July 20, 1998

Ms. Novina Wong

Clerk

City of Toronto

7th Floor, Metro Hall

55 John Street

Toronto, Ontario

M5V 3C6

Dear Ms. Wong:

At its meeting on Wednesday, July 15, 1998, the Commission considered the attached report entitled, "Park 'N' Ride Metropass."

The Commission received Recommendation No. 1 contained in the above report, as listed below:

"1.Receive this report for information, noting that the TTC will be developing the concept of a "Park 'N' Ride" Metropass to encourage higher ridership amongst current users of the TTC who have access to a car, but choose to take transit for some of their trips";

The Commission amended Recommendation No. 2 by adding thereto the words "together with staff of the Toronto Parking Authority," so that such Recommendation reads as follows:

"2.Forward this report to the Urban Environment and Development Committee requesting that:

• City of Toronto staff together with staff of the Toronto Parking Authority report on City owned and commercial parking lots near subway stations (including location, price and usage);

• TTC staff and City of Toronto staff initiate discussions with the auto insurance industry to determine insurance premium reductions for Park 'N' Ride passholders";

The Commission also amended Recommendation No. 3 by adding thereto the words "with such meeting to include the Chair of the Toronto Transit Commission and Commissioner Miller," so that such Recommendation reads as follows:

"3.Forward this report to the Office of the Mayor, City of Toronto, requesting a meeting be held with the Federal Minister of Transportation and Federal representatives from the City of Toronto to pursue a change in the tax status of employer-provided transit passes, with such meeting to include the Chair of the Toronto Transit Commission and Commissioner Miller."

In addition, the Commission approved the following:

1.That staff report on the issue of video surveillance at TTC Commuter Parking Lots for the dual purpose of allowing Transit Control to report to the public on the available capacity at the lots, as well as, the issue of reducing thefts from automobiles;

2.That this issue regarding the Park 'N' Ride Metropass be referred to the Customer Service and Ride Ability Task Force once it is established; and

3.That this report be forwarded to the Toronto Parking Authority to look at parking rates, including public transit levies, locations and usage in the downtown area.

The foregoing is forwarded to the City Urban Environment and Development Committee, the Mayor's Office, City of Toronto and the Toronto Parking Authority for appropriate action, as detailed above.

Sincerely,

Vincent Rodo

General Secretary

1-64

Attachment

Copy:His Worship Mayor M. Lastman, City of Toronto

Mr. M. Anderson, President, Toronto Parking Authority

TORONTO TRANSIT COMMISSION

REPORT NO.

MEETING DATE:July 15, 1998

SUBJECT:PARK 'N' RIDE METROPASS

RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that the Commission:

1.Receive this report for information, noting that the TTC will be developing the concept of a "Park 'N' Ride" Metropass to encourage higher ridership amongst current users of the TTC who have access to a car, but choose to take transit for some of their trips;

2.Forward this report to the Urban Environment and Development Committee requesting that:

CCity of Toronto staff report on City owned and commercial parking lots near subway stations (including location, price and usage);

CTTC staff and City of Toronto staff initiate discussions with the auto insurance industry to determine insurance premium reductions for Park 'N' Ride passholders; and

3.Forward this report to the Office of the Mayor, City of Toronto, requesting a meeting be held with the Federal Minister of Transportation and Federal representatives from the City of Toronto to pursue a change in the tax status of employer-provided transit passes.

FUNDING

The funding implications of the Park 'N' Ride Metropass will be determined as the concept is fully developed. It is anticipated that this initiative will result in a net gain in revenues for the TTC, as a result of attracting more ridership to transit.

BACKGROUND

The implications for Canada of implementing the Kyoto Protocol on Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) is a 21% reduction in emissions from current trends (see attached). A comparison of transportation modes shows that the urban car is by far the most significant source of GHG;

the urban car emits almost 60 million tonnes of GHG while public transit emits one million tonnes of GHG. Reducing automobile emissions is therefore an essential part of efforts to achieve the Kyoto targets.

There are three ways to reduce automobile emissions: (i) reduce the number of cars; (ii)increase emission controls; and (iii) reduce the trip length of the automobile. Reducing the number of cars is unlikely due to the overall importance of the automobile industry to the Provincial economy. Increasing emission controls may be difficult to achieve and/or cost prohibitive to implement. Reducing the trip length of the automobile has the greatest potential to reduce emissions. This is supported by TTC market research with residents of Toronto that demonstrates that, given the right incentives, people would be willing to get out of their cars and onto transit for at least part of their trip.

It is estimated that for automobiles parked at suburban subway stations, vehicle emissions would be reduced 30% to 70% each work day.

DISCUSSION

Recent market studies have shown that the TTC's growth market is the 'choice' rider (one who has access to a car whenever needed). The choice user currently accounts for 60% of TTC ridership. However, we have only penetrated about one-third of the trips taken by this market compared to almost 100% of the captive market (i.e. those people who do not have access to a car). Therefore, the potential for ridership growth is greatest amongst the choice users.

Interviews with choice users indicate that they like to use their car, but are frustrated by traffic congestion and the cost of parking. They choose to take transit because they believe the TTC has a competitive advantage over the car in terms of: (i) free (or lower cost) parking; and (ii) the speed and convenience of rapid transit to downtown.

There is potential to increase ridership amongst choice users by developing a program to provide for convenient park and ride trips which offer the advantages of both car and transit. The TTC is reviewing the concept of a "Park 'N' Ride" Metropass to tap into this market. This pass would provide free parking at suburban subway locations, and allow a convenient transfer to the subway and a ride downtown. Cross-promotions would be developed to enhance the attractiveness of the Park 'N' Ride pass for potential users. For example, passholders could be entitled to a discount on their automobile insurance premiums to reflect that they are using their car less.

The competitive advantage of the Park 'N' Ride Metropass (and other TTC passes) would be significantly increased by allowing employers to provide passes as a non-taxable benefit. The application of current tax laws tends to be inequitable, as employer-provided transit passes are normally taxed, while parking spaces provided to employees are usually not treated as a taxable benefit.

Even with a change to the tax laws for transit passes, one of the keys to developing the park and ride market is the TTC's ability to offer parking at rapid transit stations. However, there is limited space available at existing commuter parking lots; usage rates are 90% or higher at 16 of 23 commuter lots. Demand for commuter parking is also expected to increase with the continued economic and employment growth that is forecast for Toronto and the GTA.

Overall, the Park 'N' Ride Metropass program requires three major elements to be successful:

1.an increase in parking capacity at subway stations;

2.a discount on car insurance from the insurance industry; and

3.a change to Federal tax laws to allow employer-provided transit passes to be considered a non-taxable benefit.

The following action is needed to make progress in these areas and to begin the process of turning the Park 'N' Ride Metropass concept into reality:

1.City of Toronto staff to report on City owned and commercial parking lots near subway stations (including location, capacity, price and usage);

2.TTC staff to conduct a similar assessment of TTC commuter parking lots;

3.the Mayor's Office to meet with Federal Minister of Transportation and federal representatives from the City of Toronto to pursue a change in the tax status of employer-provided transit passes; and

4.City of Toronto and TTC staff to initiate discussions with the auto insurance industry to determine auto insurance premium reductions for Park 'N' Ride passholders.

JUSTIFICATION

Market research has indicated a potential growth market for park and ride trips by 'choice' users of the transit system. The Park 'N' Ride Metropass program is being developed to provide an incentive to encourage higher ridership amongst this group. The program would also contribute to an overall reduction in automobile trip length and emissions by stopping the use of the car outside the downtown area. For every free parking space provided at a subway location, car trip lengths and emissions would be reduced by 30% to 70%. This would be a tangible step towards achieving the targeted reduction in Greenhouse Gas Emissions established in the Kyoto Protocol.

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June 26, 1998

3-58-58

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