• Scope of MTO’s…

• Scope of MTO’s Environmental Guide for Assessing and Mitigating the Air Quality Impacts and Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Provincial Transportation Projects includes mitigation measures to reduce GHG emissions.
o Comment: Recommend that climate change adaptation measures also be mentioned in the introduction section of the guide to ensure they are considered by the proponent as climate change will affect the way the province plans, designs, constructs, operates, maintains infrastructure. Adaptation measure considerations include ensuring Environmental Assessments identify relevant climate change risks and vulnerabilities, roads and structures are designed to be resilient to more frequent freeze-thaw cycles, and improving the resilience of the Natural Heritage System.

• Critical receptors
o Comment: Populations nearest to transportation related emissions are at a disproportionate risk of exposure to harmful traffic related air and noise pollution. The guide explains that critical receptors should reflect community resources serving vulnerable populations including, retirement homes, hospitals, childcare centres, schools and similar institutional buildings. Other critical receptors for consideration include long term care homes, homes for special care, lodging homes and parks.

• Sensitive receptors
o Comment: Social housing units be considered as a residential dwelling sensitive receptor. Consider a larger distance range for sensitive receptors in particular for large highways. See California Air Resources Board Recommendation for siting residences 150m or greater from major highways.

• Task 2, Assessment of Route Alternatives
o Comment: Recommend that the route alternatives should encourage routes that can provide the most direct connection between destinations while maximizing roadway users’ safety and providing opportunities for infrastructure that promotes walking, cycling and/or public transit.

• Task 3: Detailed Assessment of Preferred Alternative
o Comment: Network design offers an effective lens through which to consider and influence health risks from exposure to traffic related air pollution. Consider including health benefits and health promoting features or enhancements as part of the assessment of the preferred alternative.

• Task 5: Mitigation Options and Evaluation
o Comments: Recommend that preliminary and detailed design considerations should promote road safety but also support other health outcomes including, but not limited to, increased levels of physical activity, prevention of chronic health conditions. Consider design (for example, grade separation, roundabouts, ramp metering) and use of intelligent systems that promote smooth traffic flow.

Recommend additional details be included on air quality mitigation considerations beyond what is currently mentioned in the Guide (Appendix) as there is emerging research on Traffic Related Air Pollution (TRAP) that provides a comprehensive suite of options to reduce exposure. The scope of which includes set back distances, building design, other types of barriers (e.g. noise). For example ensuring building design and site design considerations for sensitive and critical receptors near roadways include:
- Installation of air filtration systems, such as high efficiency air filters in near roadway buildings;
- Adjusting the time of ventilation to avoid the peak rush hour of traffic volumes;
- Orienting buildings and parking lots to help disperse air with prevailing winds; and
- Roadway design includes designing vegetation noise barriers better by choosing certain types of vegetation and planting the vegetation that can help reduce exposure from traffic pollutants.

Here is a list of additional TRAP references:
• US EPA Best Practices for Reducing Near-Road Pollution Exposure at Schools https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-10/documents/ochp_2015_…; US EPA Recommendations for Constructing Roadside Vegetation Barriers to Improve Near-Road Air Quality https://cfpub.epa.gov/si/si_public_record_report.cfm?Lab=NRMRL&dirEntry… or https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6060415/; US EPA webinar Series
• Toronto Public Health’s Avoiding the Trap report, 2017 https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2017/pe/bgrd/backgroundfile-108667…
• ASHRAE guideline and best practice documents
• TAC’s Integrating Health and Transportation in Canada report, Nov 2019 https://www.tac-atc.ca/sites/default/files/site/doc/Bookstore/ptm-ihtc-…
• SOCAAR (Southern Ontario Centre for Atmospheric Aerosol Research) https://www.socaar.utoronto.ca/