Cities rally to call for ‘new deal’ on public transport funding

Cities across Canada are calling on the federal government to develop a new and more sustainable cost-sharing model for public transit as they struggle to maintain quality service.

Public transit agencies across the country are in dire financial straits, with major cities facing deficits exceeding $100 million.

They met in Ottawa on Monday at a transit summit hosted by Environment Canada, where they shared similar stories of falling transit revenues, a growing reliance on discount passes and overcrowding.

“We are doing our part. They need to do their part,” said Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West, who also chairs the TransLink Council of Mayors in Metro Vancouver. “They need to stop viewing transit as an act of charity.”

In addition to the lingering effects of the pandemic, agencies are feeling pressure from declining gas tax revenue and pressure from cities to use limited property tax funds elsewhere, West said.

Record growth driven by federal immigration policies is adding to the pressure, he added.

Federal government holds on to operating funds

West said the federal government needs to “step up” and acknowledge that its decisions have brought transit agencies to a “tipping point.”

The joint declaration, signed by four cities and more than a dozen transit groups, demands:

• Accelerated deployment of a $30 billion federal capital projects fund.
• New agreement from all levels of government on how to finance operations.
• Legislation is in place to protect long-term funding sustainability.

Peter Fragiskatos MP, parliamentary secretary to the Minister for Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, spent much of his time at the summit highlighting the massive post-election capital funding project.

“We want to use the funding for capital expenditures. Without that, nothing will happen,” he told CBC.

He said the federal government created the fund as a result of propaganda and now provinces should be wary.

“Operating dollars are what the provinces are responsible for,” he stressed.

Transit fits liberal priorities, says mayor

The assembled mayors, transit agencies and civil rights advocates acknowledged the message is not new, but noted that this is the approach.

“We’re all united and saying the same thing, and we need to get the federal government to pay attention,” said Nate Wallace, clean transportation program manager at Environmental Defense.

With a federal election on the horizon, Wallace said it would be hard for any party to ignore.

“The fight for transit is a fight for our lives,” he said. “We need to think about transit as an important public service.”

Attendees expressed similar sentiments, arguing that transit helps the economy by providing better opportunities for low-income Canadians and helps reduce congestion on city streets.

“A lot of the things that federal policymakers say they care about—housing, climate, affordability—are all supported by having a properly functioning transit system,” West argues.

“I don’t know how you can say you genuinely care about these things and want to see them progress, but when it comes to transit, say, ‘Oh no, that’s not our job.’

MP Taylor Bachrach, the NDP’s transport critic, told summit attendees his party supports the call for a new deal. There was no speech from a Conservative MP at the summit.

Agencies try to remain hopeful

The continued lack of operational support from the federal government is frustrating, said John DiNino, national president of the United Transit Union.

“Each municipality and each transportation agency is handling its own crisis. This is not a new phenomenon. This is not a specific phenomenon. This is something that is rampant throughout our country,” he told CBC. “It feels like our voices aren’t being heard.”

Although the declaration was signed in Ottawa, the name of the capital was not printed at the bottom.

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe, who has been leading his own campaign for more transit funding from both the federal and provincial governments, was unable to attend.

Graph. Glen Gower, who chairs the city’s transit commission and replaced Sutcliffe at the summit, called the funding issue a “structural” problem that needs to be addressed.

“This is the responsibility of all levels of government—municipal, provincial and federal,” he said.

Gower remains hopeful the funding will come through, saying the mayor has already had “really productive and positive conversations” with his colleagues at higher levels of government.