FAQ
1. How is the study related to the role of Metrolinx and its inter-regional Transportation Plan?
Metrolinx is mandated to develop a transportation plan for the GTA and Hamilton. Legislation requires the Metrolinx transportation plan to conform to the Growth Plan. Given the GTA West Corridor is identified as a future transportation corridor in the Growth Plan, the ministry will work closely with Metrolinx to ensure information and findings from the GTA West Corridor Planning and EA Study will be considered in development of the Metrolinx Transportation Plan.
2. Why is MTO proceeding with an EA for this area without a provincial/regional transportation plan or strategy that identifies priorities?
The Proposed Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH) indicates that most of Ontario’s growth to 2031 will occur south of the Oak Ridges Moraine, east of the Niagara Escarpment. To prepare for this future growth, the province needs to plan for infrastructure that can connect urban growth centres and move people and goods efficiently. The objective of maintaining an efficient transportation link between the GTA West Corridor urban growth centres is a priority within the Growth Plan. Any subsequent plans or strategies must conform to the Growth Plan so this initiative will remain a priority.
3. How does the GTA West Corridor planning study relate to the Sub-Area Assessment of the Proposed Growth Plan?
The Sub-Area Assessment (SAA) work will identify phasing, coordination and investment for infrastructure planning and investment. Through coordination with MPIR and regional and local stakeholders, the analysis, findings and recommendations from this planning study will inform the SAA about work relating to the GTA West Corridor.
4. Why are the N-GTA and GTA West conducted as two different studies? Do they share a common study limit? Could corridors identified from the two studies potentially connect?
These studies are separate as the purposes are distinct and separate, and are intended to address different sets of transportation problems and opportunities. Accordingly, the direct connection of new transportation facilities within the preliminary study areas is not an objective of either study.
Highway 401 is the common boundary between the two studies. As each study generates and examines options to add transportation capacities, it is possible that the recommended solutions/improvements may be connected and/or integrated.
There will be a high level of coordination between these two studies, for example:
• Both studies will use the same baseline data (land use, GGH networks), assumptions, methodology for demand forecasting;
• Both studies will apply the same process, factors, criteria for the generation, assessment and evaluation of alternatives;
• The GTA West study process allows the incorporation of any particular alternative considered in the Niagara GTA EA, and vice versa;
• Both studies are managed by the same MTO office and same consultant consortium.
5. What is the relationship between the GTA West Corridor Study and other MTO projects?
While the GTA West Corridor EA Study will primarily examine east-west travel in the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH), the transportation demand forecasting for the study will be based on the entire transportation network in the GGH. In this way, future travel to and from cities/communities outside the Preliminary Study Area, such as Peterborough and Fort Erie/U.S., will be accounted for. In addition, the analysis and findings from other MTO and municipal transportation studies, such as the 427 Corridor Extension, Niagara to GTA Corridor, Highway 407 East Extension Corridor, Brantford to Cambridge Corridor, Highway 6 (Freelton to Guelph), Hanlon Expressway Extension and others will be considered and coordinated in the GTA West EA study.
6. The Growth Plan shows the GTA West Corridor crossing the Niagara Escarpment. If one of the recommended transportation improvements includes infrastructure crossing the Niagara Escarpment, does the Provincial Greenbelt Plan allow for this?
Section 4.0 of the Greenbelt Plan recognizes the need for infrastructure to support economic growth in Ontario. In this respect, the Plan permits all existing, expanded or new infrastructure subject to approval under relevant legislation (e.g. Ontario EA Act) within the Protected Countryside, provided that the infrastructure supports agriculture, recreation, and tourism and serves significant economic growth and development expected in Ontario.
7. What role will 407 ETR play in the MTO study?
407 ETR forms part of the Transportation System through York/Peel and will be considered in the study from the viewpoint of improving the overall transportation network to meet future demand. This corridor can also accommodate future dedicated transit infrastructure along its length. In the event future expansion of 407 is identified as one of the solutions to serve a broader provincial transportation objective, the province will work with 407 ETR to implement the required expansion.
8. Why doesn't the preliminary study area include a broader area?
The Preliminary Study Area reflects the Purpose of the Study, which is to provide better linkages between Urban Growth Centres in the GTA West Corridor Preliminary Study Area, including Downtown Guelph, Downtown Milton, Brampton City Centre and Vaughan Corporate Centre.
This area is subject to modification and refinement as the study progresses to allow more flexibility to connect to the broader existing and future transportation network that would benefit addressing the Purpose of the Study.
In addition, the Influence Area for transportation modeling will include a broader area. Now that the EA Terms of Reference has been approved, the travel demand analysis will be carried out in a much broader context including the examination of transportation linkages and gateways outside the Preliminary Study Area that may have an influence on the travel demand and traffic patterns in the GTA West Corridor.
9. Why doesn't the preliminary study area include Kitchener-Waterloo?
The future travel demand and linkage between Kitchener-Waterloo and Guelph will be addressed by the proposed new Highway 7, as a controlled-access highway (similar to the current Conestoga Parkway). The Environmental Assessment for the new Highway 7 has been completed and approved by the Ministry of the Environment. The project is now entering detailed design.
In addition, the identification of the Preliminary Study Area is consistent with the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe directions (Schedule 6 of the Plan).
Regardless the travel demand analysis will be carried out in a much broader context including the examination of transportation linkages and gateways outside the Preliminary Study Area that may have an influence on the travel demand and traffic patterns in the GTA West Corridor, including Kitchener-Waterloo.
The Region of Waterloo will also be represented on the Municipal Advisory Group.
10. What is MTO’s response to local development applications that could potentially block off the right-of-way of a new GTA West corridor?
MTO recognizes the growing development pressures in the GTA West Corridor study area could preclude any future right-of-ways. To ensure this is minimized and all options are left open, the ministry intends to work with municipalities in the study area to monitor development activities and to share technical information from the study.
11. Is tolling going to be considered in the current stage of the study?
No. This study will examine all reasonable alternatives to address the identified transportation problems and opportunities within the GTA West corridor. The Ontario government is committed to considering innovative ways to fund new infrastructure projects, including tolling. Tolling is an implementation issue that may be examined at a later stage in the project if required.
12. What is an EA?
All public infrastructure projects in Ontario, including transportation planning projects, are subject to the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act (1997); they are required to undergo a process whereby all potential impacts are considered – i.e. natural, social, cultural and economic.
Projects that are particularly large and complex, with the potential for a wide range of environmental effects, like the GTA West Corridor, are subject to the Individual EA process under the Act.
The GTA West Corridor EA study is also subject to the requirements of the federal Canadian Environmental Assessment Act – with its own process and set of requirements. As a result of the Canada-Ontario Agreement for EA Cooperation, signed in 2004, MTO is committed to working in a coordinated manner with both the provincial and federal governments.
13. What is an EA Terms of Reference?
For proposed new transportation corridors that follow an Individual EA, the first step in this process is the development of an EA Terms of Reference (ToR) document that outlines the framework and commitments for completing the subsequent EA study.
The ToR outlines how the proponent will conduct the study and how impacts will be assessed. It outlines the process for identifying:
• Transportation planning/need
• Alternatives to the undertaking
• Definition of an EA study area
• Range and types of alternatives to be considered, and the
• Generation and evaluation of alternatives to be considered
The ToR also outlines the consultation process to be undertaken. In a major undertaking such as an Individual EA, a consultation program will typically include Public Information Centres (PICs), meetings with the Regulatory Agency Advisory Group (RAAG), the Municipal Advisory Group (MAG), the Community Advisory Committee (CAG), a project web site and local project office, individual meetings with stakeholders and stakeholder groups, and issue-specific workshops. The consultation program can be tailored to meet the requirements of each individual project.
The EA ToR document must be submitted to the Minister of the Environment for review and approval. If approval is granted, the proponent (e.g., MTO) may then proceed with the subsequent EA study. Once completed, this study will also in turn be submitted to the Minister of Environment for review and approval. If approved, the proponent can then proceed with design and construction.
These stages are also regulated by the Canada Environmental Assessment Act (CEAA) and require additional environmental studies and consultation.
14. What is the status of the EA Terms of Reference for this study?
The GTA West Corridor Environmental Assessment Terms of Reference (Amended: July 2007) was approved by the Minister of the Environment on March 4, 2008. Please refer to the Study Process section of this website for information on the EA process following the approval of a Terms of Reference.
15. How does an Individual EA differ from a Class EA?
A Class EA is a decision-making framework under the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act that applies to a range of similar, or class of, projects. A Class EA is used when potential environmental impacts and the proposed mitigation techniques are predictable and/or similar to other projects within that same class. MTO’s “Class EA for Provincial Transportation Facilities” document was developed in consultation with the Ministry of the Environment, and similar to an Individual EA, it defines and documents the process to be followed when conducting the EA study as well as requirements for public participation.
