentary on these latest developments can be viewed here:   TAO-NITC-2015-02-25

 

 

Mar 29

Position Statement on New International Trade Crossing (Detroit – Windsor)

By Transport Action Ontario | Highways and Bridges , Press Releases and Open Letters

 

 

On February 2, 2014, the Canadian government announced it will start buying land in Detroit to speed up building of the New International Trade Crossing, a planned bridge between Detroit and Windsor.

 

Transport Action Ontario has issued a position statement opposing this latest effort by the Canadian government to induce construction of this ill-conceived and uneconomic project.   The statement can be viewed here:  TAO-NITC-2014-03