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![]() The GTHA consists of (left to right; west to east): the City of Hamilton, Halton region, Peel region, City of Toronto and York region, Durham region. | |
Created | 26 September 2008 |
Ratified | 28 November 2008 |
Author(s) | Metrolinx |
Purpose | Regional transportation plan |
The Big Move is the regional transportation plan (RTP) published by Metrolinx for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) in Ontario, Canada. It makes specific recommendations for transit projects, resulting from seven "green papers" and two "white papers" released for public discussion. A draft RTP was released alongside draft investment strategy in September 2008. After a series of stakeholder consultations and public meetings, the final RTP was approved and published by Metrolinx on 28 November 2008.
Since its publication, it has been Metrolinx's mandate to implement the RTP, which includes new and improved GO Transit service, local rapid transit, stations, and fare payment systems.
There was widespread consensus by community and business leaders in the GTHA that incremental change of the region's transportation system was insufficient, and that it needed a dramatic transformation to meet the needs of the 21st century. The regional transportation system needed to be effective, integrated, multi-modal, and funded in a sustainable way. In response to these concerns, the Government of Ontario created the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority in 2006, which became known as Metrolinx in December 2007. [1] Metrolinx was given the mandate to develop and implement an integrated multi-modal transportation plan for the GTHA, and "The Big Move" plan was one of Metrolinx's first deliverables. [1] It builds on the $11.5 billion MoveOntario 2020 commitment from the Government of Ontario announced on 15 June 2007, and includes new projects to support that initiative. [2] [3] [4]
An initial stage of the RTP process was to release a series of "green papers", documents covering key issues for the RTP. These green papers were developed and consulted upon in late 2007 and early 2008, with the purpose of presenting information on transportation trends, challenges and opportunities for the GTHA: [1]
The next stage was the release of two white papers in May 2008. Paper 1 – Visions, Goals, and Objectives, presented the basis for the final RTP, with specific goals and objectives that could be used for its development and evaluation. A broader proposed vision for the entire system was also presented. Paper 2 – Preliminary Directions and Concepts, looked at various policies, programs and tools that could be used in the RTP. There were also various transportation system concepts that were modelled and evaluated based on resulting transit ridership, urban congestion, and the emission of greenhouse gas and other air pollutants. [1]
A draft version of the Regional Transportation Plan was provided to Metrolinx on 26 September 2008. A final version was approved on 28 November 2008. [3]
Forecast impact of the Big Move [5] | |||
---|---|---|---|
2008 | 2031 | ||
Without RTP | With RTP | ||
Population | 6 million | 8.6 million | |
Automobile driving distance* | 26 km | 25 km | 19 km |
Rapid transit system length | 500 km | 525 km | 1,725 km |
Total transit trips annually | 546,000,000 | 798,000,000 | 1,270,000,000 |
Daily trips during morning rush hour | 467,000 | 682,000 | 1,100,000 |
% rush hour trips taken using transit | 16.5% | 16.4% | 26.3% |
% rush hour trips taken walking or cycling | 9.0% | 9.0% | 12.5% |
% population within 2 km of transit | 42% | 47% | 81% |
Commuting time* | 82 min | 109 min | 77 min |
Transportation greenhouse gas emissions* | 2.4 t | 2.2 t | 1.7 t |
Transportation energy consumption* | 26.4 GJ | 24.9 GJ | 19.1 GJ |
*Average per person |
The GTHA is Canada's largest and fastest growing urban region, with a population forecast to grow by 2.6 million people by 2031. [6] The region is becoming increasingly dependent and designed for automobiles, and traffic congestion is already costing commuters and the economy billions of dollars every year. Nine individual local transit agencies and one regional transit agency exist, and are poorly integrated when one out of four trips crosses a regional boundary, making transit unattractive. [7] Investment in transit has been relatively stagnant, causing roads, highways and transit vehicles to be crowded and pushed to the limit. [8] In the face of climate change, increasing energy costs, increasing urbanization, and an aging population, the RTP exists to alleviate these problems.
The Big Move conducted modelling to forecast what the impact of its implementation would be in the year 2031. The proposed regional rapid transit and highway network was expected to achieve significant benefits, even with the additional population. These benefits included reduced commuting times, increased active transportation and reduced environmental impacts. [5]
The region's transportation infrastructure has been characterized as neglected from under-investment. The core of the RTP is building a seamlessly integrated regional rapid transit network consisting of 62 different rapid transit projects. These projects form two long-term templates with 15 and 25-year horizons. These templates outline broad projects; specific details about technology, alignment, stations and service levels for each project are subsequently determined though a cost–benefit analysis, or an environmental assessment process. [9] [10]
Having high-order transit connectivity to Toronto Pearson International Airport is the second priority action in the Big Move. The RTP identifies the following transit corridors, some of which are now in planning or construction: [11]
With Pearson Airport and Union Station in downtown Toronto being seen as the two most important mobility hubs in the GTHA, the RTP specifically identified an airport rail link as being necessary between them. Discussions and studies regarding a transit link to the airport had been ongoing since the 1980s. Transport Canada began formal calls for proposals in 2001, and a contract was awarded in 2003. [12] The public-private partnership was called off in 2010 after failed negotiations, and Metrolinx was handed responsibility for the project. [13] [14] The Union Pearson Express was completed and began operations on 6 June 2015, offering a 25-minute journey that departs every 15 minutes. [15]
Union Station is Canada's busiest passenger facility and "the heart of the GTHA's transportation system", handling 240,000 people daily, or 65 million annually. [16] However, it was forecast in 2011 that passenger traffic was expected to quadruple in the following 25 years as a result of improvements that are called for in the Big Move plan, and Union Station would be at or over capacity without dramatic modifications. [16] [17] Furthermore, being a National Historic Site that was built and opened in 1927, the station had been showing its age: peeling paint, cracked and damaged floors, leaky roofs, and crowded and inefficient passenger concourse spaces that were designed in the 1970s. [18] [19]
The current work being undertaken includes excavation work to dramatically expand the existing GO and Via Rail concourses and create a floor dedicated to retail space, establishing new connections to the PATH network, increasing the number of entrances, implementing energy efficiency measures and restoring heritage elements. [19] Future work could include a new train tunnel for the GO Transit Lakeshore lines, with a new station being built slightly east of Union. [17]
There are 10 public transit agencies in the GTHA with individual fare systems. This forced some commuters to have multiple fare payment types. The Ontario Ministry of Transportation began trials for Presto, a regional fare card, in 2007. Presto was later made an operating division of Metrolinx. Presto is available on GO Transit, the Union Pearson Express, and eight municipal transit agencies in the GTHA (Brampton, Burlington, Durham Region, Hamilton, Mississauga, Oakville, TTC and York Region). [20] Fares are often cheaper than standard cash fare, and most municipal transit agencies will reduce their fare to between $0.50 and $0.75 for transferring to GO Transit. [21]
There are 10 unique fare structures across the GTHA. Metrolinx is also working towards establishing one single fare policy across the region, with the objectives to create one fare structure that is simple and easy to understand, and reflective of the distance travelled and the quality of service. Metrolinx is evaluating fare structures that include a flat fare, or differentiations by mode distance or zones. [22] [23]
A transportation mobility hub is a major transit station and the immediate surrounding area, where different forms of transportation come together, serving as the origin, destination or transfer point for a significant amount of trips. The Big Move calls for "a system of connected mobility hubs” that allow seamless access to and transfers within the regional transit system. The mobility hubs also support higher density development. [24]
Metrolinx has profiled 51 mobility hubs in the GTHA, collecting data within an 800-metre radius of each of them. In some hubs, Metrolinx undertakes detailed studies. For some hubs, these studies provide a broad plan for how the mobility hub should look and work over the long term, by informing more detailed planning, supporting future growth, and ensuring land use and transportation plans are well integrated. In other hubs, these studies address specific station issues in the short and medium term. [25]
The Big Move was to be accompanied by an investment strategy, to ensure that capital costs for the GTHA's regional transportation system were funded in a sustainable way. [1] This would require the generation of $50 billion for all of the identified projects, which equated to $2 billion annually for 25 years. While the RTP outlined the preliminary requirements, an Investment Strategy would be crafted in more detail in separate cover. [26] Metrolinx was given until June 2013 to draft such a strategy. [27]
On 27 May 2013, Metrolinx released its Investment Strategy, which would use the following tools to generate $2 billion annually for RTP projects: [28] [29]
On 18 September 2013, the Government of Ontario under Premier Kathleen Wynne announced a panel to review the Investment Strategy, to "listen to different concerns and views and to assess them." [30] The panel recommended two variant options of Metrolinx's Investment Strategy recommendations, which relied less on a Harmonized Sales Tax increase, and more on a gas tax increase. [31] In March 2014, Wynne rejected the proposal to raise taxes to fund the RTP outright, in the lead-up to the 2014 Ontario general election. [32]
A formal Investment Strategy has not been implemented to date, and the Ontario government has opted to raise funds for transportation project through its green bond program and the partial sale of Hydro One. [33] [34]
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest of the urban transit service providers in the Greater Toronto Area, with numerous connections to systems serving its surrounding municipalities.
GO Transit is a regional public transit system serving the Greater Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario, Canada. With its hub at Union Station in Toronto, GO Transit's green-and-white trains and buses serve a population of more than seven million across an area over 11,000 square kilometres (4,200 sq mi) stretching from Kitchener in the west to Peterborough in the east, and from Barrie in the north to Niagara Falls in the south. In 2022, the system had a ridership of 35,234,400. GO Transit operates diesel-powered double-decker trains and coach buses, on routes that connect with all local and some long-distance inter-city transit services in its service area.
Lakeshore West is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Union Station in Toronto to Hamilton, along the shore of Lake Ontario. Some train trips extend past Hamilton to St. Catharines and Niagara Falls.
Milton is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Union Station in Toronto to Milton, by way of Mississauga.
Kitchener is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends westward from Union Station in Toronto to Kitchener, though most trains originate and terminate in Brampton in off-peak hours.
MiWay, also known as Mississauga Transit and originally as Mississauga Transit Systems, is the municipal public transport agency serving Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, and is responsible to the city's Transportation and Works Department. MiWay services consist of two types of bus routes: MiLocal, local buses that make frequent stops, and MiExpress, express buses between major destinations. MiWay is the primary operator along the Mississauga Transitway, a dedicated east–west bus-only roadway.
Fares to use the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) transit system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, can be paid with various media. The price of fares varies according to age, occupation, income level, and health condition of riders.
The Union Pearson Express is an airport rail link connecting Union Station in Downtown Toronto to Toronto Pearson International Airport. The UP Express began operation on 6 June 2015, in time for the 2015 Pan American Games. The UP Express travels between Union and Pearson in 25 minutes departing every 15 minutes, seven days a week. At the launch announcement, it was stated that the UP Express was projected to carry 2.35 million passengers annually and eliminate approximately 1.2 million car trips in the first year. As of 2019, it carried 4.5 million passengers annually.
The Presto card is a contactless smart card automated fare collection system used on participating public transit systems in the province of Ontario, Canada, specifically in Greater Toronto, Hamilton, and Ottawa. Presto card readers were implemented on a trial basis from 25 June 2007 to 30 September 2008. Full implementation began in November 2009 and it was rolled out across rapid transit stations, railway stations, bus stops and terminals, and transit vehicles on eleven different transit systems.
Metrolinx is a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario that manages and integrates road and public transport in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA), which comprises much of Ontario's Golden Horseshoe region. Headquartered at Union Station in Toronto, the agency was created as the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority on June 22, 2006. The agency adopted its present name as a brand name in 2007 and eventually as the legal name in 2009.
Transit City was a plan for developing public transport in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was first proposed and announced on 16 March 2007 by Toronto mayor David Miller and Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) chair Adam Giambrone. The plan called for the construction of seven new light rail lines along the streets of seven priority transit corridors, which would have eventually been integrated with existing rapid transit, streetcar, and bus routes. Other transit improvements outlined in the plan included upgrading and extending the Scarborough RT line, implementing new bus rapid transit lines, and improving frequency and timing of 21 key bus routes. The plan integrated public transportation objectives outlined in the City of Toronto Official Plan, the TTC Ridership Growth Strategy and Miller's 2006 election platform.
MoveOntario 2020 was a 2007 plan proposed by the Government of Ontario that would fund 52 rapid-transit projects throughout the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area in Ontario, Canada. It was succeeded by The Big Move and GO Transit's Go 2020.
The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) is a contiguous urban region that is composed of some of the largest cities and metropolitan areas by population in the Canadian province of Ontario. The GTHA consists of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and the city of Hamilton. The GTA is Canada's most populous metropolitan area that includes the city of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Halton, Peel, York, and Durham. The GTHA forms the core of a larger urban agglomeration known as the Golden Horseshoe.
The A-Line is a proposed rapid transit line running along James Street in downtown and Upper James Street on the escarpment in Hamilton, Ontario. It is part of Hamilton's proposed BLAST network, involving four other rapid transit corridors. It is identified by Metrolinx in its regional transportation plan The Big Move as a project to be completed by 2023. The route is currently served by Hamilton Street Railway's Route 20 A-Line Express bus.
Metrolinx mobility hubs are locations with significant levels of planned transit service in the Canadian province of Ontario, as identified by the regional planning transportation agency Metrolinx under The Big Move. A mobility hub consists of a major transit station and the immediate surrounding area, where different forms of transportation come together, serving as the origin, destination or transfer point for a significant amount of trips. It is also a concentrated point of employment, housing, and recreation, making them places of significant economic development and activity where office buildings, hospitals, educational institutions, government service and information centres, shopping malls and restaurants can be located.
Renforth, referred to during planning as Renforth Gateway, is a bus station on the border of the cities of Mississauga and Toronto, in Ontario, Canada. Located at Eglinton Avenue and Renforth Drive, it is the eastern terminus of the Mississauga Transitway and is close to the interchange between Highway 401 and Highway 427.
SmartTrack is a municipal proposal to enhance GO Transit rail service within Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It takes advantage of the province's existing GO Transit Regional Express Rail plans. SmartTrack has evolved since it was originally proposed by Toronto mayor John Tory as the centrepiece of his 2014 mayoral election campaign.
The Big Move is a regional transportation plan (RTP) published in 2008 and consisting of 62 rapid transit projects to be implemented across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA). These rapid transit projects are intended to form a seamlessly integrated regional rapid transit network, which is the first priority action in the regional transportation plan. These projects form two long-term templates with 15 and 25 year horizons. These templates outline broad projects; specific details about technology, alignment, stations and service levels for each project are subsequently determined though a cost–benefit analysis or an environmental assessment process.
GO Expansion, previously known as GO Regional Express Rail (RER), is a project to improve GO Transit train service by adding all-day, two-way service to the inner portions of the Barrie line, Kitchener line and the Stouffville line, and by increasing frequency of train service on various lines to every 15 minutes or better on five of the corridors. This would be achieved with the electrification of at least part of the Lakeshore East line, Lakeshore West line, Barrie line, Kitchener line and Stouffville line. GO Expansion is one of the Big Move rapid transit projects.
The Pearson Regional Transit Centre also known as Union Station West is a proposed second intermodal transportation hub to serve the Greater Toronto Area. The transit hub will be located at the site of Viscount station currently serving the Link Train across from Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario. The transit hub will be accommodated with a new passenger and processing facility known as Terminal New. It will handle functions such as check-in, security screenings and baggage claim. The transit hub will also be at the centre of a new mixed-used area including office, retail and commercial space. The plan is to bring Line 5 Eglinton, Line 6 Finch West, the Mississauga Transitway, the Kitchener line and the Union Pearson Express together into the transit hub and it will relieve Union Station. The transit centre is planned to open in the early 2030s.