Congestion already costs Toronto drivers time and money. Here's how tolls could help

CBC

29-01-2025

There are no plans for congestion pricing or tolls in Toronto.
The current Ontario government has made it clear it won't allow a tax or new toll on any road in the province — and the city isn't exploring the strategy, either.
But if Toronto is serious about solving the congestion crisis — which costs the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) more than $44 billion a year in economic and social value — some experts say time-dependent road charges are an inevitable piece of the puzzle.
"Demand keeps increasing, but space for building infrastructure does not," said Baher Abdulhai, an engineering professor at the University of Toronto who specializes in intelligent transportation systems.
"Congestion pricing is a way to ration demand."
The final part of CBC Toronto's three-part series Gridlocked: The Way Out explores why congestion pricing and tolls are so deeply unpopular in Ontario, despite helping ease traffic in other major cities.
And drivers may already be paying for congestion one way or another.
"They're paying for it in their time," said Matti Siemiatycki, director of the Infrastructure Institute at the University of Toronto.
"They're paying for it in frustration, and they're paying for it because all of the goods and services that we all consume cost more here because of how long it's taking to get around and for those goods to be delivered."
Siemiatycki believes part of the reason Ontario drivers are against congestion pricing is this mindset: I already pay for infrastructure — like roads — through my taxes, so don't charge me again.
WATCH | Why some experts say congesting pricing is inevitable:
Because of that — and because people view charges as punishments — it makes it difficult for people to overcome these hurdles, according to psychologist Taryn Grieder.
"If it's presented like it'll benefit them in some way, then it may be viewed as less of a punishment, but that would be hard to do," she said.
So how has congestion pricing worked out elsewhere?
London mayor re-elected after congestion pricing
Mark Watts was senior transport adviser to then-London mayor Ken Livingstone when he introduced a congestion charge in the city's centre in 2003. Livingstone was re-elected in 2004.
"The week before the congestion price came in, more people were opposed to it than supported it," said Watts. "Two weeks after it had been introduced, massively flipped — two-thirds of people thought it was a good idea."
The reason? Watts says it worked.
It reduced congestion by 30 per cent in the core, he said, and within a few years led to a nearly 40 per cent increase in bus passengers because of investments the city had made in the bus system ahead of time.
"Critically, we'd spent three years investing in the alternatives," said Watts, who is now executive director of C-40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, a global network of mayors working to cut emissions.
"What the congestion charge itself did was make those bus services work, because before ... it was a poor choice to use a bus. You only used it if you had to because it was so unreliable."
Need for attractive public transit
The availability of reliable public transit is one big difference between Toronto and cities like London, Stockholm and Singapore, which have seen success with congestion pricing they've had in place for years.
"It's very hard to charge people to drive their cars if they don't have an option," said Giles Gherson, president of the Toronto Region Board of Trade.
"You probably won't be able to do it until at least the Ontario Line is built."
Until then, there are other short-term solutions to help alleviate congestion, he says. CBC Toronto explored those in the second part of this series.
Earlier this month, New York became the first North American city to implement congestion pricing for vehicles entering Manhattan's central business district. It costs most drivers $9 US to enter the area during peak hours — fees that will be put toward upgrading public transit.
Travel times were down 7.5 per cent compared to the same time last year, according to preliminary data on the first week of the program from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
Province would have to sign off on congestion pricing
Toronto city council tried to toll the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway in late 2016. But Kathleen Wynne, then-Ontario's premier, refused to approve the plan, citing a lack of transit alternatives.
More recently, city council considered the possibility of a congestion charge in 2023. But it decided not to pursue it, partially because it would require provincial approval.
Asked whether Toronto might revisit the idea once better transit and construction management is in place, its traffic management director said that as an engineer he never rules out anything.
"If and when that time comes, we'll definitely take a look at it again to see if it makes sense," said Roger Browne.
In a statement, the office of Ontario's transportation minister made it clear that this provincial government would never approve congestion pricing.
"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," said spokesperson Dakota Brasier.
Despite having no plans for congestion pricing anytime soon, Watts said Toronto shouldn't be afraid of the idea.