Ontario Line: Engagement Summary Report
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Ontario Line: Engagement Summary Report April 2020 Prepared By: AECOM 55 Wyndham St. N, #15 Guelph, ON N1H 7T8 www.aecom.com Ontario Line: Engagement Summary Report April 2020 Statement of Qualifications and Limitations The attached Report (the “Report”) has been prepared by AECOM Canada Ltd. (“AECOM”) for the benefit of the Client (“Client”) in accordance with the agreement between AECOM and Client, including the scope of work detailed therein (the “Agreement”). The information, data, recommendations and conclusions contained in the Report (collectively, the “Information”): • is subject to the scope, schedule, and other constraints and limitations in the Agreement and the qualifications contained in the Report (the “Limitations”); • represents AECOM’s professional judgement in light of the Limitations and industry standards for the preparation of similar reports; • may be based on information provided to AECOM which has not been independently verified; • has not been updated since the date of issuance of the Report and its accuracy is limited to the time period and circumstances in which it was collected, processed, made or issued; • must be read as a whole and sections thereof should not be read out of such context; • was prepared for the specific purposes described in the Report and the Agreement; and • in the case of subsurface, environmental or geotechnical conditions, may be based on limited testing and on the assumption that such conditions are uniform and not variable either geographically or over time. AECOM shall be entitled to rely upon the accuracy and completeness of information that was provided to it and has no obligation to update such information. AECOM accepts no responsibility for any events or circumstances that may have occurred since the date on which the Report was prepared and, in the case of subsurface, environmental or geotechnical conditions, is not responsible for any variability in such conditions, geographically or over time. AECOM agrees that the Report represents its professional judgement as described above and that the Information has been prepared for the specific purpose and use described in the Report and the Agreement, but AECOM makes no other representations, or any guarantees or warranties whatsoever, whether express or implied, with respect to the Report, the Information or any part thereof. Without in any way limiting the generality of the foregoing, any estimates or opinions regarding probable construction costs or construction schedule provided by AECOM represent AECOM’s professional judgement in light of its experience and the knowledge and information available to it at the time of preparation. Since AECOM has no control over market or economic conditions, prices for construction labour, equipment or materials or bidding procedures, AECOM, its directors, officers and employees are not able to, nor do they, make any representations, warranties or guarantees whatsoever, whether express or implied, with respect to such estimates or opinions, or their variance from actual construction costs or schedules, and accept no responsibility for any loss or damage arising therefrom or in any way related thereto. Persons relying on such estimates or opinions do so at their own risk. Except (1) as agreed to in writing by AECOM and Client; (2) as required by-law; or (3) to the extent used by governmental reviewing agencies for the purpose of obtaining permits or approvals, the Report and the Information may be used and relied upon only by Metrolinx AECOM accepts no responsibility, and denies any liability whatsoever, to parties other than Metrolinx who may obtain access to the Report or the Information for any injury, loss or damage suffered by such parties arising from their use of, reliance upon, or decisions or actions based on the Report or any of the Information (“improper use of the Report”), except to the extent those parties have obtained the prior written consent of AECOM to use and rely upon the Report and the Information. Any injury, loss or damages arising from improper use of the Report shall be borne by the party making such use. This Statement of Qualifications and Limitations is attached to and forms part of the Report and any use of the Report is subject to the terms hereof. AECOM: 2015-04-13 © 2009-2015 AECOM Canada Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Contents 1 Introduction 9 1.1 Background 10 1.2 Purpose of Report 10 2 Communication and Engagement Process Overview 11 2.1 Communication and Engagement Process 12 2.1.1 Communication and Engagement Goals 13 2.2 Communication and Promotional Tactics 13 2.2.1 Ontario Line Webpage 14 2.2.2 Project Distribution List 14 2.2.3 Postcard Mailouts 15 2.2.4 Print and Digital Advertisements and News Features – Newspapers, TTC Screens and Metrolinx Blog 15 2.2.5 Online Advertising (Social Media) 16 2.3 Community Engagement 17 2.3.2 Engagement Questions 20 3 Summary of Participant Feedback 22 3.1 Introduction 23 3.2 What is most important to you about this Project? 23 3.2.1 Budget, Procurement and Timeline 23 3.2.2 Community Impacts 24 3.2.3 Environmental Impacts 26 3.2.4 Technology 27 3.2.5 Alignment 27 vi 3.3 What would you like to hear more about? 28 3.3.1 Budget, Timeline and Procurement 28 3.3.2 Community Impacts 30 3.3.3 Environmental Impacts 32 3.3.4 Technology and Design 33 3.3.5 Alignment 34 3.4 How would you like to hear from us going forward? 35 3.5 Is there anything we missed? Additional thoughts or concerns? 36 3.5.1 Budget, Timeline and Procurement 36 3.5.2 Engagement Process 37 3.5.3 Environmental and Community Impacts 38 3.5.4 Technology and Design 39 3.5.5 Alignment 40 3.5.6 Political Influence/ Government Involvement 41 4 Next Steps 42 4.1 Next Steps 43 Appendices Appendix A. Project Webpage Appendix B. Postcard Appendix C. Print and Digital Advertisements and News Features Appendix D. Social Media Appendix E. Public Meeting Materials vii Appendix F. Public Feedback Forms Appendix G. Public Feedback Table viii 1 Introduction 9 1.1 Background As we prepare for population increases in Toronto and across the Greater Golden Horseshoe, Metrolinx is building vital, fast, reliable transit solutions to serve everyone across the region. The proposed Ontario Line will bring approximately 15.5 kilometres of much-needed subway service to Toronto to make it faster and easier for hundreds of thousands of people to get where they need to be each day. Plans for the Ontario Line propose 15 stations, 17 connections to other transit options, 389,000 daily boardings, service as frequent as every 90 seconds, and 154,000 more people with walking-distance access to transit. To inform planning for the Ontario Line, Metrolinx communicated broadly about plans and held a series of information sessions in January and February 2020. Results gathered from these communications and sessions are summarized in this report and will inform project planning. Additional phases of engagement are planned to take place in 2020. 1.2 Purpose of Report This report summarizes the communication and engagement activities, as well as the feedback received from stakeholders and members of the public as a result of these activities, during the first phase of engagement for the Ontario Line. This report combines the comments received at information sessions, through online engagement via Metrolinx Engage, and through direct email correspondence. All public input will be considered by the Project Team and form part of the public record. 10 2 Communication and Engagement Process Overview 11 2.1 Communication and Engagement Process The first phase of communication and engagement focused on: • Who is Metrolinx? • What is the Ontario Line? • What’s happened so far? Key milestones • What we heard and what we’re doing about it • What’s next? • Ontario Line benefits • Travel time savings • Technology and capacity • Technology and infrastructure • Less crowding on your commute • Improved access • Above-ground alignment benefits • What’s happening now? • Existing conditions – studies underway • Noise and vibration • Cultural heritage • Natural environment • Maintenance and storage facility • Public-Private Partnership (P3) procurement • How can you stay involved and updated? • Share your feedback In-person and online communication and engagement tactics included: • Newspaper advertising and postcard mailouts to inform members of the public about information sessions and the Ontario Line webpage; 12 • TTC station digital screens; • An English and French Ontario Line webpage (Appendix A) to provide information about the Project, including invitations to online and in-person engagement opportunities, and links to related Project materials and studies; • A social media strategy, including posts and paid advertisements on Facebook and Twitter to reach a broader audience leading up to and during the information sessions; • Online engagement through Metrolinx Engage including a ‘submit a question’ feature, input opportunities on main topics and an online feedback form; • Take-home materials including a Noise and Vibration Information Sheet and high-level “tent” (foldable) information cards to provide a brief overview of the Ontario Line, with links to the Project webpage where people could go to receive more information; and • Information sessions held in five locations within Toronto, allowing community members to discuss the Ontario Line, provide input and ask questions directly to the Project Team. To create an inclusive public participation process, in-person engagement was mirrored online through the Ontario Line webpage. 2.1.1 Communication and Engagement Goals The following engagement activities allowed the Project Team to: • Introduce themselves and provide background information; • Introduce the study process and current design and environmental studies underway for the Ontario Line (e.g., alignment and station locations); • Engage with interested members of the public and stakeholders, including one-on-one discussions; and • Gather feedback related to key engagement questions to help inform the decision-making process.