(From left to right: MP Adam van Koeverden, Mayor Gord Krantz, Minister Catherine McKenna, MPP Parm Gill, Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr)
Milton is getting a new transit facility.
The announcement was made at the Milton Sports Centre yesterday morning by Milton MP Adam van Koeverden, MPP Parm Gill, Milton Mayor Gordon Krantz, and the Federal Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, Catherine McKenna.
It’s going to be built thanks to investments from the federal and provincial governments. The Government of Canada is investing more than $3.9 million in this project through the Public Transit Infrastructure Stream (PTIS) of the Investing in Canada plan. The Government of Ontario is providing more than $3.2 million. The Town of Milton is also contributing more than $39 million of total built out projected costs over several years.
Milton MP Adam van Koeverden says this is a commitment to improve Milton’s transit system.
He adds that the nearly $4 million from the feds is the most they have ever invested in Milton’s transit, calling it ‘extraordinary’.
van Koeverden says this building could fix several issues across Milton.
Another factor to consider, he says, is the possibility of the Wilfrid Laurier University/Conestoga College-joint campus being built. Should that campus be built, there would be an increase in local students looking to Milton Transit to help get them around the town.
Milton has a history of growing before things can be built. Infrastructure is an ongoing issue in the town, and many residents fear that traffic will only get worse as the Town approves more development. van Koeverden says this investment is a case of Milton trying to catch up to its growth and allows for residents to have an environmentally friendly and cost-efficient way to get where they need to go.
The press conference was also attended by three Milton Councillors: Regional Councillor for Ward 1, Colin Best; Regional Councillor for Ward 3, Mike Cluett; and, Town Councillor for Ward 4, Sameera Ali.
Councillor Cluett says it’s great to see the two levels of government come together to improve Milton.
Councillor Best says this kind of investment gives the Town of Milton a kickstart to build the facility, comparing it to the Milton Sports Centre. They have the plans to build this facility, and now the extra funding will help bring it along in a smoother fashion.
Councillor Ali is happy to see the funding come from the federal government and that it will help Milton Transit; however, she believes all-day GO Transit in Milton is more the route that should’ve been taken.
When asked during the press conference, Milton MPP Parm Gill said that, while the project was initially nominated by the provincial government a while back, he feels COVID-19 had actually slowed down the process. He says there is economic pressure from the pandemic that can’t be ignored, but the provincial government is constantly looking at ways to expedite projects, adding that other projects are being looked over at the moment.
It’s going to take a few years to build this facility. The Town of Milton says “The development of the new transit operations facility is a multi-year project that includes site acquisition, facility design and construction. Sustainable design practices, such as the LEED criteria, will be implemented to build the facility that will have a capacity of 70 conventional and specialized vehicles as well as provide extra space for servicing and maintenance.”
