To toll or not to toll? Is it a question we need to ask again?
The discussion to implement a toll to alleviate congestion on Toronto streets is coming up once again after New York became the first city in North America to implement this kind of charge earlier this month.
Under the Central Business District Tolling Program which came into effect January 5, motorists who enter the portion of Manhattan south of 60th Street between 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays pay a $9 toll while motorcycles pay a toll of $4.50. License plate readers are used to enforce the toll.
According to Manhattan Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials, in the first few days of the year, total traffic in tolling areas dropped by 7.5 percent — or roughly 43,000 cars per day – compared to the same time last year.
Similar initiatives are already in place in London and Stockholm. They also saw immediate drops in traffic after their tolls went into effect.
But if it were to happen here, experts say it may be a bit complicated to implement.
“This is a significant experience and it does point to some options for other cities like Toronto to look at,” says Matti Siemiatycki, the Director of the Infrastructure Institute at the University of Toronto.
“There’s a lot of streets that come into the downtown core, so that can pose a challenge technically.”
Whether there is a political appetite for this type of program is another question altogether.
However, there seems to be very little political appetite for this type of program to be introduced in the GTA.
“Toronto City Council reviewed the Updated Long-Term Financial Plan during its September 2023 meeting. Due to factors highlighted in the report – such as the requirement for approval by the Province through an amendment to the City of Toronto Act – this revenue tool was not included in staff recommendations to Toronto City Council,” read a statement from city officials.
Earlier this month Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said while the city couldn’t apply a toll on its own authority even if it wanted to, she wouldn’t rule out the possibility down the road.
“Ultimately, it’s the provincial government that approves it” Chow said.
A spokesperson with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation tells CityNews, “We will never add a tax or toll to any road in Ontario. We remain focused on building the critical infrastructure we need, including nearly $100 billion for new roads and transit to get people where they need to go each and every day.”
“No one wants to pay more for something that they’re currently getting for free. However, we are paying for congestion every single day, even if we’re not paying in tolls. We’re paying for it in lost time, we’re paying it for it in lost productivity,” says Siemiatycki.
A recent study released by the Canadian Centre for Economic Analysis (CCEA) found that lost economic opportunity due to congestion in the Greater Toronto & Hamilton Area (GTHA) cost the region more than $10 billion in 2024.
“The largest cost is the well-being, the quality of life of people, that’s three-and-a-half times the economic cost,” said Paul Smetanin with the CCEA. “Congestion pricing? Absolutely, but I think it needs to be in a framework that’s transparent.”
This isn’t the first time this idea has been considered. Back in 2016, former mayor John Tory floated a plan of imposing a $2 toll on the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway which he calculated would bring in more than $200 million a year to the city. The Liberal government at the time rejected the idea.
