Staff to continue studying tolls for Gardiner, DVP
Mayor John Tory's executive committee asked for a further report on tolling the Gardiner and DVP while trying to kill continued tunnel talks

TheStar.com
Sept. 21, 2015
Jennifer Pagliaro

The city will study the merits of tolling the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway after Mayor John Tory’s executive committee voted unanimously Monday to leave that option on the table.

The majority of the 13-member committee all but killed another proposal to look at tunnelling the Gardiner, presented by a group of construction and consulting companies.

Executive members voted in unison to further study tolls after staff asked for more time to work out costs and potential revenue.

City manager Peter Wallace reiterated that early work highlighted the “viability and potential” of several tolling models, but said more research was needed.

A report from staff found flat fees could more than cover the costs of maintaining those lanes. However, not everyone was happy to see the tolling option survive.

“I think that tolls are just a way of us escaping the fact that public services cost money, and we should be collecting taxes for them. They’re not the panacea everyone says,” said Coun. Gord Perks.

The toll decision came after executive committee voted in favour of staff recommendations to pursue a public-private partnership to rehabilitate the crumbling Gardiner — which would make the project eligible for a possible $820 million in federal funding.

Costs for the Gardiner work under that scheme would total $3.8 billion and crunch construction time into six years, staff said Monday. Staff also said commute times during the construction period would be increased by 20 minutes eastbound and 20 to 30 minutes westbound.

Pursuing this type of contract for the Gardiner rehabilitation would mean any successful contractor would be on the hook for operating and maintenance costs over 30 years, staff said, under the belief that would encourage a higher quality and longer-lasting design.

Executive committee also heard from a group of executives from Aecon Group, Dragados Canada and ACS Infrastructure Canada on a $5-billion, 10-lane proposal for two tunnels to bury the Gardiner. The group argued its proposal would work in concert with ongoing plans for a remodelled Gardiner East hybrid.

Though several executive members argued that discussion also deserved more study — with Coun. David Shiner requesting the report be deferred until December for further study — Tory ultimately shut down the proposal, leading committee to back the staff recommendation to reject a tunnel.

“There’s a lot of things that would be nice to have, but we deal in the real world here,” Tory said. “I just think we have to get on with doing some things.”

However, Tory and council will still get another chance to debate the tunnel potential along with financing the Gardiner’s rehabilitation at the next council meeting Sept. 30.

A report on tolling is expected to return executive committee in the second quarter of 2016.