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News October 11, 2017

Public to take part in SmartTrack station consultations

The first public consultation for SmartTrack was held last night in Scarborough. The city, as well as representatives from the Toronto Transit Commission and Metrolinx, was on hand to answer questions and give a quick presentation about the stations that would be built in that neighbourhood.

There will be two other consultations held in the next two days, one at Riverdale Collegiate Institute and the other at New Horizons Tower on Bloor.

The public consultations are the next step into the planning of what James Perttula, Director of Transit and Transportation Planning, called a new, connected “urban transportation system.” He said the stations, which consist of six SmartTrack stations and two new GO stations, will be built in already developed areas so that it is able to effectively connect with hubs throughout the city.

The presentation given to the public will include brief information on the 14-stop SmartTrack plan (and 8-12 stop Eglinton LRT). The city is hoping to provide all-day service along the three rail corridors — Kitchener, Lakeshore East, and Stouffville — with six to 10 minute service during peak hours and 15 minutes during off-peak. Fare integration will be pivotal to the success of SmartTrack.

Over the next week, the city is looking for public input into how these stations can integrate into each neighbourhood. The discussion will be limited to the design of the station rather than location or the SmartTrack plan as a whole.

Each station is specific to a neighbourhood’s needs, but they are also part of a bigger design for Toronto, including the integration into the Relief Line, the Gardiner Expressway revitalization, and Rail Deck Park.

Toronto Mayor John Tory spent Wednesday morning in Leslieville/Riverdale talking to residents about SmartTrack. At a press conference, he said the area would be the best transit-served neighbourhood in the city.

The city will report to council in the spring of 2018 on all elements of SmartTrack, including cost analysis and ridership information. At this moment, the cost estimate is between $700 million and $1.5 billion. The city will only be paying for the six SmartTrack stops as opposed to the GO stations that are included in the overarching plan.

According to Perttula, SmartTrack should be operational as of 2025.

News October 6, 2017

Metrolinx announces discount for GO, UP Express, and TTC riders

Friday morning, Metrolinx announced a 50 per cent discount for transit users who transfer between GO Transit, UP Express, and the TTC using a PRESTO card. The provincial government will subsidize the co-fare in the first step towards “regional fare integration”.

The discount comes up to $1.50 per ride, or half of a TTC fare. This equates to savings of around $720 a year for the regular commuter. The cost to subsidize the discount is about $18 million a year for the province.

The discount is not available for those who download monthly passes on their PRESTO cards.

“Our region needs fare integration,” said Phil Verster, President and CEO of Metrolinx, in a statement. “This discount is an important first step in breaking down barriers to fare integration across the network, making it easier and more convenient to take transit.”

Over 50,000 daily trips include transfers between these three transportation lines — GO, UP Express, and the TTC. The new co-fare system will launch in January 2018 following the opening of the Toronto-York Spadina Subway Extension in December. The subway extension is the first TTC line to cross regional boarders, connecting York University and the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre with the Yonge Line 1 subway.

Toronto Mayor John Tory, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca, joined Verster for the announcement.

“Transit will not be more affordable for Toronto residents who ride a mix of the TTC, UP Express, and Go Transit to get around the city,” Tory said. “This agreement also moves us a step closer to make sure that SmartTrack will cost Toronto residents the same as the TTC.”

Joined @Kathleen_Wynne to formally announce the important agreement reached between City & Prov Gov’t on TTC/GO fares. #getTOmoving pic.twitter.com/AZaNejqixU

— John Tory (@JohnTory) October 6, 2017

News September 18, 2017

Toronto Mayor John Tory unveils new six-step traffic plan

On Monday morning, Toronto Mayor John Tory unveiled six new steps to unlock gridlock and combat traffic plaguing the city.

The steps of the new traffic plan centre around enforcement and technology — utilizing all of Toronto’s resources to help people move more efficiently. According to the mayor, the plan will build on the progress the city has made and the foundation created by the study of traffic hotspots last year.

Here are the six steps of the new traffic plan:

The mayor wants to establish “quick clear squads” that will help fix temporary lane blockages on major roads like the Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway. The two rapid-response squads will help clear roads in the event of an accident, for example, to keep traffic moving.
Creating full-time traffic wardens at congestion hotspots throughout Toronto. City staff employed a number of full-time police officers during their traffic warden pilot program earlier this year, with great success. By the first half of 2018, the mayor hopes to be able to maintain the program with city staff rather than police officers.
Requesting utility companies like Toronto Hydro to confine non-emergency work to off-peak hours between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. This will reduce the number of lane closures during commuter hours.
Sharing city traffic data with Waze next month to help both traffic operations and communicate traffic patterns to the public and blockages. Waze is a community-based real-time traffic and navigation app. The mayor announced a partnership with Waze back in June.
Installing smart signals in November to help monitor the flow of traffic and change signal lengths in real-time.
Asking city staff for a report on possible fine increases for traffic blocking offences.

“We owe it to drivers, cyclists, pedestrians and transit riders to make sure our city moves in the best way possible,” the mayor said in a statement. “While we have made progress improving how you get around, we can always do more. I am determined to deal with the congestion choking our roads. I’m here today to highlight the next steps we’re taking to tackle Toronto’s traffic because you deserve a better commute.”

News September 13, 2017

Ontario unlocks land for Toronto housing

Ontario is in the midst of unlocking provincial land to create more than 2,000 new rental housing units in Toronto.

Ontario Minister of Housing, Peter Milczyn made the announcement in Toronto’s West Don Lands, saying the province is in the process of securing a developer that will turn several sites into mixed-income housing, with 30 per cent earmarked for affordable housing. The sites themselves are currently owned by the province. There will be a lot between Trinity and Cherry Sts, in addition to north of the rail line east of Cherry St. int he West Don Lands. There will also be a lot at 27 Grosvenor St. and 26 Grenville St., which is being occupied currently by a parking structure and a provincial coroner’s office.

This announcement is part of Ontario’s Fair Housing Plan, which is meant to address demand for housing and protect both renters and homebuyers.

“We need to do everything we can to build more affordable housing in Toronto and we need to do it much faster,” said Toronto Mayor John Tory in a statement. “Today’s announcement is about the Government of Ontario and City of Toronto working together to speed up the delivery of affordable housing by releasing surplus public land. The City will do everything we can to encourage development of affordable rental homes by providing incentives to developers such as waiving fees and charges. By working together, we can make housing affordable for the residents of Toronto.”

Following this announcement, the Mayor’s office announced the city was on track to create 1,000 new affordable rental homes by the end of 2017. This is the first time the city has been able to meet this yearly goal since 2009.

Toronto will be investing $54.5 million in funding, financial incentives and loans to make sure these homes are built.

#TOpoli September 6, 2017

Spike in drug overdoses in Toronto continues

Toronto Mayor John Tory held an emergency public health meeting in early August after a spike in deadly drug overdoses in the city. There have been 20 overdose cases since July 27, with six occurring in the same week. The mayor said these deaths were preventable and are causing devastation to families and to various Toronto neighbourhoods. But, what exactly is the culprit behind this deadly string of overdoses?

The suspected drug is thought to be fentanyl. Police suspect people may be buying drugs laced with fentanyl without the buyers knowledge. The rise of fentanyl drug use in Toronto is all too familiar in other parts of Canada like Vancouver, that have been dealing with the rise of this deadly drug. This opioid, often manufactured In China, has made its was to the streets of Toronto. The effects offer a bliss-like state similar to heroin, but with fatal consequences.

Fentanyl is often mixed in with other drugs like cocaine or molly, and people are none the wiser. People assuming they are partaking in casual drug use can find themselves with the highly addictive fentanyl in their bodies.

Fentanyl hydrochloride is an extremely potent pain reliever and has been used in the medical community for decades. It is even offered in some pharmacies in patch and lollipop form. Because fentanyl is so potent, the white powder can be easily mixed with cocaine, powdered sugar, and can be passed of as heroin or even OxyContin tablets.

It is clear there is a drug problem in Toronto that is causing deadly harm. The next step is addressing the issue and possible solutions. The most commonly used opioid receptor and reverse overdose drug is Nalaxone. Nalaxone will be offered at safe injection sites in the city at safe injection sites set to open this fall. Toronto Public Health has set up an interim site at their downtown office for safe injections, where drug users can be monitored and take their drugs in a safe environment. Future permanent sites are planned at various spots in the city and will be granted federal exemptions from the Controlled Drugs and Substance Control Act under the Health Minister.

Harm reduction and outreach workers applaud the effort in establishing safe injection sites, but many feel the City of Toronto is too big for the number of sites being proposed.

Over the weekend a pop-up overdose prevention site appeared in Moss Park to start offering assistance. Zoe Dodd, a harm reduction worker said 24 people visited the site since the tent opened and workers even helped save the life of one man who overdosed in the tent.

What are your thoughts on the drug overdose epidemic taking place in the city? Leave a comment below.

Feminism July 27, 2017

Women’s Post presents Glass Slipper Awards to city builders

The staff at Women’s Post like to describe the organization as a social enterprise designed to help promote women and their various initiatives across the Canada. Every once in a while, we give out what’s called the Glass Slipper Award in recognition of great leadership and community service. The women who receive this award are passionate and driven, and the work they do goes way beyond the scope as defined by their employer.

At an event hosted by the Transit Alliance on Tuesday, Women’s Post presented two women with the Glass Slipper Award. Specifically, these awards were for women city builders in the private sector and in the public sector, presented to the people whose innovation, creativity, and dedication has helped this region grow.

The awards were given out with the support of John Tory, the Mayor of Toronto and were handed out by Women’s Post editor Katherine DeClerq.

The first recipient was Vickie Turnbull, Managing Director and Co-Head of the Canadian Infrastructure Finance Group, RBC Capital Markets. Turnbull describes herself as “the girl with all the money.” She was the lead financial advisor for over 21 infrastructure projects in Canada. For 12 years, she worked in the debt capital markets before she joined RBC’s Infrastructure Finance team in 2007. Her experience ranges from project finance advisory, debt structuring, and loan syndications, just to name a few.

The second recipient was Jennifer Keesmaat, Toronto Chief City Planner. Keesmaat has spent her career working tirelessly to create a walkable urban city with a strong focus on transit planning. She is a founding partner of Office for Urbanism, and has been recognized by the Canadian Institute of Planners, the Ontario Professional Planners Institute, the Design Exchange, and the EDRA for her innovative projects across Canada, specifically in municipalities like Moncton, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, and Toronto.

Here are some photos of the Glass Slipper Awards:

[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”9″ gal_title=”Glass Slipper Awards City Builders”]

#TOpoli July 6, 2017

Mayor announces $4.8 billion in federal transit funding

Toronto Mayor John Tory announced Thursday that federal money is on its way as part of the second phase of the Public Transit Infrastructure Fund.

“I’m thrilled that Toronto will receive approximately $4.8 billion of Ontario’s $8.34-billion allocation from the Government of Canada for our transit network expansion plan, which includes the Relief Line, Smart Track, the Eglinton East LRT and Waterfront transit,” Tory said in a statement. “This is a huge victory for Toronto and will lead to better transit for the entire region.”

He also confirmed that the province would be required to contribute 33 per cent of project costs and that Ontario would be encouraged to follow British Columbia’s example and commit to a 40-40-20 cost share arrangement.

The mayor has been a strong advocate for cost sharing when it comes to the Relief Line and Smart Track, and has been battling stubborn provincial politicians along the way. This soon-to-be announced funding is a big win on the part of Toronto and the much-needed Relief Line.

“With all the federal funding program allocations outlined today, including the Green Infrastructure Stream and Community, Culture and Recreation Infrastructure Stream, we thank Minister Sohi for underscoring the important balance between provincial and municipal priorities, ensuring that funding will flow to where it is needed most.”

More to come.

News July 5, 2017

Council unanimously approves TransformTO to reduce emissions

Toronto city council has unanimously approved a plan that would see the city reduce green house gas emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. If adopted, this would affectively transform Toronto into a low-carbon city.

The motion itself was for city staff to go forward and create a business-case analysis of the various recommendations presented that day. The idea is to determine a carbon reduction per dollar ratio, decide which projects would be funded municipality or cost-shared with other levels of government, and to examine whether the recommendations would align with federal plans to reduce greenhouse has emissions.

“TransformTO provides a path forward that will allow our city to make decisions that lead to a low-carbon city that is healthy, prosperous, strong, and equitable,” Toronto Mayor John Tory said in a statement. “Together, we are going to build more transit including the Relief Line, make sure our social housing is viable for the long-term and that our buildings are energy efficient.”

This ambitious plan, entitled TranformTO: 2050 Pathway to a Low-Carbon Toronto, includes 23 different strategies and acceleration campaigns that will help reduce carbon emissions drastically over the next 30 years.

Some of TransformTO’s highlights include:

Having all new buildings produce near zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030
Having 100 per cent existing buildings retrofitted to achieve on average 40 per cent energy use
Having 100 per cent of all transportation using low-carbon energy sources
Having people walk or cycle for 75 per cent of trips less than five kilometres

The report also stresses the importance of engaging communities and neighbourhoods. Education campaigns and local support will be critical to the success of TransformTO.

This biggest point of discussion was the price tag of this plan, $6.7 million for 2018. City staff estimated an annual cost of $8 million following 2018. While this doesn’t seem like much considering the other projects council has approved, the number is bound to increase as projects are added. However, as certain councillors said during the debate, there are times where going cheap will hurt the city. This is one of them.

TransformTO is led by a collaborative team made of the city’s Environment and Energy Division and the Atmospheric Fund, an organization that looks for urban solutions to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.

“We applaud today’s decision by Mayor Tory and City Council to unanimously approve TransformTO and renew Toronto’s climate leadership role,” said Mary Pickering, TAF’s VP for Programs and Partnerships and project co-chair for TransformTO. “Implementing TransformTO will not only cut carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 but also boost public health, local jobs, and social equity in our city.”

It is rare that city council votes on anything involving a high price tag unanimously, but hopefully this is a trend that will continue — especially when it comes to the King St. Pilot Study, a transit plan that will ultimately help spearhead a low-carbon corridor.

The King St. Pilot Study will be discussed Thursday morning at city council.

#TOpoli June 22, 2017

Are Smart Cities the future of congestion relief?

The last time Mayor John Tory spoke about roads at the Toronto Region Board of Trade, he announced his intention to propose tolling of the Don Valley Parkway and the Gardiner Expressway.

At Wednesday’s annual meeting, Tory again talked about the state of Toronto’s streets and the need to tackle congestion in the city.

“Am I satisfied with the traffic and congestion we still see? NO, I am not. Is this good for our residents and our economy? No, it is now. We have to do more for our economy, for our residents, for our businesses and productivity and competitiveness,” Tory said at the Board of Trade.

In this speech, Tory announced a new “Smart Streets Plan”. This plan will center around the collection of data. Toronto has completed its first real-time and historical data agreement, which will provide real-time traffic flow data. This data will be used to help manage traffic better.

The city also announced a partnership with Waze, a community-based traffic and navigation app. This app will be able to provide alerts about collisions and lane closures so that the city can push updates out to commuters.

Other parts of the Smart Streets Plan include the implementation of smart traffic signals, steps to manage curb space, and more parking blitzs in September.

Tory also praised the city’s King St. Pilot Study, saying it is a necessary project to help move the 65,000 people who use transit to navigate that corridor.

None of these announcements are as daring as that to toll the DVP and Gardiner, but considering the province has refused to allow Toronto to toll its own roadways, they are necessary steps towards trying to relieve congestion. Changing urban or street design to try and increase the flow of traffic will make Toronto a smart-city, but only if the rest of city council approves these innovative projects and studies.

What do you think of the Smart Streets Plan and the King St. Pilot Study?

#TOpoli June 12, 2017

Transit-first King St. pilot moves forward

Next week, Toronto’s executive committee will vote on the proposed King St. Pilot, the first plan to enact a transit-first mentality to city planning.

The King. St. Pilot is a direct response to slow transit service and increased congestion along the downtown corridor. “King Street is not currently working well for transit,” a report prepared by Toronto’s General Manager said. “Streetcar service can be slow, unreliable, and erratic, with unpredictable travel times, especially during rush hours, but also during some late evening and weekend times. People end up having to plan for their slowest trip.”

With more than 65,000 daily TTC riders compared to the 20,000 vehicle users along King St., re-branding this corridor as transit-first makes a lot of sense.The pilot will cover six kilometres of King St., from Jarvis to Bathurst. The corridor would funnel drivers to parallel east-west routes like Queen St., Richmond, Adelaide, Wellington, or Front, while still allowing local drivers to access the street for short periods of time.

Earlier suggestions of creating a car-free roadway were dismissed, as there are a number of driveways and parking garages that must be accessed from King St. However, city staff came up with a solution that would allow drivers to access King St. without bottling traffic.

Local residents may drive on King St., but only in between intersections. At each traffic sign, cars must turn left. It will be up to the drivers to decide how best to reach their destination. This will allow for significantly less cars on the roads and for the King. St. streetcars to have unobstructed access to their own lane.

King St. Pilot — Photo courtesy of City of Toronto.

Other features of the plan include dedicated pick-up and drop off areas and designated delivery areas. There will be no dedicated cycling lanes.

The last reported cost for this project was estimated to be at $1.5 million, but it has since been determined the project is eligible for funding under Phase I of the Public Transit Infrastructure Fund. This means it’s possible to get 50 per cent of funding from the federal government, leaving the city to come up with the remaining 50 per cent.

The Toronto Transit Commission will vote on the pilot program prior to the executive committee vote. If all goes well, it will be discussed in the July city council meeting.

What do you think of the King St. Pilot? Let us know in the comments below!