The mandate for the Environmental Task Force was transferred to the Sustainability Roundtable and then to the Roundtable on the Environment. The following material is provided for archival purposes.

Sustainable Transportation (S.T.) Working Group

Minutes:

Councillor Jack Layton, Chair, Environmental Task Force, made introductory welcomes and outlined a series of 8 meetings for this Working Group. Councillor Layton noted that Councillor Jane Pitfield would act as Co-Chair to the S.T. Working Group.

With respect to the issue of sustainable transportation, Councillor Layton discussed the concern of the doubling of CO2 emissions in the near future. He further noted that this Working Group would present the opportunity of putting forward specific policies and a framework of sustainable transportation in a coherent plan to City Council.

A "go-around" of brief introductions by those in attendance at the meeting was undertaken.

Councillor Layton advised that the mandate of the S.T. Working Group was to provide content that City Council could adopt in its Official Plan and to explore the possibility of enacting a Sustainable Transportation By-law.

Sue Zielinski then took the floor and referred to the handout "What Is Sustainable Transportation, Anyway?". The Short Answer was revised to read:

• moving people and goods in cleaner, greener, safer, healthier, more equitable ways
• where possible, not moving people or goods.

It was noted that the S.T. Working Group’s final report will be forwarded to the Environmental Task Force, so that elements of the report will be recommended for adoption by City Council and integrated with the City of Toronto Official Plan and the City of Toronto Strategic Plan.

Remarks were expressed that no official representation from the Toronto Transit Commission or the Toronto District School Board was present at the meeting. (Note to minutes: representatives from the TTC had been invited to attend the meeting.) Sue Zielinski suggested that any players who were not at the meeting, but had expressed an interest to attend to those participants present, should forward their name and email address to Debbie Bernardi, Works & Emergency Services (dbernard@toronto.ca>).

Sue Zielinski then handed out the "Homework" sheets, with a request that they be filled out and faxed back on or before Monday, February 8, 1999.

A brief rundown of the handout "Current Policy Context Related To Sustainable Transportation (Winter, 1999)" was then undertaken.

Councillor Layton suggested that the comments that were being expressed at the meeting should be incorporated into the "Homework" recommendations.

By a show of hands, it was decided than an alternating day/night schedule of meetings would be implemented. In this regard, please refer to the attached Schedule of Meetings - Sustainable Transportation Working Group.

The meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m.

Enclosure