Back to SearchKitchener – Earlier today, ahead of the meeting with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) Big City Mayors’ Caucus (BCMC), Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was joined by Minister of Infrastructure and Communities Catherine McKenna and Minister of Environment and Climate Change Jonathan Wilkinson to announce a significant federal investment in public transit. This investment of almost $15 billion for public transit over the next eight years includes permanent funding of $3 billion per year for Canadian communities beginning in 2026-27.
“Public transit is critical to livable and competitive cities and regions, today and in the future, and today’s landmark investment in permanent transit funding will be key to Canada’s post-COVID recovery,” said Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic, who is a member of the Big City Mayors’ Caucus. “FCM’s BCMC has been calling for significant, predictable, and long-term funding for public transit, and today’s announcement demonstrates exactly the kind of bold federal leadership and accelerated funding required for the economic growth of cities like Kitchener and regions like Waterloo.”
The priorities of cities and regions across Canada are reflected in today’s announcement. While permanence and predictability are key aspects of today’s announcement because transit planning is long term in nature, this national transit plan also has support for rural and regional transit needs. Further, this announcement which includes transitions to zero-emissions, active transportation, and system expansions will not only be very important in terms of moving local and national green economy priorities forward, but also infrastructure priorities that the Regional Municipality of Waterloo has identified such as the integrated King/Victoria transit hub and Phase 2 of the iON LRT from Kitchener-Waterloo to Cambridge.
“As Kitchener continues plans to grow its local economy with the Make it Kitchener 2.0 economic development strategy, having this kind of financial commitment to support our regional transit system will be transformational. Investing in transit creates jobs, shortens commutes, reduces emissions, and supports economic growth in cities and communities across Canada,” said Mayor Vrbanovic.
Today’s announcement recognizes that municipalities will be central partners in Canada’s recovery. The government’s announcement falls during the first-ever FCM Virtual Big City Mayors’ Summit, during which BCMC Mayors are meeting with the Prime Minister, Ministers and leaders of the other 3 Federal parties represented in the House of Commons. These meetings demonstrate that when governments work together, we can make a positive impact in the lives of all Canadians because strong cities lead to a stronger Canada.
FCM’s Big City Mayors' Caucus is the voice of 22 of Canada's biggest cities. FCM is the national voice of municipal governments, with nearly 2,000 members representing more than 90 per cent of the Canadian population.
Federal government media release from today: https://pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2021/02/10/new-public-transit-investments-build-strong-communities-fight-climate
FCM media release from today: https://fcm.ca/en/news-media/news-release/fcm-welcomes-landmark-recovery-supporting-transit-investment
For more information please contact:
Paul Grivicic, Chief of Staff
City of Kitchener
226-749-3410
paul.grivicic@kitchener.ca
Bethany Rowland, Director of Corporate Communications & Marketing
City of Kitchener
226-752-9038
bethany.rowland@kitchener.ca
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