Ontario Construction News staff writer
Construction is the biggest cause of traffic congestion in the City of Toronto and “continues to be the most exacerbating factor towards congestion in the city,” according to a new staff report presented to the infrastructure and environment committee on Wednesday.
“Construction is the single biggest contributor to congestion on our roads,” Mayor Olivia Chow wrote on X following a news conference on Wednesday. “It’s a sign of a growing, thriving city, but it’s also frustrating for everyone trying to get around Toronto. That’s why today’s committee is considering some big moves to improve things.”
One way that the city is looking at attacking the issue is by changing the fee for what’s known as the Road Disruption Activity Reporting System, or RoDARS.
Previously, a contractor needed to pay a permit fee, but now they will be charged a daily fee calculated per metre of roadway take up. The rate is also impacted by the type of roadway the construction project is impacting.
Chow highlighted an example of a utility contractor that was charged less than $5,000 under the old system for the two lanes taken out of service on Lake Shore Boulevard for about a month. Under the new system, the mayor said that same contractor would be charged $280,000.
Construction companies must now pay $76.51 to submit an application to occupy a roadway due to construction and $40.71 for every 50 metres, per lane, per day.
“Under our new system, every day this company closes down the Lake Shore, they will pay more. The faster they do the work, the less they pay. And if it takes the entire month for two lanes of traffic on Lake Shore, it will cost them right now, $287,000,” Chow said.
“The faster they do the work, the less they pay,” she said.
However, Michael Giles, representing the Residential Construction Council of Ontario warned the additional costs will be passed on to potential homebuyers and could add another chill to housing starts.
“While it may seem like a small amount, it’s simply another fee that’s being added onto the cost of building,” he said, speaking = at the city’s Infrastructure and Environment Committee meeting.
This summer, the city will also be installing automated enforcement cameras to begin measuring other road-related infractions, like drivers who “block the box” at intersections. Issuing tickets still needs provincial approval, which the city has been lobbying for, so the cameras will only be gathering information.
Additional moves the city is considering to address congestion include:
- Coordination across projects and City divisions to efficiently get projects done faster
- Increased fees for blocking a lane of traffic so construction finishes sooner and major arterial lanes reopen
- Hiring more traffic agents to help at more intersections across the city
While Toronto’s 5,600 kilometres of roadway haven’t been expanded in decades, the Toronto’s population grew by more than 125,000 people between 2022 and 2023 and vehicle registrations since 2014 have gone up by 26 per cent
Toronto has been hiring traffic agents to help clear traffic “blocking the box” at several busy intersections and the program will be expanded this year to include 16 locations and 100 agents.
Chow previously called the traffic agents the city’s “secret weapon” in fighting congestion and noted that they’ve helped to move streetcars along King Street three times faster. The report also recommends the city consider increasing the fees associated with private construction that results in blocking a road.
Deputy Mayor Mike Colle was also at the Wednesday morning news conference and said he too was stuck in traffic on the way to city hall.
“We’re trying to make it better. And there is no magic bullet, that’s for damn sure. But we all got to do our part, and that’s why, if we all pitch in together, with our traffic agents, with our companies that are in construction, with the citizens in Toronto, we just all got to be part of the solution,” he said.
A chart detailing the city’s efforts in fighting traffic congestion is included in a staff report that will go before the infrastructure and environment committee on April 9, 2025. (City of Toronto)
