In my former life as a scribe for The Vancouver Sun, I wrote a story in September 2000 about how gas prices soared to 79.6 cents per litre.
That’s right — soared!
Oh, and that price — 79.6 cents!
Monday morning, I paid 152.9 cents per litre.
Which is perfectly reasonable after 14 years because my salary has doubled, housing prices have plummeted and quality of life for the average Lower Mainlander is just super awesome.
Please forgive the snark.
But as a sagacious friend of the same age continues to tell me, we’ve earned the right to complain because of all those years working for and paying The Man — and spending way too much time in an idling car because transit sucks.
No need to worry, I won’t use this space to rant about gas prices or waiting for buses that never come. Instead, let me tell you how the next 10 years of your life will be even more super awesome when it comes to travelling from A to B.
That’s because once the provincial government adopts and implements a $7.5 billion transit plan, you’ll not only save time on the road but money, too.
What the heck am I talking about?
Well, as many of us media types reported last Thursday, the mayors’ council on regional transportation has got a 10-year plan to prevent us all from transforming into actor Michael Douglas’ character in the movie Falling Down.
Let me break down some of the benefits listed in the plan:
• Provide 70 per cent of Metro Vancouver residents, or 1.5 million more people, with transit service so frequent that a schedule will not be needed. This makes giving up one car a more realistic option for many, with savings of more than $10,000 per year.
• Allow drivers and transit users to save 20 to 30 minutes per day on many of the region’s most congested corridors.
• Keep the economy competitive with faster and more reliable travel and better access to more jobs, workers and markets.
• Save about 200 lives and prevent about 4,000 serious injuries every year.
All sounds good, doesn’t it?
Sure, if the money is there.
As I mentioned in my story last week, $3.9 billion of the $7.5 billion tab must come from senior governments, which already spent big dollars on the Canada Line and ongoing construction of the Evergreen Line.
The plans calls for a $1.9 billion subway under the Broadway corridor and a $2.1 billion light-rail system in Surrey.
The other big ask from the mayors is for the provincial government to reallocate $250 million per year of the B.C. carbon tax, which the government has already balked at.
Tolls for a new Pattullo Bridge in New Westminster, new transit fare revenue from anticipated increased ridership and ongoing property tax and fuel taxes are also part of the scheme.
Then there’s something called “mobility pricing,” which considers charging drivers for distance travelled. Numerous highways across Europe and North America, including Ontario’s Highway 407, already operate such road toll systems.
Which brings me back to the gas pump and this: If the $7.5 billion plan does get implemented — after a referendum, of course — then gas prices should effectively get cheaper.
That’s because the plan says such an investment in transit will “allow us to reduce the fuel sales tax by $0.06 per litre.”
I promise to check on this calculation and the plan’s progress in 10 years. That’s if I’m not stuck in traffic or waiting for a bus. Or moved to another city.
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