Overall, 74 per cent of Ontarians agree that the “Greenbelt is no place for new highways.” In Toronto that figure rises to 81 per cent. (Photo: Greenbelt.ca)
Ontarians don’t want a highway through the Greenbelt but do want government to invest more money in public transit, a new EKOS poll shows.
Overall, 74 per cent agree that the “Greenbelt is no place for new highways.” In Toronto that figure rises to 81 per cent.
In fact, this majority support for Greenbelt protection holds across every region and demographic that EKOS probed. It reaches 81 per cent among young adults and 74 per cent among seniors. It even hits 70 per cent among folks who rely on the car.
To verify this finding, EKOS posed a second question. It asked survey participants to agree or disagree with the statement, “I’d be more likely to support a government if it kept highways out of the Greenbelt.” Overall, 73 per cent of respondents agreed, and agreement cut across all demographics. For instance, 70 per cent of high school–educated respondents agreed, but so did 77 per cent of university-educated folks.
These questions asked about highways in general. But what about a specific highway, namely Ontario’s proposed 413, that would run from Vaughan to Milton and destroy hundreds of acres of protected forest and wetlands and thousands of acres of farmland? What do Ontarians feel about that?
These questions asked about highways in general. But what about a specific highway, namely Ontario’s proposed 413, that would run from Vaughan to Milton and destroy hundreds of acres of protected forest and wetlands and thousands of acres of farmland? What do Ontarians feel about that?
To answer this question, EKOS told survey participants that many farmers oppose 413 and then asked, “Do you agree or disagree with farmers’ opposition to Hwy 413?”
Overall, 81 percent of respondents side with farmers in objecting to this expressway. In fact, there is strong majority opposition to 413 across all regions and demographics, including age, income and level of education. Eighty-eight per cent of Torontonians oppose the highway, but so do 73 per cent of residents in the 905 belt (where the road would be built).
Importantly, 79 per cent of folks who rely on the automobile for their daily transport back the farmers against the highway. When it comes to 413, farmers, city dwellers, suburbanites and car users are mostly united: they don’t want it. And they represent a pretty powerful segment of the population.
When EKOS asked Ontarians if they agree or disagree with government spending more on public transit, the pollster found widespread agreement. The responses were broken down by respondents’ main mode of transportation. Not surprisingly, among people who use transit, agreement stood at 95 per cent. But even among folks who rely on the car, agreement reached 74 per cent. In other words, those who commute by automobile see the value of public transit even if they don’t use it themselves.
When EKOS asked Ontarians if they agree or disagree with government spending more on public transit, the pollster found widespread agreement.
Majority support for increased transit funding appears across all demographics and regions that EKOS surveyed. For instance, in Toronto (with its wicked traffic problem), 90 per cent of respondents support this funding. But even in northern Ontario (where traffic is less of an issue) support stands at 77 per cent.
There are some differences across demographics. For example, far more women than men believe the Greenbelt is no place for new highways. But overall, the consensus is striking: a strong majority of Ontarians support additional transit spending and oppose highways, such as 413, that would chew up the Greenbelt.
Have we become a province of environmentalists? Perhaps.
Have we become a province of environmentalists? Perhaps.
Or perhaps we’re just possessed of common sense. We know that pressing problems like the climate emergency, high food prices and traffic congestion won’t be solved by wasting billions of dollars on new highways that bulldoze trees and pave our farmland. Far better to use highways (like the 407) that we already have, and get drivers out of their cars by offering top-notch transit that’s reliable and convenient.
Gideon Forman is a transportation policy analyst at the David Suzuki Foundation.
The EKOS poll, commissioned by the David Suzuki Foundation, drew on a random sample of 834 Ontario adults. The margin of error for the total sample is +/- 3.4 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
This op-ed was originally published in The Hamilton Spectator with additional coverage in
The Pointer.
Always grounded in sound evidence, the David Suzuki Foundation empowers people to take action in their communities on the environmental challenges we collectively face.
