Toronto, ON – Today, the Toronto Region Board of Trade released Breaking Gridlock: A Congestion Action Plan for Toronto.
Developed with guidance from the Board’s Congestion Governing Council & Task Force, and supported by newly commissioned research, this Action Plan puts forward five integrated recommendations to alleviate congestion.
"Congestion is choking our region’s growth, costing the economy $44.7 billion in social and economic losses annually. However, despite years of conversation and well-intended short-term fixes, we remain gridlocked. In the face of unprecedented economic uncertainty, it is more important than ever to tackle a crisis that is holding us back,” said Giles Gherson, President & CEO, Toronto Region Board of Trade. “Toronto’s streets are trying to do everything for everyone, and in the process, they’re failing to meet their fundamental purpose. We urge the city and province to implement this Action Plan in its entirety and get our region moving again.”
Five Actions to Get Toronto Moving Now:
Return a select number of major roadways to their primary function: moving goods and people around our city. That will mean permanently or temporarily removing on-street parking, curb lane cafes, and bike lanes from these streets.
Reduce the frequency and length of lane closures using pricing incentives and disincentives and shifting deliveries to off-peak times.
Re-engineer roads causing massive bottlenecks around the Gardiner Expressway.
Use automation and technology to enhance enforcement of existing traffic rules.
Appoint an executive-level congestion commissioner with the authority to make decisions, troubleshoot hot spots and ensure city departments work together.
The Action Plan outlines high-impact, immediately actionable recommendations to fundamentally shift how we address congestion. Each action reinforces the others, making it crucial to implement them all for comprehensive congestion relief. This plan is only the beginning. The Board is committed to working with the city and province, monitoring progress, and engaging with stakeholders to drive change. The data is clear: bold action is essential.
On Congestion and Solutions:
“Decades of underinvestment in transit, explosive population growth, and a failure to prioritize traffic flow have brought us to this point. Our plan outlines five bold, data-driven actions—rooted in global best practices—that the city and province can act on immediately to ease congestion.”
— Jon Love, Executive Chair and Founder, KingSett Capital and Congestion Task Force Governing Council Member
On Lane Closures and Construction:
“Road closures create significant social costs, particularly through increased congestion, yet maintaining momentum in city-building remains essential. By implementing dynamic pricing for closures and encouraging off-peak construction, we can strike a better balance between necessary construction and the flow of traffic.”
— Alex Avery, CEO, Primaris REIT and Congestion Task Force Governing Council Member
The Toronto Region Board of Trade is one of the largest and most influential business chambers in North America and is a catalyst for the region’s economic agenda. We pursue policy change to drive the growth and competitiveness of the Toronto region and facilitate market opportunities with programs, partnerships and connections to help our members succeed – domestically and internationally.
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