TRANSPORT ACTION ONTARIO NEWSLETTER $JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2016 Ontario Report Transport Action Ontario March 4 - St.Marys, Ontario Featured in This Issue: Op-ed analysis (Part 2): TAO launches discussion paper ➢ Greg Gormick takes a VIA’s HFR scheme: separat- on the High Performance Rail critical look at VIA’s plan for ing the wheat from the chaff option for the Ontario-Quebec the Montreal-Ottawa-Toronto by Greg Gormick rail corridor...see story on p. 4 corridor; second part of a $ Is there anything right about VIA’s two-part series (pp. 1, 2-3) high-frequency rail (HFR) proposal? It’s di%cult to say because of the way VIA has ➢ St. Catharines supports spun its scheme. expanding VIA Rail service $For more than a year, the HFR proposal (pp. 4-5) has been promoted at business luncheons and in media interviews in vague generalities. ➢ Hamilton’s LRT and Even the authors of one of three rail transit underfunding (pp. 4-5) passenger backgrounders produced for the recent Canada Transport Act Review wrote ➢ TAO proposal for that they could only present their Scarborough Express Rail interpretation of the proposal because all they presented to the City and received was a briefing from two VIA Metrolinx (pp. 7-8) managers. $What is known about the HFR proposal ...continued on PAGE 2 in 2014 and 2015. These funds FROM THE PRESIDENT TRANSPORT ACTION ONTARIO are to be split 16/15 for the - PETER MIASEK Greater Toronto and Hamilton ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Area (GTHA) and outside the SAT., APRIL 16, 2016, Metro Hall, Room 303, Ontario 2016 GTHA. 55 John St. at King, Toronto. budget - little $Within the GTHA, the ➣ new on transpor- TAO AGM 10 am-noon. funds are largely committed. ➣ Public Forum, 1:30-3:30 pm, Room 303, tation, but big There is a large defined rapid news on cap and Metro Hall, Speaker: David Ticoll (Univ. of transit program that is familiar Toronto). “How Autonomous Vehicles will trade to TAO members, including Reshape Canada.” Details on Page 8. Regional Express Rail, various $The 2016 Nominations are open for the election of Ontario Budget LRT and BRT projects, PRESTO deployment, and officers and directors. They may be sent to was tabled on the Secretary, Bruce Budd, at ongoing studies of numerous February 25, several months earlier [email protected], or by telephone at other projects. Extensions of than usual. As always, there is much of 416-690-3299. interest for sustainable transportation ...continued on PAGE 2 advocates. This Issue’s Table of Contents $ Transportation. The budget devotes considerable pages to Review: High performance rail option for Ontario discussion paper........Page 4 transportation, but there is little that is Support in St.Catharines for expanding VIA Rail service..............Pages 4 and 5 new. No new funds were announced Hamilton LRT and transit underfunding.........................................Pages 5 and 6 over and above the $31B “Moving Ottawa report.....Page 7 TAO Scarboro Express Rail Proposal...Pages 7 and 8 Ontario Forward” program announced AGM and Public Forum/contact and membership information................Pages 8 WWW.TRANSPORT-ACTION-ONTARIO.COM Advocating for sustainable public and feight transportation$PAGE 1 TRANSPORT ACTION ONTARIO NEWSLETTER $JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2016 FROM THE PRESIDENT electricity generators and institutions regulation incorporates a 245 page ...continued fom PAGE 1 that emit 25,000 tonnes of GHG per guideline for GHG reporting. Another GO rail service to Niagara and year or more, and transportation fuel regulation will be needed for o(sets. Bowmanville are promised “subject to distributors. The program would also And future amendments will be needed agreement with freight rail partners,” cover entities that import electricity to link the program with Quebec and as well as GO bus service to Brantford and fuels into Ontario. With this California. However, according to and Cambridge. There is also the broad economy-wide approach, 82% of David Suzuki, there is evidence that familiar array of highway projects, Ontario’s GHG emissions would be cap and trade can work, in that it including QEW High Occupancy Toll covered. played a key role in reducing acid rain (HOT) lanes, widening of Highways 400 and 410 and continuing extension $The program takes e(ect January 1, in the USA. It is good that the of Highway 407 East. 2017. Allowances, each representing 1 Ontario program covers most of the $Outside the GTHA, a plethora of tonne of GHG emissions, would be economy, has relatively few free highway projects are identified, as well made available for the covered sectors allowances and has an aggressive drop as LRT projects in Waterloo and through auctioning and free-of-charge in total provincial cap year-to-year. ■ Ottawa. There was nothing identified allocation. Total available allowances for intercity rail/bus other than the would drop aggressively at 4% per year VIA’s HFR scheme: separating High Speed Rail Environmental so that Ontario can meet its 2020 Assessment work. The province did the wheat from the chaff GHG reduction targets. To help consult extensively last fall and again at ...continued fom PAGE 1 pre-budget time on transportation maintain competitiveness of vulnerable has led many observers to raise needs outside the GTHA. TAO, as industries, Ontario would allocate questions about VIA’s claim that it part of the Southwest Ontario free-of-charge allowances as a would be a pathway to success, Transportation Alliance (SWOTA), transitional measure to 2020 to especially since it only addresses the made submissions related to industries like cement, steel, mining Montreal-Ottawa-Toronto portion of developing an integrated passenger rail and petrochemicals. Covered sectors the Quebec-Windsor Corridor. and bus service across the province, Comparing it with previous high-speed have the option of purchasing rail (HSR) studies, the authors of the but there appears to be no provincial allowance in the carbon market, uptake at this time. CTA Review backgrounder noted that reducing emissions or purchasing o(set $It is interesting to compare this VIA informed them “the extended provincial budget with that in 2000, a credits in non-covered sectors such as Corridor towards Quebec City and mere 16 years ago. Back then (Premier agriculture. Windsor is no longer envisaged, as the Harris era), annual provincial highway $Assuming a carbon price of market sizes do not justify the expenditures were $1.05B and transit $18/tonne, anticipated annual proceeds investment.” expenditures were $62M, for a ratio of from auction are expected to be $As well, there is the question of 17:1. In this budget, the comparable $1.9B/yr. The $18/tonne translates into the routing. As confirmed by the numbers are $2.1B and $5.4B, for a authors of the CTA Review about 4.3 cents per litre of gasoline. By backgrounder, “The dedicated route ratio of 1:2.6. A factor of 44 legislation, these proceeds must be turnaround! The encouraging trend is would be Montreal-Ottawa- Peter- invested in green initiatives such as that higher ratios of transit spending borough-Smiths Falls-Downtown has been steady for 15 years. public transportation, transportation Toronto (sic) and would use diesel $ Cap and trade program on GHG infrastructure, home and business trains operating at a 110 mph top emissions. Certainly one of the biggest energy e%ciency, clean technology and speed. New tracks would be built on new initiatives in the budget is the cap innovative funding. The legislation existing right-of-way, some tracks are and trade program. (See my column in also mandates transparency and annual already in place (AMT and GO going “Ontario Report” for November/ reporting. into Montreal and Toronto) and a small December 2015 for background.) The portion around Peterborough is an old $There is cautious optimism that CP line.” budget and the recently introduced the Ontario system will prove e(ective. draft Climate Change Mitigation and $In fact, insiders associated with the On the negative side, it is a very Low-Carbon Economy Act (Bill 172) HFR proposal say it would require the and associated regulations provide complex system. The draft cap and construction of dedicated tracks on many more details. trade regulation is 70 pages long active and abandoned CP corridors all $In summary, the cap and trade including a 35 page technical appendix. the way from Smiths Falls to the east program would cover industries, The amended GHG reporting side of Toronto. However, VIA will not confirm or deny this routing. Nor WWW.TRANSPORT-ACTION-ONTARIO.COM Advocating for sustainable public and feight transportation$PAGE 2 TRANSPORT ACTION ONTARIO NEWSLETTER $JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2016 will the corporation explain its $Large though they would be, these program of the early 1980s or the rationale for expanding the proposal major investments could convert the Renaissance misfire of recent years. into a 125-mph electrified service, Montreal-Ottawa service into an HPR $Therefore, at the very least, there which would increase its cost by at operation with reduced running times are two worthy sub-projects wrapped least $1 billion. and hourly departures from early up within the HFR proposal that could $Despite all the red flags these morning until late evening. It could be be extracted and acted on, provided issues raise, it’s not impossible to find just the kind of showcase VIA has long they passed inspection by the new positive points in any proposal that required. With the running time cut to government and independent advisers. seeks to separate passenger and freight 1:45 hours or less and frequent shuttle Taking an optimistic view, one could tra%c to the maximum extent possible. van service between Dorval and also say the HFR proposal is The underlying logic is sound, but the Trudeau International Airport, the worthwhile in a very broad sense practicality of implementing it in full route could provide much greater because it has triggered a high-profile remains a major sticking point.