MiltonSearch.com blog

Those familiar with taking the GO Train into Toronto from Milton are well aware of all of the trials and tribulations involved. Those of you thinking about or who have recently moved to Milton and plan to commute into the city via the GO Trains might be interested in this recent article on why you can just throw that handy, dandy train schedule out the window when the temperatures heat up…

From Tess Kalinowski, Transportation Reporter at the Toronto Star:

GO Transit is warning of 15- to 30-minute delays on the Milton line in light of today’s extremely hot weather.

But based on last summer’s experience, which saw delays usually in the two- to three-minute range, those delays could be much shorter, said GO spokesperson Jessica Kosmack this afternoon.

The Milton line is owned by Canadian Pacific, which slows its trains to 64 kilometres per hour (40 miles per hour) once the temperature hits 32 degrees C, she said.

That allows the engineer and conductor in the locomotive to see if a kink has developed in the rail ahead due to heat expansion, explained CP spokesperson Mike Lovecchio.

CN also slows its passenger and freight trains once the temperature hits 30 degrees C but the delays in the Toronto-area tend to be insignificant, said company spokesperson Mark Hallman.

In many cases, because of the number of stops on the GO lines, the trains wouldn’t normally exceed the hot weather speed limit of 105 kilometres per hour. ( 65 miles per hour)

Passengers wait to ride the Gold Line, a rapid transit line between Los Angeles and Pasadena, Calif., from an at-grade station in the middle of an expressway.

One lobby group says there’s a simple, cost-effective way of building a commuter rail line through our busiest highway. There’s no shortage of critics who say it’s a pipe dream

Imagine you’re among the nearly 450,000 drivers idling on Highway 401 through the Toronto area on a typical weekday, bumper-to-bumper traffic burning a $1.27-a-litre hole in your pocket and the ozone.

Now, fast forward just over a decade, when gridlock and gas prices are expected to make 2008 look like the good old days, and you glance from your car to see a high-speed, electric train stop in the middle of the 401. Hundreds of waiting passengers file aboard, open their papers and laptops and speed off.

Before you’ve passed the next exit, they’re halfway to work.

No one disputes that something must be done to ease the traffic congestion choking Highway 401 across the top of Toronto.

It’s bad for the environment and the economy, to say nothing of the physical and mental toll on drivers.

But now a group of sustainability advocates is pushing a radical solution to get the 401 moving again.

The idea – eliminating one lane of traffic in each direction to put subway-style rail down the middle of the highway – may be counter-intuitive.

It’s certainly ambitious – 51 kilometres and 28 new stations from Pickering through Pearson International Airport to Mississauga. It’s time-consuming – 12 years to complete. And, it’s costly – $5.9 billion.

But, the Sustainable Urban Development Association, or SUDA, believes we can no longer afford to ignore the need for a car alternative to east-west travel across the GTA.

“The need for sustainable transportation is expanding dramatically,” said John Stillich, general manager of SUDA, a charitable organization devoted to environmentally sensitive city building. “Climate shifts are happening faster than people previously thought, energy prices are hitting the fan.

“It’s gotta happen.”

There’s no shortage of critics lining up to say it cannot happen. They argue it’s too costly, the 401 is already too congested to reduce lanes and that getting people in and out of stations in the middle of a highway will prove difficult to impossible.

And, despite ever-worsening gridlock, critics are not even convinced there’s enough demand for public transit there.

Stillich, a former senior financial analyst with the province, first floated the idea of a 401RT more than a decade ago. While applauding the $11.5 billion Queen’s Park pledged last year for public transit projects across the GTA and Hamilton by 2020, he said they won’t keep up with growth in road travel.

An essential component of cutting congestion and pollution across the GTA is an east-west transit line across its middle – Highway 401.

The SUDA concept would see trains stop at stations typically located on bridges and underpasses, which are wide enough for buses to drop off passengers without the need for expensive bus terminals. From one end in Pickering to the other in Mississauga would take about 75 minutes, with travel to Yonge St. from 35 to 40 minutes either way.

“If we don’t do it now, we’re going to have greater hardship for everybody in the GTA,” Stillich said, forecasting 150 million riders a year on a line that would cost $304 million to operate. “Things will get worse.”

Stillich is hoping Metrolinx, the body developing a comprehensive transportation plan for the region, will include the 401RT as part of its draft due out this summer.

Though there’s an obvious sticker shock that comes with a $5.9 billion tab, when broken down over its 12-year construction period and with the expected federal and provincial support that comes with major infrastructure projects, the average annual cost per income taxpayer in Toronto, Peel and Durham comes in at $60, Stillich said. With the price for gas and other driving expenses climbing, he’s sure people will see trading in their wheels for rails as a bargain.

“It’s only high cost in terms of the dollar amounts that people have to spend to put the thing together,” he said. “But if you look at the resultant impact on households of that initial investment, it’s cheaper than business as usual by a long shot.”

To back up its argument, SUDA used part of a $76,000 Ontario Trillium Foundation grant to survey households across the GTA. It found more than two-thirds of respondents willing to pay more to improve public transit.

That’s in line with an Ipsos Reid survey of 1,000 residents of the GTA and Hamilton done last fall for Metrolinx. It found two-thirds believe increasing public transit is the best way to improve the traffic situation, compared with one-third calling for more roads.

Metrolinx also has its eye on public transit across the 401. But it envisions an express bus corridor using high-occupancy vehicle lanes.

Stillich, who is looking for a “political champion” to push the 401RT concept, admits SUDA’s pitch needs more thorough analysis through a feasibility study.

But a huge hurdle with a 401RT is access, said Toronto transit activist Steve Munro. With trains running down the middle of the highway it would be next to impossible to get passengers into stations without large – and expensive – bus interchanges, parking lots or tunnels.

Also, the sprawl-oriented development across the 905 region “is not suited to transit,” unlike the concentrated areas of Toronto serviced by the subway. Add to that the fact that few people have a final destination on the 401 and a rail line proves “superficially seductive” but impractical, Munro said.

“The idea that somehow we are going to solve regional transportation problems by putting an express line on the 401 sounds nice in theory, but how the hell do you get people to it?” said Munro.

SUDA’s concept includes a massive network of buses, much like those that will feed Toronto’s seven planned Transit City light rail lines.

But unlike Transit City, which is supposed to extend light rail into the recesses of suburban Toronto, the 401RT concept doesn’t have the same city-building potential, argues TTC chair Adam Giambrone.

He espouses the power of light rail to transform neighbourhoods by contributing to higher densities of housing and jobs, building pedestrian traffic that makes for lively neighbourhoods.

“Those cars were fed to that (highway) corridor,” he said. “They came in on streets. The goal here is to make transit accessible by pedestrian measures so you can walk. If you have (transit) in a corridor like the 401 series highways or a hydro corridor, that becomes very difficult.”

It can be done. It is done. The TTC buses people to subways and expects to feed the Transit City lines with buses as well. It’s just not the preferred option, said Giambrone.

“You would miss all the walk-on traffic and all the streetscape possibilities,” he said.

You could do it but it would be a bad substitute for the kind of more localized higher order transit corridors he believes will succeed under Metrolinx.

From an environmental perspective, it already may be too late to change direction for something as radical as a 401RT, says Pollution Probe’s climate change program director.

Anything that gets people out of their cars is good, but given the time constraints, building on the existing transit network might be more practical, according to senior scientist Quentin Chiotti. “We basically have 10 to 15 years for the globe to turn around their whole emissions of greenhouse gases. If this doesn’t happen we’re in serious trouble. Twelve years (to build the RT) may be beginning to fall into that window, but just how much will that give us, given the investment?” he said. “Are there other ways of spending that $6 billion that’s going to give us more bang for the buck?”

In the Toronto region, freight has priority when it comes to the rails, said Chiotti.

“Can’t we do something about who has priority over the rail system? We have a system that is supposed to get people moving through the GTA but the system has a lot of barriers to operating as efficiently as possible,” he said.

“Instead of saying we should give transit a high priority, I think we need to look at the whole rail system and improve that so we have more dedicated lines for people movement and freight.”

What’s needed more than anything, Stillich said, is public understanding of all costs involved in the 401RT project. While people may wince at a $5.9 billion pricetag and losing a lane of highway traffic each way, he said they’re not aware of the true toll on the environment and economy of taking “inadequate and incremental steps” rather than embracing his “dramatic change” now.

“If things get so bad that everything is jammed every day, there’ll be more and more screaming that, no, we can’t do this construction and lose another lane because nothing will move,” Stillich said. “Something has to be done now to avoid the worst-case scenario.

“And, if you don’t do this, or this kind of thing, then nothing is going to move on the 401 anyway.”

Interactive map: 401 transit proposal

One lobby group says there’s a simple, cost-effective way of building a commuter rail line through our busiest highway. View an interactive map of the proposal.

AIRPORT LINK

Plans to build a long-awaited rail link from Union Station to Pearson airport would become redundant under the 401RT plan, according to SUDA.

To reach the airport, commuters could ride to the top of the Yonge or Spadina subway lines, and transfer to the 401RT. The last 7.7 kilometres of the route, beginning at Airport Rd. and Highway 409, would travel underground, passing directly below Pearson and ending at Hurontario St. in Mississauga.

Constructing this leg would cost an estimated $1.4 billion of the $5.9 billion budget.

OPTIONS

Elevated

Building an elevated rapid transit line can avoid the call to eliminate a lane for cars in each direction on Highways 401 and 409. If the goal is to avoid eliminating a lane for cars in each direction on Highways 401 and 409, it can be built as an elevated rapid transit line. Rising above existing bridges would send the train — and costs — way up.

Cost: An additional $1 billion, for a total of $6.9 billion.

Subway

The Sheppard subway, which runs for about five kilometres from Yonge St. to Don Mills Rd., could be extended east, to Scarborough City Centre. Using more costly tunneling, it could also be pushed west under and through Pearson International Airport and the surrounding area.

Cost: Estimated at more than $10 billion.

At-grade and subway

Placing most of the line at road level means much less tunneling or elevation, making this a cheaper option. It includes adding nearly 400 more buses to get more passengers to stations and intersects with subway, GO Transit and bus routes.

Cost: Estimated at $5.9 billion.

TRAVEL TIME

Stations would be two kilometres apart on average. That means trains could often move faster than cars on the congested highway. Travelling from Liverpool Rd. in Pickering at one end to Hurontario St., or Highway 10, in Mississauga at the other would take about 75 minutes. Travel from either end to Yonge St. would take 35 to 40 minutes.

TRANSIT CONNECTIONS

In addition to 15 more buses on most of the routes to the 28 proposed 401RT stations, the line would also connect with existing public transit lines, including:

• The Yonge subway line at Yonge St.

• The Spadina subway line at Yorkdale

• The Bloor-Danforth subway via the Scarborough Rapid Transit line at Scarborough Town Centre

• Etobicoke North GO station

Source: Sustainable Urban Development Association

– By Daniel Girard and Tess Kalinowski, Transportation Reporters for the Toronto Star

Some facts and figures about life in Canada, compiled last month:

66,749
Number of metric tonnes of frozen poultry stored Canada.

28.3
Population per square kilometre of Brock, the GTA’s most sparsely populated municipality.

8
Per cent of Brock’s population who are immigrants, the GTA’s lowest.

51
Per cent of Markham’s population who are immigrants, the GTA’s highest.

10
Number of people in the GTA claiming Gabonese ethnicity.

185,760
Number of people in the GTA who say Italian is the language most often spoken at home.

1.28
Per cent of Newmarket residents identifying themselves as Buddhist, the most in the GTA.

2.4
Cars per household in Caledon, the most in the GTA.

8
Per cent of Milton’s population under age 5, the most in the GTA.

12,000
Number of Swiss tourists visiting Canada annually.

Sources: Statistics Canada

Homes close to transit also good investments, real estate experts say

Whether it’s a condo in the city or a detached home in the suburbs, homebuyers looking for the best bargains should turn their sights to the east and west, industry experts advise.

David and Gilma Simon recently sold a home in Port Hope and moved to Oshawa, which offers the least expensive homes in the GTA.

The average sales price in Oshawa last month was $221,464 – significantly lower than the average GTA price of $394,000 or the Toronto average of $432,000, according to figures from the Toronto Real Estate Board.

The Simon family only has one car and, between David’s trips to work at the Darlington nuclear plant and shuttling Gilma to classes at Durham Continuing Education three times a week, all that driving was getting costly. The couple also felt that job prospects might be better in the GTA for Gilma, who emigrated from Panama.

The couple looked in Ajax and Whitby, where all they could find in their price range were townhouses. In Oshawa, they could get a detached home for the same money.

“We wanted an old-growth neighbourhood with mature trees and a street that wasn’t too active for traffic, as well as access to amenities such as shopping and nature,” David explains. “Transit was another consideration. And Oshawa feels like it has its own identity and sense of community, instead of being just a bedroom community.”

The 1980, three-bedroom backsplit they purchased for $241,000 meets all those criteria: it’s close to three parks, a walking trail, a wealth of stores, a bus stop and good schools for Gilma’s 13-year-old son.

Although it does have the cheapest real estate, Oshawa also has the dubious honour of the highest property taxes in the GTA.

For example, for a home valued at $275,000, a homeowner will pay $4,157 in taxes this year. That’s mainly due to the city’s heavy investment in replacing aging infrastructure.

But Maureen O’Neill, president of the Toronto Real Estate Board, feels Oshawa is an area that is “really going to go, ” noting GO train service offers convenient commuting for downtown workers.

Bowmanville, just east of Oshawa, also offers good value, with an average price of $238,000.

On the other side of the GTA, Milton continues to boom as the fastest-growing community in Canada, according to Statistics Canada.

“It’s popular, not just because of affordability but it’s close to the country. People who buy there like land,” says O’Neill. The average house price there is about $347,000.

However, O’Neill suggests anyone considering a home in suburban areas should test their commute to work for five days before making a decision.

“Burlington’s not bad if you work downtown,” she says. The average price there is $323,000 and sales last month were up 18 per cent over March 2007. “You get a lot of house and good value and you have a GO station. Anywhere near the GO, like Clarkson and Port Credit, is a good bet, too.”

O’Neill is also optimistic about Mimico’s prospects: “It’s going to go and it’s by the lake. The houses are older and you can buy one for about $400,000.”

In the city itself, O’Neill says neighbourhoods such as Corktown, Parkdale and Roncesvalles have become very popular, “when you couldn’t give a house away there three or four years ago.” Areas such as the Beach and Riverdale continue to be hot, although prices there are steep.

For condo buyers, O’Neill says the Bloor Street corridor continues to be popular, as well as Queen and King Streets.

The lakeshore and Harbourfront are also showing “tremendous stats,” she says, as well as the St. Lawrence Market area. But downtown, it’s tough to find anything for less than $350 per square foot, and that would be for low-end, small units.

She says good condo buys can often be found along the city’s border with the 905 regions.

There are also many good condo projects in the downtown west market, according to Jane Renwick, editor and executive vice-president of Urbanation, a research firm that publishes a quarterly report tracking the GTA condo market.

She says first-time buyers might consider looking to Liberty Village, a former industrial area under revitalization, where there’s a mix of new construction and conversion projects.

“It’s perfect for first-time buyers, retail is picking up there and it’s an area with character that has an urban feel,” she says. To the east of downtown, several new projects are underway in Corktown, the Distillery District and Queen St. E.

“The thing about staying a little bit east or west of the downtown is the pricing is a little less,” she says. Just east of downtown, expect to pay about $436 per square foot for a new condo and $491 in downtown west, compared to $674 in the downtown core. (Based on figures from the end of 2007).

If money is no object, suites in the Bloor/Yorkville area are commanding $1,282 per square foot.

For investors, Renwick says the best bets are the downtown core or the North York city centre. “There are a lot of rentals in North York and it’s close to the transportation hub,” she explains.

Scarborough had few new launches in 2007, though it is “a great option from an affordability standpoint,” says Renwick, with new suites selling for an average of $332 per square foot.

Mississauga was also quiet in 2007, with only two new launches, but look for a flurry of activity this year, says Renwick.

Other hot condo markets will be the upscale neighbourhoods of Rosedale, Forest Hill and Summerhill, as empty nesters looking for less maintenance than their detached homes look for alternatives to stay in the area.

What you get for $380,000 in …

MILTON

Three-bedroom, 2- 1/2-bath, two-storey detached brick home with 9-foot ceilings, hardwood floors and 1,990 sq. ft. On a 36- by 80-foot lot directly across from a park.

MARKHAM

Five bedroom, three-level 2,500-square-foot brick and stucco semi-detached home in Cornell. Cathedral foyer, 9-foot ceilings, upgraded cabinetry, single-car garage.

DOWNTOWN

One bedroom plus den condo in the Waterclub, with a solarium, two baths and a walkout to a terrace. One parking spot included. Maintenance fees: $447/month.

OSHAWA

Three-bedroom, two-bath brick bungalow, with crown mouldings, hardwood flooring, double-car garage, formal dining room and interlocking patio on a 50- by 112-foot lot.

– by Tracy Hanes of the Toronto Star

The Milton Sports Guy breaks down the Jays’ chances in 2008 after a 4-2 start, fresh off series’ vs. the Yankees and Red Sox

After sweeping the defending champs this weekend, Jays’ fans have high hopes for 2008. Do the Jays actually have a chance to make the postseason for the first time in 15 years, or will it be yet another third place finish in the AL East?

J.P. Ricciardi’s offseason moves landed the Blue Jays some serious depth even if some of them were questionable, which bodes well if the injury bug hits the team hard again this season. Don’t kid yourselves though, this team will need to stay healthy to have any kind of chance to clinch a postseason berth.

I liked the Glaus for Rolen swap of two oft-injured third basement. They lose Glaus’ power, but his range at third base was rapidly declining and it was getting increasingly painful to watch him lumber around the bases. Rolen shores up the defence at the hot corner and hits for a better average. If Thomas and Wells can rebound after poor offensive seasons last year, then Glaus’ home run total won’t be missed. The key for Rolen: stay healthy. How’s he doing with that so far? He currently has a pin in his broken finger, so I’d say not good.

I also liked the signing of the scrappy David Eckstein, although they had just finished signing John McDonald supposedly as their everyday shortstop. You gotta love Johnny Mack, arguably one of the best defensive shortstops in the AL, but if you want to compete with the Yankees and Red Sox, you have to hit. Eckstein gives them the fiesty, leadoff slap/contact hitter they need to set the table at the top of the order, even if he doesn’t have the defensive prowess of McDonald. And he’s a winner, celebrating World Series championships for Anaheim and St. Louis in 2002 and 2006 respectively, a trait you can’t underestimate.

The infield depth comes in the form of backup SS McDonald, and utility man Marco Scutaro, currently playing third base in Rolen’s absence. Both players are capable Major League starters which bodes well for the Jays if the infield starts to get banged up.

The outfield looks good too, even if I still don’t get the release of Reed Johnson. Ricciardi brings in Shannon Stewart to fight for the left field job, then Johnson, by all accounts outplays and outhits him in Spring Training looking to rebound after back injuries sidelined him for most of 2007 – and then gets cut by the club??

The only saving grace is that the Jays have Buck Coats, Adam Lind and Travis Snider coming up in the system, which maybe left Johnson expendable - I’m thinking his back problems may have been more serious than we know. Anyhoo, for now it’s Stewart (who can “fall outta bed and hit” according to J.P.) and Matt Stairs sharing the duties in LF, with Stairs able to fill in for the Big Hurt at DH if necessary and one of the aforementioned youngsters ready to step in if injuries require them to do so.

Centre field and right field are set for years to come with Vernon Wells and the newly signed Alex Rios, as long as Wells can rebound and hit like he did in 2006 and Rios can continue his progression into one of the game’s top young stars.

Another interesting move by Riccardi was the signing of catcher Rod Barajas who shunned the Jays last year, agreeing to a contract in principle, then bolting and signing with the Phillies. Barajas had an impressive 2006 with Texas, followed by a terrible 2007 campaign. Now he’s here in Toronto as Gregg Zaun’s backup - how long is debatable. Zaun struggled at the plate last year, leading me to believe that you could see Barajas if Zaun doesn’t step it up both offensively and, um, memo to Mr. Zaun: you might want to throw out a baserunner once in awhile, ok?

Then there’s the pitching staff, one area where most experts agree the Jays can compete with the Red Sox and probably have an advantage over the Yanks.

Roy Halladay promises to be in Cy Young contention as usual, and after him in the rotation, there is a lot of promise, but a lot of questions as well….

Shaun Marcum and Dustin McGowan had breakout seasons last year and it certainly seems as if each is ready to get over the hump of mediocrity and take their games to the next level. A.J. Burnett has pitched like, well, um… like A.J. Burnett during his tenure in Toronto, struggling with injuries and inconsistency. He dominated the Yankees last week, but as is always the case with Burnett, who knows how he’ll perform the next time he takes the mound. He’s a key to the Jays’ chances - he needs to have a breakout season. Then there’s the #5 spot which is currently held by Jesse Litsch, who just has to basically not suck.

The bullpen looks solid with the likes of Downs, Tallet, League and last year’s closer, Jeremy Accardo. The bullpen would look much better of course with the injured Casey Janssen and B.J. Ryan back, but Accardo has racked up 3 saves so things look ok until Ryan can come back from elbow surgery.

On paper, things look good for the Jays - if they can a) stay healthy; b) have everything go right for them (ie. all of the players who need to have big years do indeed have big years); c) benefit from the Yankees and/or Red Sox struggling and d) stay healthy. That’s a lot to ask. You thought so too, right?

Looking at the rest of the divison, I’d say you have to favour the Red Sox again. They have both the offence and pitching, and a great combination of vets and fiesty young players like outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury and pitcher Clay Buchholz. Baltimore looks to be absolutely horrible, despite their hot start, and Tampa looks like they could surprise everyone, although I think it’s more likely they’ll either get off to a fast start then fade over the last half of the season, or get off to a brutal start and finish red hot in September once the games don’t matter anymore.

That leaves the Yankees as the wild card. Again this year, they look like the team the Jays could beat out. They’ve struggled out of the gate the last two years, but have managed to turn it on in June/July/August behind their unstoppable lineup. The question again for New York will be pitching. Chein Ming Wang is solid, and Phil Hughes is a great prospect, but it’s time for Mike Mussina to be put out to pasture. Pettite is on the downside of his career and now has the whole Clemens/steriod thing following him around this year. Joba Chamberlain looks to be lights out in the ‘pen, and Rivera could go either way. He’s still a dominant closer but he’s not getting any younger so who knows when he’ll just go “Trevor Hoffman” and just lose it as all closers eventually do?

The Yankees could possibly be beat, but again, the stars will need to align for the Jays to do just that. The chances of the Yankees not being able to figure things out and the Jays staying healthy and playing flawless ball: not great. Look for Toronto to be nicely sandwiched in third in the AL East come September with Tampa closing in.

If I’m correct on this, it will be time for ownership to look a little more closely at J.P. Ricciardi. He’s in his 7th season leading the Blue Jays with nary a playoff berth to show for his efforts. Yep, it’s an important year in Toronto, and the good news for Jays’ fans is that so far, it does look like the team is playing with a bit more of a sense of urgency.

All we have to do now is sit back and wait to see how the next, oh 156 games or so to play out…

Here’s how I see the standings this year:

AL East
x-Boston
y-New York
Toronto
Tampa Bay
Baltimore

AL Central
x-Cleveland
Detroit
Chicago
Minnesota
Kansas City

AL West
x-Los Angeles
Seattle
Texas
Oakland

NL East
x-New York
Atlanta
Philadelphia
Florida
Washington

NL Central
x-Chicago
Milwaukee
Cincinnati
St. Louis
Houston
Pittsburgh

NL West
x-Arizona
y-Los Angeles
San Diego
Colorado
San Francisco

(x-division winner; y-wild card)

Now Milton, what do you think?

How much tax on a $380,000 house in the GTA? Location plays big part in your tax bill…

Homeowners who live in the aging industrial city of Oshawa pay the highest property taxes in the GTA, while those who live in Toronto and Milton – the country’s fastest-growing community – pay among the lowest municipal taxes, a Toronto Star survey has found.

As Toronto City Council begins final debate today on a budget that includes a proposed 3.75 per cent tax hike, we’re taking a comparative look at tax rates and what drives them in the 25 municipalities that make up Greater Toronto.

The large disparity in property tax rates across the GTA is an indication of the very different challenges faced by the 25 municipalities that make up the most densely populated region of Canada.

The survey showed, among other things:

Oshawa’s high taxes are a testament to the unique difficulties faced by a city best known for General Motors as it grapples with a confluence of aging infrastructure, low property values and increased capital costs.

Homeowners in Durham Region municipalities such as Ajax, Pickering, Whitby, Oshawa and Clarington continue to pay significantly higher taxes than those in Peel, York and Halton – regions that also seem better positioned to draw business and commercial taxes.

Toronto manages to have it both ways, charging both the GTA’s highest industrial-commercial taxes and the region’s lowest residential property taxes.

Many rural municipalities, such as Uxbridge, Scugog and Georgina, struggle with high taxes while facing the problem of a small assessment base (both residential and industrial-commercial) and little prospect for growth as a result of the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan and the newly protected Greenbelt.

The survey also found that Toronto and Oshawa, which represent extremes on the tax spectrum, are grappling with the underlying issues in their own unique ways.

In Toronto, where the financial burden is borne more heavily by the commercial-industrial sector, a 15-year plan that began in 2005 is gradually shifting more of the tax responsibility onto homeowners.

Meanwhile, Oshawa has embarked on an ambitious infrastructure investment plan, especially in its downtown core, hoping to capitalize on growth from new business and families seeking modestly priced homes.

One reason city-by-city comparisons are difficult is that the same amount of money buys “less house” in Toronto than in a place like Oshawa. On the other hand, a home with equivalent assessed value draws a far bigger tax bill in Oshawa than Toronto.

So the Star compared property taxes in two ways: First, by comparing what’s considered an “average” home within each of the region’s 25 municipalities; second, on a single property value ($380,000) applied across all the municipalities.

Torontonians pay taxes to a single entity: the city. In other places, residents pay both a city and a regional tax. For the sake of comparison, we blended those taxes proportionately. (The education tax, which is uniform and set by the province, appears on the municipal tax bill but isn’t included in this comparison.)

Oshawa regards an “average” home there to be valued at $275,000. At that assessed value, the homeowner will pay $4,157.56 in taxes in 2008, the Star found. That is:

$1,350 more per year than for an average Mississauga home ($365,000)

$939.90 more than for an average home in Vaughan ($412,070), and

$1,901.31 more than for an average Toronto home ($369,300).

We also compared taxes based on an across-the-board home value of $380,000, a figure chosen randomly by the Star.

On a home of that value in Oshawa, the owner’s municipal/regional taxes would be $5,744.86. That’s $2,822.01 more than on a similarly priced Mississauga home and $3,423.34 more than on a similarly priced Toronto home.

Chris Brown, Oshawa’s director of finance, acknowledges that residents in his city face significantly higher taxes than others, but says it’s caused by a confluence of events, including low property values and the fact that the city has made a long-term decision to invest heavily in infrastructure projects.

“We are in a major investment time frame right now,” says Brown. “There’s a cost to that, but we hope there’s a payoff down the road.”

The investments include a plan to revitalize the downtown core with the $45 million GM Centre, the $39 million Legend Centre, a provincial courthouse and a new fire hall.

Oshawa has even implemented special incentives to encourage companies to build residential and commercial buildings downtown – waiving lucrative development charges in hopes that benefits will come later.

“This type of investment attracts assessment,” says Brown. “If assessment increases, individual taxes could go down in the future.”

The situation is vastly different in other suburban municipalities, such as Milton, where booming development is helping to pay for new infrastructure. Its location along Highway 401 between Toronto and the U.S. border makes Milton attractive to business.

Milton’s population grew by 71.4 per cent in the previous five years, according to Statistics Canada figures released last year, making it the fastest-growing community in Canada, while Oshawa grew by a paltry 1.8 per cent, only slightly higher than built-out Toronto’s 0.9 per cent increase.

Companies like Magna, which established a stamping plant in Milton, and Whirlpool, which recently picked the area as its new distribution facility for the eastern seaboard, boost the community’s bottom line.

“We feel blessed,” says Milton Mayor Gordon Krantz. “We are well positioned geographically. We are three hours from the Windsor border.”

Ajax Mayor Steve Parish says one reason Durham Region’s suburban municipalities have higher taxes is that the region has not been as successful in attracting a healthy industrial-commercial tax base.

“In the case of places like Mississauga and Vaughan, one real driver that attracts industry is the proximity to the airport,” Parish adds. “It’s a big driver.”

Milton’s commercial business tax rate is just 2.32 per cent, the lowest in the GTA, while Vaughan’s is 2.39 per cent.

Oshawa’s commercial business tax rate stands at 3.58 per cent, much closer to Toronto’s 4.09 per cent.

– by Phinjo Gombu of the Toronto Star

University grads prefer Richmond Hill and Oakville, but Milton has gained the most between 2001 and 2006

The municipalities of Richmond Hill and Oakville have the highest percentages of residents with university degrees, diplomas or certificates in the Greater Toronto Area, according to data from the 2006 census released yesterday by Statistics Canada.

About 42 per cent of the residents in both towns hold university degrees at the bachelor’s level or above. Richmond Hill officials, including deputy mayor Brenda Hogg, expressed surprise at the numbers.

“York Region has always had a high percentage of well-educated residents. I did not realize that so many were situated in Richmond Hill!” Ms. Hogg wrote in an e-mail.

The two municipalities have a greater proportion of university grads than Toronto, where about 37 per cent have degrees. But the big city needn’t feel intellectually inferior - it leapfrogged over Markham for third place in the region.

All four municipalities rank well ahead of the national and provincial averages - only 23 per cent of Canadians hold university degrees, and only 31 per cent of Ontarians.

The booming town of Milton gained the most university grads between the census tallies of 2001 and 2006. About 28 per cent of Milton residents had university degrees in 2006, up from 23 per cent in 2001.

Where the scholars are:

Percentage of residents in 2006 with a university certificate, diploma or degree:

Richmond Hill 42%
Oakville 41.5%
Toronto 37.4%
Markham 36.8%
Aurora 35.8%
Mississauga 33.9%
Vaughan 30.8%
ONTARIO AVERAGE 30.7%
Burlington 30.3%
Milton 28.0%
Newmarket 26.3%
Whitby 24.5%
Pickering 23.7%
CANADIAN AVERAGE 23.0%
Ajax 22.3%
Brampton 21.4%
Caledon 21.3%
Oshawa 12.1%

– By Megan Grittani-Livingston of the Globe and Mail; Source: Statistics Canada

Patricia Eales will take a petition of 8,000 names to a GO Transit board meeting next week. She wants partial refunds when trains are 20 minutes late.

Oakville rider who began online petition criticizing rail service has become a powerful voice for change

They’re late for work and late coming home to pick up the kids from daycare.

Now GO riders are going to be charged more for what many are calling “atrocious” and “abysmal” service, says an Oakville woman who has become the voice of frustrated commuters across the region.

Pat Eales will take an 8,000-name online petition to the March 14 meeting of the GO board of directors. She plans to ask the board to postpone the fare increase planned for March 15 until GO can run its trains on time.

“Most of the people I rode the trains with, we felt our complaints were being dropped into a bottomless bucket. Now at least people think there’s a collective voice,” said Eales yesterday.

The petition asks GO to refund 50 per cent of fares when trains are late by 20 minutes or more, and to provide better notification of delays.

“We don’t mind paying a good fare for a good service. Just give us good service,” she said.

Eales started the petition Feb. 11, after train delays made her late arriving to work five days in a row, at a job she’d only started in November.

A busy single mother, Eales says an earlier train would put her at the office more than an hour ahead of her start time, but she wouldn’t be able to leave early.

Driving doesn’t make sense because by the time she learns of delays, she’s usually on the train platform, having paid her fare.

“There are obviously people who agree with her,” said GO spokesperson Stephanie Sorensen. “GO and the board are taking her concerns very seriously.”

The transit agency reported that 83 per cent of its trains ran on time last year, down from about 90 per cent in 2006.

Although it’s adding 27 faster locomotives that can pull an extra two cars, that won’t have an impact until later this year, after crews are trained and platforms lengthened throughout the system.

The only new locomotive running so far is temporarily assigned to the Lakeshore line.

Twelve-car trains that can accommodate an additional 300 people each won’t be in service until the summer and will be brought onto the Milton line first, Sorensen said.

Eales’s petition has helped “because now people are paying attention to the situation,” said Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn, who has persuaded Queen’s Park to appoint a customer service expert to a vacancy on the GO board.

“We need somebody who knows how to deal with people. We need somebody at the decision-making level looking at this through a customer service lens,” he said.

“You can’t have an economy the size of Toronto’s and not have a good train system. It doesn’t make any sense.

“If you look at any other jurisdiction around the world, it’s just not optional,” said Flynn.

– By Tess Kalinowski, Transportation Reporter for the Toronto Star

UPDATE: GO SAYS NO 11,000 TIMES

Board refuses to grant fare rebates for delayed trains despite petition from dissatisfied riders

They listened, but Pat Eales isn’t convinced GO Transit’s board of directors heard the deafening hue and cry of frustrated commuters demanding better service and a refund when trains are late.

“They just kept bringing up the same old excuses – the weather, the switches – and that it wasn’t their fault,” the Oakville mother of two said after tabling copies of an online petition at yesterday’s board meeting, supported by almost 11,000 dissatisfied riders.

The petition called for a 50 per cent refund on fares when trains are delayed 20 minutes or more. Eales also asked the board to freeze fare hikes until trains run as scheduled.

But her requests fell on deaf ears. A 15-cent-per-ride fare increase on a single adult ticket goes into effect today. Board chair Peter Smith confirmed there will be no refunds, something he said would spell disaster for the system in the throes of a major expansion.

GO Transit relies on the fare box for operating funds, so essentially riders themselves would be picking up the cost of the refunds.

Eales, however, did walk away with assurances that an advisory board will be established to handle service and reliability issues.

Smith later invited Eales to join that committee. She hasn’t yet decided if she will.

A plan for an improved communication system to advise riders of cancellations and delays was also approved.

During her presentation, Eales called on the board to fix glitches, even those that are out of its control. Tracks, switches and crews are under the jurisdiction of CN and CP, which own the rails GO uses.

“Stop thanking us for our patience and apologizing for any inconvenience you may have caused us. `Sorry’ doesn’t help when we are late for work or late home at night.”

Eales, a single mother of two teens who lives in Bronte, told the Star her patience with the transit system ran out in February after GO problems made her late five days in a row for her new job as an executive assistant at a not-for-profit academic research centre. She had tried emailing GO Transit authorities to complain about the system but got the run-around. She filled out a ridership survey but no one contacted her.

Unless the system becomes more reliable, she warned the board, transit users will get back into their cars.

Eales urged riders to take advantage of the “silent rebate” available at the customer service kiosk at Union Station. Staff offer vouchers when riders complain about late or cancelled trains.

With ridership increasing by 10,000 a day over last year, “we’re the victims of our own success,” Smith said in response, noting that improvements are on the horizon to ease the crunch.

About 170,000 people ride the trains on a typical weekday. “We don’t have the capacity on our trains or lines,” he said. “We’re building that capacity, but it takes a long time.”

Frances Chung, GO’s director of financial services, reported on major work underway to improve the aging signal and switching system. A 33-kilometre third track is being built on the Lakeshore corridor from Hamilton to Oshawa to increase capacity and reduce delays. New locomotives capable of pulling 12 cars are coming on board, as are new bi-level coaches. Crew staffing is also being increased.

Eales’ petition is to go to the Ontario Legislature next week.

– by Leslie Ferenc of the Toronto Star