T R A N S P O RTAT I O N TO M O R R O W S U R V E Y

DURHAM OUT-COMMUTESRachael Williams

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GREATER TORONTO & HAMILTON AREA

C H A R A C T E R D E V E L O P M E N T

Preserving ambiance

O N E M O R E S TAT I O NExtending Yonge subway

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ith modest land prices and large swaths of vacant employment

land along 400-series highways, Durham Region has the resources to drive economic growth. But according to a recent transportation survey, residents continue to drive out of Durham Region for work. The Transportation Tomorrow Survey (TTS), presented to regional council on April 2, revealed a disproportionate population to jobs ratio in Durham, resulting in an increasing amount of residents out-commuting to Toronto, Peel and York regions for work. Additionally, Durham residents are increasingly reliant on automobiles to commute to work during peak hours, leading to increased road congestion, greenhouse gas emissions and an unhealthy live-work balance. Conducted every five years coinciding with the Statistics Canada census, the TTS collects travel information from

households in the GTHA and surrounding communities. Administered by R.A. Malatest and Associates Ltd. and Data Management Group for the Ministry of Transportation, data collected by the TTS is used to guide transportation policy development and strategic planning, including regional and area municipal transportation master plans, development charge background studies and travel demand forecasting models.

The survey findings indicate that while the overall number of work trips has steadily increased from 2006 to 2016, more than half of Durham residents (53 per cent) are travelling out of the region for employment. Of those out-commuters, 86 per cent are reliant on personal vehicles to reach their destinations. This figure is comparatively smaller in Peel and York regions, which range from 76 per cent to 80 per cent respectively.

“We seem to have no trouble attracting housing and people to the region,” said Durham Region economic development and tourism director Simon Gill. But the economic investment has been slow to come. From 2006 to 2016, Durham’s population grew from 539,000 in 2006 to 634,600 in 2016. Employment, on the other hand, has only grown from 185,000 in 2006 to 192,500 in 2016. The jobs to population ratio has been steadily decreasing over the past decade according to the report, slowing from 34 per cent in 2006 to 30 per cent in 2016. “It’s critical that we get the message out about our competitiveness, about the value proposition that we have to offer to other developers and businesses around the GTHA and abroad,” said Gill. Durham has roughly 30 million square feet of industrial gross floor area, which equates

Map shows that the majority of work trips made within Durham Region are by vehicle, while 71 per cent of residents travelling to downtown Toronto are more reliant on public transit.

SOURCE: DURHAM REGION

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to 3 per cent of the GTHA. Industrial net market rents average $6.04 per square foot, marginally lower than the GTHA average. It also has some of the lowest employment land prices, utility costs and industrial development charges. The region also offers strategic access to major 400-series highways, as well as the Port of Oshawa to facilitate the international movement of goods and products. However, between 2011 and 2017 the industrial employment base contracted by 1.4 per cent, while other GTHA municipalities including Halton, Hamilton, York and Peel experienced growth between 3 and 8 per cent. The region also experienced slow growth in office development, accounting for only 1 per cent of new major office development between 2011 and 2017. Peel, Halton and York regions had 25 per cent, 12 per cent and 11 per cent growth in major office developments during that same time period respectively. Ajax-Pickering Board of Trade transportation task force chair Chris Vale said the region is hampered by its geography, as it is one of the farthest GTHA communities from a U.S. border crossing, which leads to longer import-export

lead times. Distance to Toronto Pearson International Airport and lack of alternative cargo opportunities on the east side of the GTHA is also a competitive shortcoming. Vale told NRU expanding the Lakeshore East GO train line from Oshawa to Bowmanville would allow for greater connectivity into the region and create upwards of 15,000 jobs along the corridor. Building a second international airport in Pickering would also provide much-needed opportunities for warehousing and logistics companies. He recommends removing road tolls on Highway 412

and completing the Durham BRT, a 36-kilometre bus rapid transit route along Highway 2 that would provide direct transit connectivity between downtown Oshawa, Whitby, Ajax, Pickering and the Scarborough Town Centre. The Transit Project Assessment Process is anticipated to begin in 2019. “I think we all need to speak with one unified voice in the business community and speak up for some of the projects that we’re looking for in terms of investment there in transportation and getting people moving,” Vale said. Gill told NRU access to market-ready employment land has also been a challenge for the region. The region has 1,800 acres of vacant, shovel-ready employment land, but only 490 acres are available for market. He attributes this lack of market-ready land to

the fact that private owners are reluctant to sell, anticipating higher future land values. Servicing also has been an issue, with water and sanitary sewer services not being provided at the same time, if at all. “We are looking at every legal available option to us right now to increase our competitiveness and our supply of employment land. That includes evaluating financing options for servicing parcels of land,” said Gill. The region is in the midst of a strategy that will seek to identify “quick wins” to accelerate certain economic development projects and increase the region’s investment-readiness. “We’re just kicking that project off internally right now, but the goal is to more rapidly increase our investment readiness, specifically in our ability to offer serviced employment lands to inbound investors,” he said. With economic development inextricably linked to transit, Durham Region’s principal planner Chis Leitch said the region has made strides in its transportation strategy. This includes the launch of PULSE, a frequent bus rapid transit service that runs along Highway 2, from downtown Oshawa to Scarborough. The region also has increased service on high frequency routes, in addition to the expanded GO service on the Lakeshore East line. Despite the increased

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Figure shows 86 per cent of Durham Region residents rely on vehicles as their primary mode of travel throughout the week, while only 6 per cent use public transit according to 2016 statistics. These statistics are relatively consistent across all Durham Region municipalities.

From 2006 to 2016, the number of work trips occurring within Durham Region as a percentage of total trips has decreased from 53 per cent to 48 per cent, while the number of work trips made outside of the region has increased from 46 per cent to 50 per cent.

SOURCE: DURHAM REGION CONTINUED PAGE 9

VAUGHAN DESIGN REVIEW PANEL AGENDA

The panel will consider the following matters at its meeting Thursday, April 25 at 9:00 a.m. in committee room 243, city hall.

9:30 A.M.

Promenade Shopping Centre—Panel will undertake its second review of Promenade Limited Partnership’s proposed high-rise mixed-use development at the Promenade Shopping Centre. The proposal

incorporates two residential towers—30 and 35 storeys—connected by a six-storey podium, as well as a 23-storey mixed-use office and hotel tower. Presentations will be made by Vaughan senior planner Mary Caputo and urban designer Gilda Giovane, as well as WZMH Architects principal David Moore and Schollen & Company principal Paul Nodwell.

10:55 A.M.

4-24 Lansdowne Avenue—Panel will undertake its first review of Avalee (Vaughan) Inc.’s proposed mixed-use mid-rise development at 4-24 Lansdowne Avenue. The proposal incorporates a 12-storey mid-rise residential building with at-grade retail. Presentations will be made

by Vaughan urban designer Misha Bereznyak and planner Clement Messere, as well as MHBC Planning partner Eldon Theodore, Diamond Schmitt Architects architect Derek Bonnett, and GSP Group senior landscape architect Brian Roth.

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Left: Rendering of Promenade Limited Partnership’s proposed revitalization of the Promenade Shopping Centre in Vaughan.

SOURCE: CITY OF VAUGHANARCHITECT: WZMH ARCHITECTS

Right: Rendering of Avalee (Vaughan) Inc.’s proposed 12-storey mixed-use development on Lansdowne Avenue, Vaughan.

SOURCE: CITY OF VAUGHANARCHITECT: DIAMOND SCHMITT ARCHITECTS

service, the TTS notes only a modest increase in transit usage, from 5 per cent in 2006 to 6 per cent in 2016. In the northern municipalities (Brock, Scugog, Uxbridge), this number decreases to between 1

and 3 per cent. “We have some bus-only lanes now in Pickering and Ajax. The idea is to expand that and go into Whitby and Oshawa....The Transportation Master Plan also recommends

rapid transit, so bus lanes, in sections of Simcoe Street, which is another important corridor for us, as it serves Durham College and the Ontario Technical University (UOIT),” said Leitch. The region also approved a cycling master plan in 2017 that includes the creation of dedicated bike lanes to be built in tandem with the capital roads program. According to the survey, “other” modes of transportation—cycling,

walking, taxi, school bus—are used by 8 per cent of Durham residents, a trend that has held steady since 2006. Leitch said he is hopeful the regional cycling plan will help to increase this number and reverse auto-dependency in Durham.

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