Ontario road costs

The provincial Liberals still say they need more tax money for public transit. That’s despite a new study released Thursday which says drivers already pay more than it costs to operate the road network. Lisa Hepfner has the details.

This was a study commissioned by the Canadian Automobile Association and carried out by the Conference Board of Canada.

It says that, overall across the province, Ontario drivers in light vehicles such as cars, minivans, suvs, and pickup trucks pay $7.5 billion a year in things like fuel taxes, vehicle registration fees and tolls. That is as much as 90% of the cost of maintaining roads. Specifically in the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area, we pay more than the cost.
The Premier has said the province will charge new fees to bring in $2 billion a year to upgrade public transit in the Toronto-Hamilton corridor. But since the release of the report Thursday, opposition members say she should find that money in her own budget.

Teresa Di Felice is with CAA South Central Ontario: “If you’re just looking at the fees from the GTHA there’s more that is being paid out by motorists, vs when you avg it out across the province. when you take a bulk figure across the province, motorists are paying 70-90 per cent of the costs of maintaining roads; like winter maintenance, police, paving, those things. one thing caa has advocated for, when you look at the revenues that come from motorists, they should be put into a dedicated account that would continue to fund transportation infrastructure and so you have a solid footing, then if you need more, at least there’s an understanding of where it’s going and the source it’s coming from can understand the benefit of it.”

Doug Holyday is a PC MPP: “Instead of trying to prioritize your spending, find efficiencies, trying to do it without raising taxes, trying to find two billion out of 128 billion dollar budgets. We’re just going to jack taxes. That’s always the Liberal answer. It’s always wrong.”

The CAA says the province hasn’t been keeping up with road infrastructure, given our burgeoning population and long commute times. The Transportation Minister responded to the study Thursday. Glen Murray says new fees are still needed to pay for public transit, so that there is a cheaper alternative to driving. The main thing this study does is dispel the notion that roads are subsidized by the general taxpayer. Drivers do pave their own way.