Elections

The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area has some of the worst traffic congestion in North America. What, if anything, will you do to alleviate the gridlock?

Responses to the question: "The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area has some of the worst traffic congestion in North America. What, if anything, will you do to alleviate the gridlock?"

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21 Candidate Responses (top)

Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale
CandidateBrief ResponseFull Response
Erik Coverdale Yes The Green Party supports making transit, walking, and cycling more desirable alternatives to the use of automobiles. The Green Party also supports the idea of mobility transit hubs in Hamilton, linking the city to the GTO. Light Rail Transit in Hamilton will improve public transportation and reduce gridlock. The Green Party also supports creating communities where we can live and work reducing the need for travel.

Many of these issues are interrelated. Creating more highways leads to more urban sprawl and reliance on automobiles, creating gridlock. Improved public transportation encourages development inside of mobility hubs reducing the need for automobiles and reducing gridlock.

The Green Party will implement a sustainable transportation plan to reduce gridlock and lessen the impact of rising fuel prices:

a) Promote efficient, liveable communities where streets and roads are safe for all users
b) Reduce commuting costs by supporting transit and affordable commuter benefits including incentives for ride-sharing, more high-occupancy vehicle lanes, and tax credits for public transit users
c) Increase incentives for low-emission, fuel-efficient and electric vehicles
Glenn Langton Yes See a need. Fill a need! A Libertarian government would advocate for private industry to assess and provide creative and manageable means to eliminate the gridlock via whatever options they can come up with, for example private shipping across the lakes making use of the largest fresh water shipping lanes in the world to move goods and people, expansion of the private rail lines, more private air transport etc. The government for over 50 years has not been able been able to adequately address the need for better, newer or more well maintained infrastructure, in fact they are now calling for more money to repair the "Failing infrastructures" we already have, its time to take a different approach because "doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result is the definition of insanity".
Robert Maton Yes Develop transportation alternatives to assist industry in Toronto to move west - to Hamilton, Stoney Creek, etc. I would add lanes to highways, improve the accessibility and frequency of public transportation between Hamilton and Toronto. Further, we need to design roads and incentives to encourage more car pooling.
Ted McMeekin Yes We are the only party that can be trusted to invest in transit in order to reduce traffic congestion. Since 2003 we have invested $10.8 billion in transit in Ontario - the largest investment in 40 years.

Studies show that traffic congestion costs the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas $6 billion a year - and it could cost $15 billion a year if no one takes action. Currently we are building major transit projects that will relieve congestion in the GTHA including the Air Rail Link from Union Station to Pearson Airport. We also continue to provide dedicated gas tax funding for transit to 120 municipalities - $1.9 billion since 2003 including almost $70 million to Hamilton, and $10.8 million to Hamilton last year alone.

Going forward, Ontario Liberals will implement two-way full-day GO train service on all seven GO rail corridors, creating 68,000 jobs. For Hamilton, we will build two new GO train stations (James Street North Station in Hamilton and Centennial/Confederation Station in Stoney Creek) and will provide two-way full-day service to the James Street North station in time for the Pan Am Games in 2015. This will create 8,000 jobs in the Hamilton region. As people in Hamilton work hard to attract new types of businesses and appeal to younger families, more frequent GO train service only adds to the great quality of life in this community.

The NDP record on transit is disappointing. They have consistently voted against funding for transit, including the Air Rail Link that will connect Pearson Airport to Union Station and our budgets, which have contained transit funding for the City of Hamilton. The NDP have played politics with the PCs, voting together 183 times, against new subways, against GO expansion and against the gas tax for transit. The NDP have no long-term plan for infrastructure and have provided no details in their platform about transit expansion. In fact, by forcing municipalities to freeze transit fares, this will effectively stall any hope of building more transit in Ontario.

The PC record on funding for transit is one of neglect. While the PCs were in power, they averaged less than $450 million a year in funding province-wide: in 2000 and 2001 they contributed only $40 million to transit for the entire province and, between 1999 and 2003, they downloaded GO Transit, leaving it up to municipalities to carry the weight. Going forward, the PCs will dilute funding for transit, allowing gas tax funding to be spent on non-transit transportation projects.

Ontario Liberals have a strong record of investing in transit and is the only party that can be trusted to invest in transit going forward.
Trevor Westerhoff Yes The cost of congestion in the GTA is $5 billion annually. Ontario’s NDP recognizes that we need to provide convenient and affordable transit options to busy Ontario families by putting transit plans back on track.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be announcing more on our plans to tackle the gridlock issue.
Hamilton Centre
CandidateBrief ResponseFull Response
Andrea Horwath Yes The cost of congestion in the GTA is $5 billion annually. Ontario’s NDP recognizes that we need to provide convenient and affordable transit options to busy Ontario families by putting transit plans back on track.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be announcing more on our plans to tackle the gridlock issue.
Christopher Lawson Yes Our major highways of the 400 series can safely perform their task 20% faster. Congestion is carried out of town by these highways. Good drivers know that it is safest to drive calmly with the flow of the traffic. We all know what that speed is on our 400 series highways. The speed limit should be 120 km/hr. Good drivers should not be penalized for going 120 km/hr on these highways that were actually designed to sustain these speeds.
Michael Baldasaro Yes Promote Go and local Transit, Light Rail included.
Peter Ormond Yes The Green Party is investing large amounts of money into ride sharing, public transportation and improvements to the community to make it more accessible to walkers and cyclists. These ideas all stand behind the idea of eliminating gridlock and taking more cars off the road. The Green Party also supports the idea of Light Rail Transit in Hamilton which will improve public transportation and reduce gridlock.

This is the 21st century! We're too smart to be sitting in traffic jams of cars with only one person in each vehicle.
Robert Kuhlmann Yes Allow companies a level playing field to produce economically and environmentally viable alternatives by removing all government subsidies that create an artificially unfair advantage to some forms of transport over others. Before the days of gridlock, we had private rail lines running to Guelph, Georgetown, and Mohawk raceway just to name a few. As long as they turned a profit, they existed and flourished. Gridlock was unheard of, it's a modern phenomenon that only came about after the government began a policy of heavily subsidizing the creation of our current infrastructure. It is only once the government started using taxpayers money to underwrite the automobile by creating vast highway systems that gridlock occurred. Gridlock is a consequence of a lack of competition in the marketplace. There is only so much space one can use for roads and highways. More subsidized roads is not the answer, it'll only worsen the problem by using up more land to encourage even more gridlock. We need to create an economic environment where viable alternatives can once again flourish.
Hamilton East-Stoney Creek
CandidateBrief ResponseFull Response
Bob Green Innes Yes The easy answer to this is to boost Hamilton based employment, GO train ridership and HOV lane usage and reduce the road-rail imbalance mentioned in my previous answer. The basic problem is that gasoline is too cheap and drivers don't feel any pressure to drive less or drive smaller cars. In real terms, the price is not much different than when I got out of school in the sixties and much cheaper than when the oil embargo hit and people really had to switch to smaller cars. While the party I represent doesn't have an official position on this, I believe the answer is to resolve the basic war-supported, gas-guzzling therefore unsustainable nature of this situation rather than trying to penalize ordinary people by invasive measures such as a congestion charge or disruptive measures such as a carbon tax. A good first step might be a sprawl freeze and /or speculation tax.
Mark Cripps Yes Expand public transit to reach areas like Stoney Creek and Winona. I am a firm believer that expanded public transit is the answer to gridlock. Some people will always drive cars, but reliable, fast and efficient public transit is an important and necessary alternative.
Paul Miller Yes The cost of congestion in the GTA is $5 billion annually. Ontario’s NDP recognizes that we need to provide convenient and affordable transit options to busy Ontario families by putting transit plans back on track.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be announcing more on our plans to tackle the gridlock issue.
W. Peter Randall Yes Publicly accessible and affordable mass transit is the answer.
Hamilton Mountain
CandidateBrief ResponseFull Response
Hans Wienhold Yes Well, finally an easy question.

The idea that government should have a near total monopoly on roads (and transportation in general) is one that is rarely questioned. Yet, what it really asks is.... should we continue to place our hopes and trust in the system of road socialism? ... with it's excessive costs, it's interminable delays, its idiotic stream of regulations, prohibitions and fines... and it's decrepit product?

As regards the decrepit nature of it's product... imagine if you went to patronize an evil private company, like Wal-Mart and it were run like a government road. First of all there would be the bumps and potholes.

Then you would find that you could not enter through the front door... it would be "under construction" .... for months at a time.... over and over again.

So you would have to detour and go through the back door or something whereupon you would be imediately be greeted by a person wearing a uniform... who demands to see your papers to determine whether you have the "right," to shop there. If you complain the person in uniform will notify you that, "Shopping at Gov. Inc. Wal-Mart stores is not a right... it's a privilege." (Hmmm... didn't it kinda work that way in the old Soviet Union, where only party members were allowed to shop at certain stores?)

And then the shopping aisles will be highly regulated. If you turn down the wrong aisle (one way) ... or spend too much time at one shelf (no stopping) ... or fail to peruse the condom selection (to fight overpopulation) ... you will be fined.

If you go to the music department and choose CD's by foreign artists you will be advised that, in order to complete your purchase, you must purchase a certain percentage of music by Canadian artists, even if you can't stand their product.... (for example, I hate RUSH.)

And finally, there would be the horrific death toll. How many people die on government monopoly roads every year? Is the government ever sued?
Monique Taylor Yes The cost of congestion in the GTA is $5 billion annually. Ontario’s NDP recognizes that we need to provide convenient and affordable transit options to busy Ontario families by putting transit plans back on track.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be announcing more on our plans to tackle the gridlock issue.
Sophia Aggelonitis Yes Ontario Liberals are the only party that can be trusted to invest in transit in order to reduce traffic congestion. Since 2003 we have invested $10.8 billion in transit in Ontario - the largest investment in 40 years.

Studies show that traffic congestion costs the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas $6 billion a year - and it could cost $15 billion a year if no one takes action. Currently Ontario Liberals are building major transit projects that will relieve congestion in the GTHA including the Air Rail Link from Union Station to Pearson Airport. We also continue to provide dedicated gas tax funding for transit to 120 municipalities - $1.9 billion since 2003 including almost $70 million to Hamilton, and $10.8 million to Hamilton last year alone.

Going forward, Ontario Liberals will implement two-way full-day GO train service on all seven GO rail corridors, creating 68,000 jobs. For Hamilton, we will build two new GO train stations (James Street North Station in Hamilton and Centennial/Confederation Station in Stoney Creek) and will provide two-way full-day service to the James Street North station in time for the Pan Am Games in 2015. This will create 8,000 jobs in the Hamilton region. As people in Hamilton work hard to attract new types of businesses and appeal to younger families, more frequent GO train service only adds to the great quality of life in this community.

The NDP record on transit is disappointing. They have consistently voted against funding for transit, including the Air Rail Link that will connect Pearson Airport to Union Station and our Budgets which have contained transit funding for the City of Hamilton. The NDP have played politics with the PCs, voting together 183 times, against new subways, against GO expansion and against the gas tax for transit. The NDP have no long-term plan for infrastructure and have provided no details in their platform about transit expansion. In fact, by forcing municipalities to freeze transit fares, this will effectively stall any hope of building more transit in Ontario.

The PC record on funding for transit is one of neglect. While the PCs were in power, they averaged less than $450 million a year in funding province-wide: in 2000 and 2001 they contributed only $40 million to transit for the entire province and, between 1999 and 2003, they downloaded GO Transit, leaving it up to municipalities to carry the weight. Going forward, the PCs will dilute funding for transit, allowing gas tax funding to be spent on non-transit transportation projects.

Ontario Liberals have a strong record of investing in transit and is the only party that can be trusted to invest in transit going forward.
Tony Morris Yes The Green Party envisions an Ontario with smart and liveable communities. This means streets designed for all users and communities planned with mixed use purposes (live, work and play in the same area). To do this the Green Party will provide economic incentives for transit users, ride sharing, car pooling, and those that use active transportation (walk or bike to work). Furthermore, the Green Party will provide long term public transit funding through gas taxes. Additionally, we will reform the Planning Act to encourage denser and more compact communities reducing sprawl, which contributes significantly to the regions gridlock, lost productivity, and poor air quality.
Niagara West-Glanbrook
CandidateBrief ResponseFull Response
Anthony Marco Yes The cost of congestion in the GTA is $5 billion annually. Ontario’s NDP recognizes that we need to provide convenient and affordable transit options to busy Ontario families by putting transit plans back on track.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be announcing more on our plans to tackle the gridlock issue.
Geoff Peacock Yes More transit options may need to be put in place.
Tim Hudak Yes As an MPP from the Hamilton-Niagara Region, like any parent, I know what it is like to be stuck in gridlocked traffic when all I want to do is get home to Niagara to see my family.

When it comes to stable infrastructure spending, for the past eight years all we've seen are backtracks, flip flops and U-turns from the McGuinty Liberals. The same infrastructure projects get announced, reannounced, and sometimes re-re-announced -but never built.

This kind of uncertainty will come to an end under an Ontario PC government. We will be a partner you can trust. Unlike Dalton McGuinty, we will not try to be all things to all people or make promises we know we won't keep.

An Ontario PC government will invest $35 billion in infrastructure, with a significant portion going towards breaking gridlock and moving people and goods more quickly and efficiently.

Response Summary (top)

Brief ResponseCount% of Total
Yes21100.0%
No00.0%
Maybe00.0%

21 Candidates Have Not Responded (top)

Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale
Donna Skelly
Peter Melanson
Rick Gundermann
Hamilton Centre
Anthony Gracey
Don Sheppard
Donna Tiqui-Shebib
Robert Szajkowski
Steven Passmore
Hamilton East-Stoney Creek
Gregg Pattinson
Nancy Fiorentino
Philip Doucette
Silas Khokar
Hamilton Mountain
Brian Goodwin
Geordie Elms
Jim Enos
Trevor Pettit
Niagara West-Glanbrook
Gerry Augustine
Katie Trombetta
Marty Poos
Meredith Cross
Rob Wienhold