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The Big Move: Transforming Transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area Modelling and Measuring Against the Triple Bottom Line

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The Big Move: Transforming Transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area Modelling and Measuring Against the Triple Bottom Line The Big Move: Transforming Transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area Modelling and measuring against the triple bottom line Lisa Salsberg, Manager, Transportation Policy and Planning, Metrolinx Abril Novoa-Camino, Intern Policy and Planning, Metrolinx Paper prepared for Best Practices in Urban Transportation Planning: Measuring Change Session 2009 Annual Conference of the Transportation Association of Canada Vancouver, British Columbia October 2009 Acknowledgements: Metrolinx wishes to acknowledge the invaluable contribution of IBI Group in the preparation of the modelling work in support of the Big Move and of in the drafting of the modelling sections of this paper. Abstract: In November 2008, Metrolinx - the transportation authority for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area - released its 25-year regional transportation plan: The Big Move. The Big Move adopts the “triple bottom line” of a high quality of life, a protected environment and a prosperous economy as its foundational basis. The triple bottom line is used to inform the development and measurement of a comprehensive vision, goals and objectives for the regional transportation system, and to model and analyse system performance and implementation options. This paper describes the process followed by Metrolinx to develop the goals and objectives for the regional transportation plan and the metrics that will be used to measure its implementation. The paper provides an in depth overview of the technical modelling and system performance analysis undertaken to support the development of the plan. The paper describes the way in which an iterative process of stakeholder input and technical analysis were used together to select a recommended regional rapid transit network. Finally, the paper provides an overview of the Benefits Case Analysis that Metrolinx is using to select and prioritize project implementation options based on the triple bottom line. 2 1.0 Introduction Metrolinx is the regional transportation authority for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA). Metrolinx was established in 2006 as an agency of the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario. It is governed by a board of directors appointed by the provincial government. This technical paper discusses the development process for the regional transportation plan (RTP) for the GTHA and the way in which transportation modeling and transportation system performance measures based on a “triple bottom line” were used in the development of the plan and in further planning work to implement the plan. This paper outlines how system performance measures for quality of life, the environment and the economy were developed based on the vision, goals and objectives of the plan, and how they were used to select the rapid transit network and policies and programs in the plan. The paper also describes the subsequent Benefits Case Analysis (BCA) that will determine project implementation and prioritization. Finally, this paper presents current early work by Metrolinx to develop metrics for the future evaluation of the impact of implementing the RTP, to serve as a baseline for comparison in the years to come. 2.0 Context The GTHA, located in southern Ontario, is Canada’s largest urban region. It is also one of Canada’s fastest growing urban regions. It has an approximate area of 8,242 km2 and a current population of over six million people. The region comprises two single-tier municipalities (Hamilton and Toronto) and four regional municipalities (Durham, Halton, Peel and York), along with their 24 lower-tier municipalities (see Figure 1). The cities of Toronto and, to a lesser extent, of Hamilton are urban, built-up areas with high degrees of residential and employment density. The regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel and York have suburban municipalities in the areas surrounding Toronto and rural municipalities towards the edges of their political boundaries. The GTHA is currently served by a network of regional corridors that was mostly developed several decades ago. Regional rapid transit – transit service that connects component parts of the GTHA – is comprised of the GO commuter rail network and the Toronto subway system, with a historical emphasis on serving Downtown Toronto. (See Figure 2). The GTHA’s region-wide mode shares are as follows: • auto 75% • transit 16% • walk and cycle 9%. 3 2.1 GTHA Challenges The GTHA will continue to be one of Canada’s fastest growing areas in the coming decades. By 2031, the population of the GTHA is estimated to grow from 6 to 8.6 million people and from 2.95 to 4.33 million jobsi. Clearly, this growth will require a massive increase in transportation infrastructure; the issue is what form this infrastructure should take. Outside the City of Toronto proper, the GTHA has become increasingly dependent on private automobiles for mobility. The number of car trips on the GTHA’s roads is increasing at a faster rate than that of the population: between 1986 and 2006 the number of trips made by automobile in the GTHA grew 56 per cent compared to a population increase of 45 per cent. According to a study commissioned by Metrolinx on the economic costs of congestion in the GTHA, in 2006 the annual cost of congestion to commuters was $3.3 billion and the annual cost to the economy was $2.7 billion. It is estimated that if no further large investments are made to the transportation infrastructure, the cost of congestion would increase to approximately $15 billion per year by 2031. Dependence on cars is in part a result of how new communities have been built in the GTHA over the past few decades. Lower density, dispersed development – both residential and employment – has resulted in a pattern of travel that is less and less focused on downtowns and other core urban areas, and hence more difficult to serve by transit. The province’s new Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (Growth Plan), adopted in 2006, begins to address this challenge by setting a policy framework and intensification targets that effectively mandate the development of mixed-use, transit-supportive, cycling- and pedestrian-friendly communities. The Growth Plan works hand in hand with the province’s Greenbelt Plan which protects a 1.8 million acre Greenbelt of agricultural and rural areas around the GTHA. The GTHA’s public transit system is currently comprised of nine separately-governed local transit agencies and one regional transit provider – GO Transit which operates the commuter rail system. This patchwork of systems is poorly integrated, making travel across boundaries by public transit an inconvenient, frustrating, unattractive and costly option for many travellers. Given that one out of every four trips in the GTHA crosses a regional boundary, these arrangements need to change if transit is to attract a larger share of trips. Like other city-regions around the world, the GTHA must also prepare to deal with a number of global challenges such as climate change, increased energy costs and peak oil, fast-paced urbanization, the shifting global economy, and an aging population. Transforming how we travel around the GTHA is crucial to addressing climate change, achieving the greenhouse gas emission (GHG) reductions, reducing reliance on oil, and shaping a more sustainable urban structure that protects natural and agricultural lands. 4 3.0 Developing the Regional Transportation Plan The RTP development process was original in its combination of wide-ranging technical analysis and extensive public and stakeholder consultation. As shown in Figure 3, several milestones preceding the release of the final plan. Seven Green Papers - i.e. discussion papers - were developed on a wide range of transportation topics related to: • Passenger transportation (Active Transportation, Transportation Demand Management, Highways and Roads, and Transit); • Goods movement (Moving Goods and Delivering Services); and • Land use-transportation connections (Mobility Hubs). Each discussion paper outlined the importance of the topic to transportation, presented an environmental scan of key related issues in the GTHA, reviewed international best practices, identified key needs and opportunities, and proposed a wide range of potential initiatives that could form part of the RTP. Based on the comments received on the Green Papers, Metrolinx developed 2 White Papers. The first provided preliminary policy and program directions for the RTP, and test concepts for the regional rapid transit and highway network. The second paper outlined proposed vision, goals and objectives of the RTP, as well as 120 potential indicators to measure progress towards the goals and objectives. Metrolinx adopted an innovative approach to consultation, using a specialized software package which allowed members of the public and stakeholders to comment on specific aspects of each report through an interactive website. This approach facilitated more meaningful and detailed feedback. Feedback was also solicited at each step from a number of specially created advisory bodies including a Technical Advisory Group (TAG), comprised of municipal and provincial stakeholders, the Advisory Committee (AC), comprised of a diverse group of community leaders, and the Multi-Disciplinary Expert Review Panel (MERP), composed of independent experts in the fields of transportation, planning, engineering, and finance. 3.1 The Big Move The consultation and analysis processes for the RTP culminated in the adoption of the Big Move by the Metrolinx Board of Directors
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