​​Southwestern Ontario Transportation Planning Study​ – Early Findings and Draft Options

A summary of the comments received through the ERO and a public survey is provided below and are being considered as the Southwestern Ontario Transportation Planning Study progresses.

All feedback was considered and updates to the study’s goals, objectives, and options have been incorporated to strengthen the study’s recommendations.

Phase 1: Goals and Objectives

Respondents were supportive of the Goals and Objectives outlined in the Phase 1 Summary:

1. Connecting People and Places
2. Supporting a Competitive Business Environment
3. Providing More Choice and Convenience
4. Increasing Health, Safety and Inclusion
5. Preparing for the Future
6. Ensuring Environmental Sustainability

Overall, comments generally pertained to transportation safety, supporting accessible public transit, and support for specific road improvements.

Recommendations included creation of a new goal, and associated actions related to implementing solutions to systemic transportation gaps and barriers faced by Indigenous communities. One change is proposed to establish Goal 7 with an Objective based on collected feedback:

New Goal 7: “Improving Equity and Inclusion”: Ensure the transportation system is inclusive of everyone’s transportation needs.

• New Objective: Strengthen the local and regional public transportation connections to critical services, such as hospitals, post-secondary education, and social services for Indigenous people.

Phase 2: Summary of Needs and Opportunities for Air, Marine, Rail, Roads, and Transit Modes

Feedback on Phase 2 highlighted several key needs and opportunities across the transportation system:

• Improve highway safety and maintain infrastructure in good condition.
• Increase funding for roads and bridges for maintenance and replacement.
• Ensure that roads can safely accommodate large slow-moving farm equipment travel between farm fields.
• Maintain ferry capacity to support farm businesses.
• A need for stable and sustainable funding for rural transit services, improvement of transit connections and travel frequency for bus and rail.
• Ensure bus routes connect Indigenous communities to essential services like affordable grocery stores and housing.
• Couple transit-oriented development with permanently affordable housing development, including social housing.
• Collaborate with Indigenous communities and organizations to combat violence and human trafficking against Indigenous women and girls through training to increase recognition and reporting, posting educational material with the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline.
• Work with key partners, including MTO agencies and Indigenous organizations, to increase awareness of human trafficking in alignment with the Calls to Justice of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and Anti Human trafficking (MMIWG & AHT) and increase public transit funding to address these issues.
• Support active transportation and improve safety at trail crossings along Provincial highways to ensure transportation networks support the tourism industry.
• Install EV charging stations at rest areas for commercial and passenger vehicles.
• Conduct Agricultural Impact Assessments to mitigate the impacts of non-agricultural development on farming operation, and identify methods to avoid, minimize, and mitigate adverse impacts.

Phase 3: Summary – Developing the Draft List of Options and Evaluation Framework

Comments related to Phase 3 were incorporated in two ways: revisions to existing options; and creation of new options.

A summary of existing options that were improved for further consideration is provided below:

• Expanding sustainable transportation options by considering using linear corridors for new active transportation and transit routes, including rail.
• Collaborate with private partners to encourage private investment in clean technology solutions for people and goods movements including for road, air, marine and rail-based modes.
• Continue improving road safety on highways and rural roads.
• Collaborate with Indigenous organizations to combat violence against Indigenous women and girls and human trafficking and improve transportation facilities such as rest areas safer through infrastructure upgrades such as site clearing, improved lighting and security cameras.

The following new options are being considered in the study:

• Work with other levels of government and the industry to explore initiatives aimed at developing a new intermodal facility in southwestern Ontario.
• Leverage the transportation system as a platform to recognize Indigenous places and histories through naming, design, landscaping and art.
• Investigate opportunities to reduce the impact of road salt and other de-icers on watercourses and wetlands while maintaining safe road conditions in winter.
• Protect infrastructure and land associated with rail, marine, air and road systems to preserve them for potential future transportation-related uses.
• Explore opportunities to support Indigenous communities and organizations in transportation planning, maintenance and operations across all modes, including potential funding programs and regional coordination with other transportation agencies.

The study’s findings are intended to support government decision-making to improve the transportation network with a long-term vision out to 2051. Recommended actions would be subject to further prioritization, project-specific studies and approvals, such as Environmental Assessment studies, consultation with Indigenous communities and the public, and funding approval before they move forward.