Money raised by a proposed hike in the provincial sales tax will go directly to transportation improvements in the region.
Metro Vancouver residents will begin receiving referendum ballots in the mail in mid-March and will have to decide whether or not to support the Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation request for a 0.5 per cent increase to the provincial sales tax to generate funding to expand the regional transit and transportation system.
“The money from the referendum – they are projecting $250 million a year – will go into a specific account that’s audited,” said Coun. Chuck Puchmayr. “It is strictly for projects that were identified by the mayors’ council. Some of the things I am told they can do right away is increase buses, increase HandyDart. Things like that, they can actually increase capacity with that money right away.”
Last June, the Mayors’ Council announced a 30-year vision for addressing transportation and transit needs in the region. Estimated to cost $7.5 billion, the plan would require some funding from federal and provincial governments but would also require an additional $285 million annually for the region’s share.
If the referendum is successful, Puchmayr said he’s confident it won’t be too long before Metro Vancouver residents begin seeing positive results from the funding. While larger projects like light rail in Surrey and an extension of the Millennium Line along the Broadway corridor in Vancouver would require funding from senior levels of government, he said TransLink will be able to address many of the transit and transportation issues on its own.
“I think the low-hanging fruit is definitely going to be what they are going to grab,” Puchmayr said.
The so-called “congestion tax” would be used to fund a wide range of transportation and transit initiatives, including a new Pattullo Bridge, upgrades to the major road network, increased capacity of Expo and Millennium SkyTrain lines, increased bus service, additional HandyDart services, and cycling and pedestrian improvements.
On Thursday, the Mayors’Council on Regional Transportation announced it had appointed prominent businessman Jimmy Pattison to head up a public accountability committee to oversee the funds that will be collected if Metro Vancouver residents vote Yes in the transportation and transit referendum.
“We have heard loud and clear from the people of Metro Vancouver on this question. They want assurances that the money collected from the PST increase will go to pay for the critical transportation and transit improvements needed in the region,”Mayors’Council chair and Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said in a press release. “By appointing Mr. Pattison to head up this oversight committee, we are providing voters with a concrete mechanism to monitor and ensure that the funds raised will be used for the infrastructure they are meant to pay for.”
Pattison is chairman and CEO of the Jim Pattison Group, the second largest private company in Canada.He agreed to terms of reference for his new position, which include selecting experts to work with him on the oversight body.
“I know how important our transportation and transit system is, both to our needs now, and to the needs of our children and grandchildren,”Pattison said in a press release. “We need this infrastructure, and the public has a right to transparency and accountability.”
Many of the people who have indicated they will be voting No have expressed concerns about TransLink’s governance and management of issues such as the Compass Card and executive salaries.
“It’s really clear that a No vote will do nothing to resolve those other governance issues,” Puchmayr said. “An elected TransLink board and going back to a model, like the model we had when elected politicians were on it, mayors and councillors were on it, that’s the model we need to get back to.”
Premier Christy Clark recently told media that the mayors, not the province, are responsible for fixing TransLink.
“That’s a cop-out. That’s an absolute cop-out,” Puchmayr said. “In 2007, (then transportation minister) Kevin Falcon announced the legislation that created this government-appointed TransLink.”
Puchmayr, a former New Westminster NDP MLA, firmly believes government influence on the TransLink board of directors has led to some of its most controversial decisions and has contributed to some of its image issues. He cites the Compass Card (an overdue and over-budget initiative aimed at reducing fare evasion) and a plan to replace TransLink CEO Ian Jarvis (and continue paying him in an advisory capacity for six months) and appoint Doug Allen as interim CEO as examples.
“When you set up these types of corporations or shadow wings of government, it takes the heat off government,” Puchmayr said. “It has everything to do with the government, but they can deflect the negative pressure by virtue of saying, ‘it’s this board we created, blame them.’ But the board is mandated and they are governed by the senior level of government.”
