After a long summer break, members of the Provincial government were back in Toronto this week, and the Ford government didn't waste any time.
Getting to work right away, the Ontario government tabled Bill 212, called Reducing Gridlock, as it aims to ease gridlock, allow 24-hour-a-day construction, accelerate property acquisitions, require Ontario government permission around bike lanes and exempting the planned Highway 413 project from environmental assessments.
“Reducing gridlock, for example, is going to help save drivers up to $72 million across Ontario,” said Perth-Wellington MPP Matthew Rae. “The Ontario government is also looking at consulting with municipal partners around the issue of potholes, and how to ease some of the costs around road repairs.”
On Friday, Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said in a press release, “I’m glad the Premier is waking up to the reality that we need to end gridlock solutions today, not in 20 years.”
The press release continued to say “Selling off Highway 407 was one of the worst deals in Ontario’s history. The Ford government can start repairing the damage by subsidizing tolls for trucks on the 407, which would free up space for cars on the 401 at a fraction of what it would cost to build any new highway-a solution the Ontario Greens were the first party to call for.”
Reducing the gridlock is a key focus for the Ontario government.
“We have the highest commute times in North America,” said Rae. “The 401 commute times are worse than outside of Los Angeles, which has almost double the population of Toronto, so we are really focusing on reducing those commute times for drivers.”
Building roads and bridges in a safe and quick manner is also a priority for the provincial Conservatives.
“Construction, no matter what, is a headache for everyone,” said Rae. “In Stratford alone, we have been doing lots of investment, and it is important to ensure we invest in roads to get them to current safety standards, and ensure the roadways are in good condition so we can keep people and goods moving.”
Allowing construction companies to work 24 hours a day is an aspect leading to shorter timelines, something already being seen in Toronto.
“The big example we are providing is the Gardiner Expressway,” said Rae. “The Ontario government provided $70 million to the city of Toronto to do the project 24/7 and now they are ahead of schedule on that redevelopment.”
When Rae was asked about the feedback from unions, and workers who would be asked to work around the clock, he said the support is already there.
“LIUNA (Laborers International Union of North America) is very supportive of our government,and our ambitious plan to build Ontario,” said Rae. “Specifics on each project would be negotiated during the request for proposal (RFP) process. My understanding would be that workers would be getting paid time and a half if they are working the evening shift, but that would be decided during the RFP process.”
