Provincial budget also includes $79 billion investment in public transportation over 10 years

TORONTO — Today’s Ontario Budget 2018 promises a suite of investments in infrastructure and social programs made possible by projected revenues from pricing carbon pollution.

The budget also includes $79 billion in public transit investment over the next decade.

“This massive investment in public transit is critical to modernizing Ontario’s transportation system and reducing carbon pollution and traffic on our roads,” said David Suzuki Foundation climate change and transportation policy analyst Gideon Forman. “This in an important priority that everyone in Ontario can appreciate, because it means less time in traffic and more time doing things they enjoy with the people they care about.”

The budget includes other investments made possible by revenues from Ontario’s price on carbon pollution, such as up to $230 million to renovate and improve social housing.

“This money will have a multiplicity of benefits, from reducing carbon emissions to improving home comfort for people that need it the most,” Forman said. “This is good environmental policy that’s also meeting people’s social needs.”

Ontario has projected approximately $2 billion in carbon market revenues for 2018-19. This will be invested in modernizing the province’s energy and transportation systems, focusing on energy efficiency in homes, making electric vehicles more affordable, creating safe bikes lanes and easing traffic.

“The majority of Ontarians care about climate change and want to see collective action,” Forman said. “Ontario’s system to price carbon pollution through the carbon market forms the foundation of an effective climate change plan. This approach also makes possible strategic investments that reduce pollution while improving the quality of life for people in Ontario.”

For commuter cycling infrastructure specifically, the budget allocates $90 million for the current year.

“Bike lanes and other cycling infrastructure help reduce congestion, improve air quality and boost people’s health,” Forman said. “It doesn’t get much better than that.”

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For more information, please contact:

Brendan Glauser, bglauser@davidsuzuki.org, 604-356-8829