(Toronto, Ontario) – Transit and environmental groups across Canada are celebrating a commitment by Liberal leadership candidate Frank Baylis to increase the Canada Public Transit Fund. Federal Liberal Party leadership candidates were surveyed about their transit commitments by Environmental Defence, TTCriders, Movement: Metro Vancouver Transit Riders, Trajectoire Québec, Activate Transit Windsor Essex, and Équiterre.
“With Canada's Paris Accord commitment to emissions reduction and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, expanding transit infrastructure is a key part of meeting climate goals,” Baylis stated in his survey response. “Improved transit networks get more people out of personal vehicles, reducing emissions but also acting favourably in reducing urban sprawl and promoting more sustainable land use.”
Leadership candidate Chyrstia Freeland did not specifically commit to increasing the Canada Public Transit Fund, but press secretary Chantalle Aubertin stated that Freeland would “build on” the federal government’s transit investments and “ensure sustained, predictable transit funding so Canadians have access to reliable, affordable, and modern public transportation.”
The Mark Carney and Karina Gould campaigns did not respond to the transit survey.
“Investing in transit means good, green Canadian jobs and more reliable commutes for the hundreds of thousands of people who rely on public transit in Toronto,” said TTCriders executive director Shelagh Pizey-Allen. “Increasing the Canada Public Transit Fund would help tackle the TTC’s repair backlog, fix subway slow zones, and help Toronto move forward with projects like the Waterfront East and Eglinton East LRTs.”
"Transit investments have unbeatable approval ratings,” said Denis Agar, Executive Director, Movement: Metro Vancouver Transit Riders. “Équiterre's survey says 81% of Canadians want the government to ramp up transit investment. Our polling shows unity between car drivers and transit users: they all want more transit. We saw candidates in the Ontario election try to one-up each other with their transit proposals, because they know the transit shortage is an urgent issue for voters. We look forward to being courted at the federal level, too."
According to modelling conducted by Dunsky Energy + Climate Advisors for Environmental Defence and Équiterre, Canada can double public transit ridership by 2035 and reduce carbon emissions by 65 million tonnes by expanding the Canada Public Transit Fund by approximately $3 billion per year with cost share requirements for provinces and municipalities.
Link to full survey and candidate responses: www.ttcriders.ca/liberal_leadership