For Immediate Release
(Barrie, ON April 15, 2014) At our last meeting, the Large Urban Mayors’ Caucus of Ontario (LUMCO) passed a motion in support of new revenue tools that are fair and reasonable, to help end gridlock in Ontario. LUMCO agreed to make gridlock a key priority and urged the Province to recognize the transportation infrastructure crisis across the Province and allocate the necessary capital expenditures to enable the Province to keep goods, services and people moving.
Monday’s announcement from Premier Wynne is a step in the right direction and it appears that the Government is hearing our concerns. It is good to see that half of the plan is to support projects outside of the GTHA. While the needs in the GTHA are well known, there are also needs in all other major Ontario cities and the plan should address that.
“We are pleased to see the municipal gas tax funding will be respected, but we encourage the government to show specifics of funding sources for the plan,” says LUMCO Chairperson, Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman. “Part of LUMCO’s key priority on gridlock includes the need for a new Founding Deal for sustainable revenue to help address this infrastructure deficit and also address the broader sustainable funding and infrastructure issues.”
Gridlock is not just a Greater Toronto Area issue, gridlock affects all of Ontario. Whether it’s a slowdown of goods moving from Windsor to London, Kingston to Ottawa, or the GTA to Niagara, gridlock is costing Ontario jobs and is a key priority for all cities – large and small. This announcement is a promising advancement for Ontario municipalities and we look forward to hearing further details.
The Large Urban Mayors’ Caucus of Ontario represents 67% of Ontario’s population. Currently there are 26 Big City Mayors with populations of over 100,000 residents. Mayor Jeff Lehman is Chair of the Large Urban Mayors’ Caucus of Ontario.
Contact:
Mayor Jeff Lehman
City of Barrie
70 Collier Street, P. O. Box 400
Barrie, Ontario L4M 4T5
Phone: (705) 739-4220
Fax: 705) 739-4265