i understand the Provincial…

i understand the Provincial government is considering changes to its Corridor Signing Policy, including the use of third-party advertising along provincial highways.

The Province should consider providing municipalities with greater autonomy when dealing with signage. The City of Toronto underwent an extensive review of its sign policy and continues to monitor and assess its impact on our communities. The by-law outlines criteria such as setback, distance separation, illumination, energy efficiency, etc. These criteria are not a 'one size fits all' solution for urban, suburban and rural communities.

Furthermore, where appropriate and subject to municipal review, digital signs can be used to provide advertising to local and national businesses while being a catalyst in removing old signs.

As a City of Toronto councillor, I support the use of third-party advertising along 400 series highways for the following reasons:

- I previously provided support to Metrolinx for the placement of a digital sign in my Ward due in part to the advertising funds generated, which provided non-tax revenue to Metrolinx in support of public transit.

- In support of the City's sign by-law, the Metrolinx application included the removal of 9 existing signs for each modern new digital sign approved.

- The old signs have 24-hour lighting and many are in close proximity to residential homes. The new static digital signs are modern, more energy efficient, do not create sky glow, and the lighting is turned off at 11pm each night.

- the City of Toronto previously approved the consolidation of several traditional signs replacing a fraction of those signs to digital signs throughout the City, and these signs have been well received by Torontonians.

- Digital signs provide emergency services override capabilities that police can use to disseminate important and urgent information to the citizens of Toronto and the GTA. ie. amber alerts, evacuation routes, PSAs

- The Metrolinx digital sign application process at the City provided a thorough analysis of the impact of digital signs on drivers and residential communities, with positive results at City Council.

As a result of the aforementioned points, I urge the Province to amend its Corridor Signing Policy in order to allow 3rd-party digital signs in the Province of Ontario and grant municipalities the autonomy to address all sign applications within their jurisdiction regardless of whether the signs falls on municipal or provincial right-of-ways.

[Original Comment ID: 204199]