Towards a National Transit Strategy
Canadian transit riders pay a higher percentage of the total costs required to build, maintain and operate transit than do riders in almost all other Western countries. However, meeting public transit´s needs remain difficult.
Canada remains the only OECD country without a long-term, predictable federal transit-investment policy, even though moving people efficiently in urban areas requires a partnership among all orders of government. As transit´s share of urban travel continues to grow, federal and provincial governments must provide long-term reliable funding, so that transit systems have the financial certainty they need to meet the needs of Canadians now and in the future.
Almost every transit system in the world requires operating contributions to offset the shortfall between total costs of operation and total revenue from fares, and Canada´s systems are no exception. Likewise, almost all transit systems worldwide also require capital contributions to cover all spending on capital projects—that is, to renew and expand our transit networks.
A PUBLIC TRANSIT INFRASTRUCTURE DEFICIT
The Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) estimates that transit systems across the country need $20.7 billion for infrastructure between 2006 and 2010, or about $4.2 billion annually, which covers rehabilitating and replacing existing systems, as well as expansion plans to accommodate increasing numbers of riders.
Of the $20.7 billion required, 44 per cent is needed to rehabilitate or renew existing infrastructure, while 56 per cent is needed to expand service capacity to serve more riders. These figures speak to the need both to maintain infrastructure and to respond to the growth potential for transit. We must both restore transit infrastructure and respond to the increasing mobility needs and environmental sustainability challenges of the growing urban population.
FUNDING PUBLIC TRANSIT
Municipal shares of both operating and capital subsidies for transit come primarily generally from property taxes, supplemented in some cases by special levies on gasoline sales, parking and hydro bills. Clearly, the property tax alone is not sufficient to support public transit, given the estimated $60-billion municipal infrastructure deficit, the limited revenue sources, the growing responsibilities of municipal governments, and the already substantial municipal support for transit. Municipal governments need help to deliver the transit services that the nation´s economy, quality of life and environmental sustainability rely on.
Finding the necessary funds is a major issue facing municipalities. CUTA estimates that the new investments required just to stay afloat, to say nothing of meeting unmet and future demands, are almost as large as the entire sum currently invested in all transit capital projects.
Recent federal government initiatives for municipal infrastructure funding are an important and welcome start. But we need to replace short-term, ad hoc funding with longer term, more predictable commitments from all orders of government that come closer to addressing the outstanding needs.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A NATIONAL TRANSIT STRATEGY
1. New Investment:
New investments of $2 billion a year from the Government of Canada is required to support renewal and expansion of transit systems across the country. This will maintain the transit system in good repair and allow expansion of the system to accommodate both population growth and a modal shift toward transit over private automobiles. This amount should be reviewed over time to see whether it is adequate, and the amount itself would be indexed to an escalator to keep pace with inflation.
2. Building demand:
For a transit strategy to be successful some people may need additional incentives to use transit. The federal government can play a strong role in developing tax incentives and other policies and regulations that support transit.
3. Integrated land use and transportation planning:
Land-use and transportation planning must be integrated to ensure that development supports transit and is oriented toward it. There should be appropriate land-use densities and a balance of municipal economic, social and environmental priorities. Cities will therefore be eligible for funding only if they have a council-approved land-use and transportation plans that favour transit as the primary means for accommodating future growth in travel demand.
4. Innovative research:
An important component of the strategy provides research to support greater transit use. Two kinds of research are needed: first, cooperative research that promotes information sharing and innovation among transit systems; second, research that identifies policy approaches all governments can use to increase ridership and to meet important economic, social and environmental priorities through increased transit use.
5. Accountability:
Given the proposed scope of the national transit strategy, it is important that all governments work together to ensure that appropriate accountability measures are in place
For more information: Massimo Bergamini, 613-907-6247 or [mbergamini@fcm.ca]