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UPDATED: Electric buses could be part of $99M earmarked for transit

Feds, province and city to share costs of 10-year fund aimed at boosting ridership

Electric buses, new bike lanes and more sidewalks connecting riders to routes are some of the investments Greater Sudbury could be making in public transit system over the next 10 years, reporters at a media conference Friday were told.

Gathered at the Greater Sudbury Transit and Fleet Centre on Lorne Street, city, provincial and federal leaders announced a combined $99 million fund spread out over the next decade. 

The feds are providing $39 million in infrastructure funds, the province $33 million, and the city providing the remainder.

The money is timely because Sudbury Transit is in the midst of a major overhaul, with changes to routes, transit infrastructure and buses aimed at significantly boosting ridership, which has remained flat for several years. 

Sudbury MP Paul Lefebvre said cities have told them to make big improvements to the transit system, they need long-term funding.

"We are delivering on that challenge," Lefebvre said. "Our government recognizes that communities like Greater Sudbury need long-term, sustainable funding to be able to prioritize, manage and complete infrastructure projects."

Lefebvre and Nickel Belt MP Marc Serré made the announcement on behalf of the Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, drawing on funds from the public transit stream of the Investing in Canada Plan. 

“This long-term investment is a fine example of what we can achieve when all levels of government work together,” Serré said. “It is essential that we continue to work collaboratively to foster economic growth and improve our local infrastructure.” 

Ontario Energy Minister and Sudbury MPP Glenn Thibeault said getting more people in the habit of taking the bus rather than their cars is an effective way to reduce pollution and fight climate change.

"Public transportation is a way we can address this as a community and do our part," Thibeault said. "That's almost $10 million a year for the next 10 years being invested in public transit in our community. That is going to make a huge difference in the lives of our citizens."

The funds could be used to help the city to begin switching to electric buses, he added. Greater Sudbury Major Brian Bigger said the long-term funding will allow them to take advantage of new technology that emerges in the coming years.

"It will go a long way toward increasing our ridership in Greater Sudbury, and this can make our transit system a much more attractive choice for transportation," Bigger said. "A sign of a well-designed and well operating transit system is where more affluent people are riding the transit system. 

“You see a lot of this happening in the City of Toronto, where people are reliant on the public transportation system, because it makes so much sense. We have to get to the point where our transit system is the logical choice for Sudburians.”

Under the Investing in Canada plan, the feds are investing more than $180 billion over 12 years in public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes, and Canada’s rural and northern communities. 

In the first phase, Infrastructure Canada has approved nearly 3,500 projects worth a combined investment of more than $8.4 billion. As part of the Plan, Infrastructure Canada will deliver more than $11.8 billion to Ontario over the next decade through a new bilateral agreement under four funding streams: 

-- $8,340,401,116 for public transit; 

-- $2,848,855,330 for green infrastructure; 

-- $407,159,893 for community, cultural and recreational infrastructure; and 

-- $250,067,117 for wide-ranging infrastructure needs in rural and northern communities. 


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