February 22, 2012

Ontario Road Builders’ Association Toronto convention

Metrolinx, Ontario Road Builders’ Association contemplate joint transit contractors’ council

KELLY LAPOINTE

staff writer

The Ontario Road Builders’ Association’s (ORBA) members have a large role to play in how Metrolinx delivers its transportation agenda, said the transit organization’s CEO.

“We have the largest program in Canadian history that’s being rolled out right now,” said Bruce McCuaig, President and CEO of Metrolinx at ORBA’s recent 85th annual convention in Toronto.

Metrolinx and the ORBA board have been speaking about developing a joint transit contractors council.

Metrolinx, an agency of the Government of Ontario under the Metrolinx Act, 2006, was created to improve the coordination and integration of all modes of transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA).

GO Trains will be lengthened from 10-coach trains to 12-coach trains.

“That obviously leaves us needing more equipment in terms of coaches, but we also need more infrastructure in terms of the kinds of stations and platforms that we do,” explained McCuaig, a former deputy minister of transportation with the Ontario government.

He said the Air Rail Link system from downtown Toronto to the Pearson International Airport in Mississauga will be operational by the 2015 Pan American and Parapan Games. He said the trains are ordered and being manufactured right now.

“It’s a project that is going to happen and it will define a new kind of service for our region.”

A number of projects are underway, worth about $14 billion in construction, including the Eglinton crosstown line, the York Region VIVA system off Yonge Street, the Brampton Zum system, the Mississauga Transitway and the Union Station investments.

Metrolinx is looking for ways to update and define its tender and procurement process, said McCuaig. They are looking at moving towards an electronic tendering basis.

They are also reviewing administrative and other requirements to see how they can remove or reduce the burden on bidders to make it a more efficient system.

The GTHA is home to six million people and is expected to grow by about two million people over the next 20 years, said McCuaig. The area currently ranks last for the longest commute times out of a survey of 40 North American cities.

Looking ahead to 2031, “we’re going to see about seven million new trips on a daily basis, which is a 60 per cent increase over what we have now. We’re going to see what is already the longest commuting time in North America growing by about 27 minutes on average for each and every person every day,” he said, adding that the objective is to move towards a more sustainable transportation system.

Right now it is estimated that traffic congestion costs the regional economy about $6 billion on an annual basis. McCuaig said Metrolinx wants to double the amount of people using transit in the region and put transit within two kilometers of 75 per cent of the population.

One of the major challenges in developing an investment strategy for the future is winning support from the population. He said they need to find a way to make their ideas and plans resonate with people.

“We need to identify people around us, leaders in the community, leaders in business, and leaders from different parts of the region who are prepared to stand up and say yes we need to move forward with the investment in our transportation system.”

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