Please see below for our submitted comments on the provincial government’s Bill 23, More Homes Built Faster Act.

A summary of the bill (which, as of writing, is moving through parliament) can be viewed here.

A pdf version of this submission can be found here.

Safe Streets Halton is an organization dedicated to the elimination of all traffic-related deaths and serious injuries in Halton Region by enabling residents to safely and comfortably use sustainable and active modes of transportation. The proposed changes to the Planning Act and Development Charges Act (ERO 019-6172) will impact the safety of the streets in Halton Region and beyond.

Development Charges

Municipalities use development charges to fund necessary infrastructure investments. These investments include improvements made to our streets and roads to facilitate the safe movement of people and goods, as well as improvements to transit services. While we are happy to see that the province is willing to help make up for the losses municipalities receive from this change, we want to ensure that funding for transit, pedestrian, and cycling infrastructure will not be negatively impacted by the proposed changes. We are calling on the provincial government to make up for the loss with different funding programs and revenue streams municipalities can use for the safe movement of people.

Parking Requirements

Safe Streets Halton welcomes changes made to the minimum parking requirements, and believes they contribute to auto-dependency and can harm the creation of human-scaled communities. We would like to expand parking requirement maximums to more types of units. Applying parking requirement maximums to mixed-use and commercial/office buildings can encourage walkable, transit-supportive neighbourhoods.

Thank you for taking Safe Streets Halton’s position on this matter into consideration. Should there be any questions or desire for a follow up, do not hesitate to reach out.

Safe Streets Halton is a grass-roots organization on a mission to eliminate all traffic-related deaths and serious injuries in Halton, Ontario.