We all know that traffic congestion is a mounting problem for the Greater Toronto Area. Alas, the traffic woes are not confined to the GTA but extend to the Hamilton Area as well. This region is known as the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area (GTHA).
While we are generally aware that traffic congestion is getting worse -- exacerbated by population growth and a poor response in transit supply to demand -- do we really know the true costs of congestion in our urban areas? A recent article citing U of T Professor Eric Miller, offers a number of statistics and facts about the traffic congestion problem that any resident of the GTHA should know about:
"The average commute time in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area will jump by a third in 20 years without a major injection into transit, according to expert calculations."
This amounts to: "an extra 27 minutes a day, 2.25 hours more a week, 4.6 full days a year, that local commuters will spend in their cars battling congestion as the region adds an expected 2.6 million people".
"Studies have shown that GTHA congestion costs an estimated $6 billion in unrealized GDP each year. Gridlock also results in 26,000 fewer jobs created in the region".
I blogged about this topic a number of months ago discussing the importance of transit alternatives like high-speed rail to help alleviate traffic congestion on highway 401.
The article offers much more. A natural alternative is to expand transit services. Fortunately, Metrolinx, has a $50-billion, 25-year "Big Move" plan which will involve a conglomeration of 100 projects ranging from bike lanes to 1,150 kilometres of new transit lines. Eric Miller, who continues to caution that traffic congestion is a huge impediment to economic growth, thinks the Big Move is an “excellent start” but it won’t be the entire answer. The GTHA is competing with the world’s biggest metro areas — places like New York, London, Shanghai — which have very sophisticated transit systems.
To read the full story, see here.
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