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OPINION If one thing is clear concerning the ongoing struggle in how to deal with transit in the Great- er Toronto Area it's that provincial and munici- pal governments have historically shown a short- sightedness in dealing with the problem. That short-sightedness has now come back to bite them-- and hard. Last week Metrolinx, the agency created to improve the co-ordination and integration of all modes of transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, announced a series of 'rev- enue tools' with which to possibly fund much- needed improvements. None of these options is likely to be palatable to the tax-paying public at large as these 'revenue tools' are basically additional taxes in varying forms. A pig, ladies and gentlemen, is still a pig re- gardless if it's wearing lipstick. Among the proposals were highway tolls, gas taxes, employer payroll taxes(!), increased sales tax on consumer goods and development charg- es on projects. For decades-- and regardless of which politi- cal party held offi ce-- the Province has viewed transit as something to worry about later. Well, later has arrived and now offi cials are left scram- bling to fi nd ways to get more butts into public transit and improve the transit system GTA-wide. The Gardiner Expressway is literally crumbling while Toronto politicians continue to dicker on how best to fi x it. The QEW and 400 series of highways are parking lots much of the day and with the GTA's population continuing to climb rapidly the situa- tion will not get better soon. Metrolinx, formed in 2006, has been tabbed to fi nd solutions. We fear 20 years too late. The Independent & Free Press is published Tuesday and Thursday and is one of several Metroland Media Group Ltd. community newspapers. Edi- torial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. The Independent & Free Press Transit tools Steve Nease Letters to the editor Dear editor, Recently my wife and I hosted a small gathering for a friend's 55th birthday. Being responsible adults, and hav- ing been exposed to years of respon- sible drinking and driving campaigns, several couples left their vehicles in our cul-de-sac. I left my vehicle on the street to accommodate taxis and drop-offs. What a nasty surprise to fi nd that we had all received a $30 ticket at 3:30 a.m. The forecast called for a small chance of scattered fl urries so snow removal was not an issue so why the tickets? My son tells me that this is common practice when he and his friends go to a house party. We encour- age our young people not to drink and drive and so far their generation seems to be much better at learning the les- son than ours, so why are we penal- izing them? Why ticket them when they do what we ask. They drive to the party, have a few drinks take a $20 cab home and then discover that the night cost them an extra $30. We are encour- aging them to drink and drive. The $30 ticket that I received is clearly issued by the Town of Hal- ton Hills under bylaw 1984-001. As I understand it, the bylaw was created to allow overnight snow removal. So when there is no snow to remove why is the Town issuing tickets? I understand the need for the bylaw but surely the mayor and councillors can recommend to staff that they use common sense. When there is no snow let the enforcement offi cers have a night off. Maybe they can enjoy a quiet drink with friends as well. Tim Abbott, Georgetown Letters policy 905-873-0301 Publisher: Dana Robbins General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@theifp.ca) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@theifp.ca) Managing editor: John McGhie (jmcghie@theifp.ca) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@theifp.ca) Classifi eds Kristie Pells (classifi ed@theifp.ca) Accounting Rose Marie Gauthier Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@theifp.ca) Ted Brown: Photography (tbrown@theifp.ca) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@theifp.ca) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@theifp.ca) Metrolinx has come up with a short list of ways to possibly pay for expanded transit. Which of these ways is the best option? • Development charges on projects (26%) • Highway tolls (15%) • Gas tax on motorists (5%) • Sales tax on all consumer goods in GTA (2%) • Employer payroll tax (1%) • None of the above (51%) WEB POLL RESULTS (Go to www.theifp.ca) Parking ticket sends the wrong message A little too late? Letters must include an address and daytime phone number. Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for content and/or length. Publication is not guaranteed. Email: jmcghie@theifp.ca Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1. Dear editor, I just want to say that I am deeply sorry that the Memorial Arena is closing, but I think the stance against the demolition of the arena might've been a bit short-sighted, or just a bit too late. There have been a lot of letters to the editor with people express- ing their anger with the fact that the arena is closing, but this is all after the Town approved the demolition, announced to every citizen, and hosted the fi nal skate. In all of that process couldn't we have just spoken up and said that we oppose the demolition, not after everything has been planned and is ready to go? I guess people don't really think that the second-oldest arena in Canada is going to be demol- ished, until it really is. I'm not saying that I agree with the demolition of the 91-year-old Memorial Arena, I'm just saying that we could've done a lot more when we had the chance. Ryan Baldwin, Georgetown •T he I FP • H al to n H ill s •T ue sd ay , A p ril 9 , 2 01 3 6