Construction alliance agrees with Mayor Tory: it's #TimeToBuild

VAUGHAN, ON, Nov. 24, 2016 /CNW/ - The Residential and Civil Construction Alliance of Ontario (RCCAO) applauds the road toll initiatives announced by Toronto Mayor John Tory today as one step in the right direction to address the city's congestion.

With 100,000 people moving to the GTHA every year, congestion costs the regional economy $11 billion every year, according to a 2013 study by the C.D. Howe Institute. And other factors, such as the introduction of automated vehicles circa 2020, are set to make congestion even worse. (See transportation consultant Bern Grush's report for more.)

Mayor Tory's $2 toll to take Toronto's Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway is expected to raise about $200 million per year.

RCCAO executive director Andy Manahan says Mayor Tory's move is a good one, but more can be done: "The city could hire an engineering firm to look at the possibility of widening the Don Valley Parkway to add a toll lane and expand vehicle capacity."

In 2013, RCCAO commissioned an independent research report by Prof. Baher Abdulhai of the University of Toronto called "Congestion Management in the GTHA: Balancing the Inverted Pendulum." The premise of his report was that road space is a limited resource and if you don't price it properly, it will be overused.

WHAT IS RCCAO?

This labour-management construction alliance has advocated for infrastructure investment for 11 years, commissioning 40 independent, solutions-based reports to help inform decision-makers.

SOURCE Residential and Civil Construction Alliance of Ontario

To interview Mr. Manahan, contact: Aonghus Kealy, Director of Communications, RCCAO, W: 905-760-7777, x. 111 / C: 647-530-4855, Email: [email protected]