Bitter over tolling veto, mayor says Toronto being treated like child

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Toronto Mayor John Tory reacted with barely concealed fury after the provincial government nixed his highway tolling proposal, saying the city was being treated like a child and suggesting he had been misled by Premier Kathleen Wynne.

Although insisting to reporters that "I'm not angry today … I'm frustrated," Mr. Tory grew increasingly upset as a lengthy media availability went on. He repeatedly criticized the province for downloading costs on the city and then denying it the ability to raise money.

"The city of Toronto is Canada's champion, we are the only global metropolis in this country," he said.

"It is time that we stop being treated, and I stop being treated, as a little boy going up to Queen's Park in short pants to say 'please, could you help me out with something that I thought was in the City of Toronto Act that I could do,' and to be told 'no, I'm terribly sorry, go away and come back some other day'."

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Mr. Tory's indignation came hours after Ms. Wynne confirmed that Toronto would not be allowed to implement tolls on two city-owned highways. Those close to the mayor said that he had been told privately by the province that they would back him in his proposal, which was overwhelming supported by city council. The mayor suggested the same.

"I will tell you that the course of action that unfolded today … is inconsistent, at least in part, in some considerable measure, with the discussions we were having before on this subject," Mr. Tory said.

The provincial decision to block tolls on the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway came just over a year before Ms. Wynne must face the electorate. She is lagging badly in the polls and both opposition parties were against these tolls, leaving her vulnerable among 905 commuters.

At an event in Richmond Hill, Ms. Wynne arguing she had to reject tolls until such time as people who now drive have more options. "There are not enough choices in place," she told reporters.

Instead of tolls, Ms. Wynne said the province would gradually double the amount of the gas tax that goes to municipalities. They now get 2 cents per litre and that will gradually rise to 4 cents, from 2019 to 2021, if the Liberals win the next election.

This extra money for Toronto will roughly equal the amount a toll could raise, under one scenario, but is less than the city was hoping for.

Mr. Tory sold his plan for tolls, in the range of $2 a trip, as a way to make drivers in Richmond Hill and others from around Toronto pay for the city's two expressways, which are maintained by City of Toronto taxpayers and do not receive direct provincial funding.

The proposal to toll the DVP and Gardiner came amid increasing concern at city hall over the growing mountain of unfunded capital projects in Toronto. Tolling was not expected to cover more than a fraction of the total – which now exceeds $30-billion – but part of its appeal for city politicians was that it would be an independent source of revenue.

Rejecting tolls in favour of more gas taxes means that the city will continue to be beholden to the largesse of the province. It also means that the possible congestion-fighting benefits of tolls will be forgone. And it makes the city reliant on a revenue source that is shrinking across the western world as vehicles become more fuel-efficient and people drive less.

Shortly after Mr. Tory announced his toll plan, Ms. Wynne strongly suggested she would approve it, if city council formally asked Queen's Park for the permission it needs under the City of Toronto Act.

"If Mayor Tory and his council determine that they would like to embark on a tolling of certain roads – local roads in the city of Toronto – then we will work with them," Ms. Wynne told reporters in early December.

But later that month, in a year-end interview with media outlets, as opposition outside Toronto to the idea mounted, she made more cautious remarks. She told the CBC that she needed to "look at the timing … how big the tolls would be and all of that, and look at what options people will have."

With a report from Jeff Gray