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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Thursday, December 12, 2013 | 8 Agreed -- gridlock is a problem with no real quick fix continued from p.6 According to Metrolinx, the GO Lakeshore Express Rail project, also in the planning stages, will provide more frequent, faster and higher capacity service by upgrading existing trains from diesel to electric propulsion. A $4.9-billion GO rail service expansion is expected to bring twoway, all-day service on the Milton, Kitchener, Barrie, Richmond Hill and Stouffville lines -- though it has no clear completion date. But the source of funding for many projects is uncertain, noted Oakville Chamber of Commerce President John Sawyer. "Money is always an issue," said Bruce Zvaniga, Burlington's director of transportation, but not necessarily the biggest hurdle. "The hardest one is actually figuring out how best to spend the money, not how to get the money," said Zvaniga. Metrolinx has posited several funding strategies, ranging from a one-percentage point increase in harmonized sales tax or a business parking levy to a regional fuel and gasoline tax. Mike Spicer, Burlington's transit director, said Burlington is revamping its Transportation Master Plan. Spicer would like to see traffic move at a reasonable pace and believes improved roadway accessibility to all users will result in moving people quickly and more efficiently. Lifestyle changes could also help, he said. "One of the solutions that is becoming more common is telecommuting. So people will work at home for a couple of days a week. That certainly takes people off the roads," said Sawyer. The new Siemens office in Oakville is a good example of that. "They have 800 employees who work out of that building, but at any given time, when you go there, there are probably about 400 people." Sawyer said another solution is allowing employees to work flexible hours -- a strategy some Oakville businesses are attempting. Zvaniga believes there is no single solution to gridlock. "I think the problem is, when we look to improvement, what we often do is make it easier for people to live further from where they work," he said. "We put in HOV (high-occupancy vehicle) lanes and now the drive to Toronto doesn't seem as bad if you can find someone to ride in the car with you," he said. A combination of improvements to regional transportation, including more frequent GO Transit service and the possible implementation of dedicated truck lanes on the Queen Solutions lie in many directions -- from lifestyle changes to more roads and better transit "At the moment, it is During a recent almost illegal to build a speech at the Oakville highway in Ontario that GO Station, Minister of doesn't stop or start in Transportation and InToronto." frastructure Glen MurHighways, noted ray discussed how more Chudleigh, could be rapid GO train service built from west of Loncould help. don to Owen Sound or "With half-hour serfrom Owen Sound to vice, we basically have Peterborough. Devela rapid transit system opment, he said, would here," he said. "We can follow. "That's what build an employment happened to the 401." base around these staMilton's Director tions, not interfering of Engineering Paul with communities that John Sawyer Cripps, said one soluactually give us the intion to traffic congestion tensification so this can on local and regional roads involves be an employment centre. If we can better co-ordination for construction get the clusters of employment, that projects. will alleviate a lot of the commuter "Citizens, I think, really get frus- traffic right now on the QEW and on trated when they see two or three the 403." construction projects underway in Zvaniga said residents need to make the same area. lifestyle changes. Town staff meets quarterly with During the city's consultations with Halton Region officials to discuss vari- citizens and stakeholders surrounding ous projects. But delays or changes in its Transportation Master Plan, staff is planning can result in Town projects exploring the potential to promote interfering with the timing on Region- alternate modes of transportation. Cyal projects, he said. cling is one said mode. The Milton Chamber of Com"Clearly, you're not going to a big merce's Executive Director Sandy box retailer on your bicycle, but mayMartin, said the options for overcom- be you could go to a grocery store or ing traffic congestion are limited when a pharmacy," said Zvaniga. "We see it comes to businesses getting goods cycling for those five-kilometre type and services from Milton to market. trips as being a viable option." As deliveries must be made by a Homerski and Hill have already certain hour, drivers can leave ear- made the switch. lier to avoid gridlock or take alternate Hill, who is relatively new to cyroutes when the barrier of vehicles on cling, has enjoyed biking to work. Hwy. 401 becomes too heavy. "I'm not happy right now having to Throughout the region, the 407 drive," he said. ETR acts as a relief valve. But Scott, His 11-kilometre commute takes the McMaster University professor, roughly 30 minutes, whether astride believes the cost is prohibitive so the his bike or behind the wheel. highway appears underutilized. "The biggest difference is that you In addition to transit system im- have short bursts of speed and then provements, Chudleigh suggested you hit a lineup and it's stop-and-go, building additional highways wherev- and that's the point where a person, er there is room -- possibly north of on a bike, can overtake all the cars the 407 ETR -- to alleviate gridlock. jammed up behind an intersection But Scott believes GTHA residents and get to the front of the line and go should focus on living closer to work through on the next green light," he or adapting their work schedule. said. "You'll never build your way out of Hill's commute cycling hasn't alcongestion," said Scott. ways gone smoothly. Long-time Burlington resident Len His first experiences were "verging Collins, agrees. "If you build more on traumatic," he said. "Really, after roads, you get more cars," he said. "It's the first two or three days, I was wona self-defeating purpose." dering if I could even continue doing He would like to see a solution this. I was afraid for my own safety." come in the form of an enhanced rapAs his skill increased, "It wasn't id transit system. While extensive and such a scary thing," said Hill. costly to build, Collins said VancouHe believes an expanded bicycle ver's Sky Train has become a tremen- lane network across the GTHA would dous resource. "Any place that has it, encourage more people to cycle, effecit gets well-used and it's a great way to tively reducing the number of vehicles travel," he said. on area roads and thoroughfares. Many Oakville roads such as Glen Abbey's Heritage Way, pictured here, have numerous designated lanes -- for vehicular traffic, cyclists, parked vehicles and pedestrians.| photo by Eric Riehl ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_photog) or www.facebook. com/HaltonPhotog Elizabeth Way (QEW) and 400 series highways, could relieve the pressure, noted Zvaniga. Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn, who is Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Transportation, said as a result of his own commute between Oakville and Queen's Park, he is working on initiatives aimed at easing gridlock. He has identified concerns, including the time it takes to clear relatively minor incidents on the highway. "Nobody has been hurt, the tow trucks are there, the police are there. What's at stake here? What is the investigation about? Is it going to result in charges under the Highway Traffic Act? Are the insurance companies going to have a beef about whose fault the accident was?" he asked. "When you look at the amount of money involved in that, compared to the amount of money and productivity that is being stalled in the traffic jam created by that relatively minor incident, you realize it makes good sense to do a much better job." Flynn is also working to have more useful information put on highway compass signs, which could divert motorists onto public transit. "I'm a firm believer compass signs need to be linked to the GO train stations, so if I'm driving in from Burlington and I get to just before Appleby Line, there could be a compass sign to tell me `The drive to downtown Toronto is going to take 95 minutes, however, there is a train leaving from the Appleby station in eight minutes that will arrive in Toronto in 35 min- With half-hour service, we basically have a rapid transit system here. We can build an employment base around these stations, not interfering with communities that actually give us the intensification so this can be an employment centre. Glen Murray Ontario Minister of Transportation utes and there are 200 parking spots at that station,'" he said. "I could decide to stay on or get off the highway." One long-term solution discussed by Halton MPP Ted Chudleigh is the decentralization of Toronto. In the '60s and '70s, Chudleigh said the Province promoted the development of Cambridge and did what it could to encourage new industry and businesses to locate there. He believes the same type of program is needed for various cities across Ontario. "Decentralizing Ontario is the longterm solution to gridlock. You don't get the traffic driving into Toronto if the jobs are outside of Toronto," he said. "Industry won't locate where it can't get to and you have to get there on a four-lane divided highway. So we need four-lane divided highways that start and stop somewhere other than Toronto here in Ontario.