As part of its plan to deliver long-term sustainable transportation and better transit, the McGuinty Government introduced legislation to create the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority on April 24, 2006. 

The Greater Toronto Transportation Authority was created to play a critical role in planning for a seamless, integrated transit network so that people can use public transit to travel easily from Hamilton to Newmarket to Oshawa.

The province’s transit and transportation problems and solutions are inter-regional in nature and cross municipal boundaries. The region is in need of a comprehensive, long-term approach to make sure we have better transit and transportation systems in place in order to make growth happen. 

Crucial to this, is the development of a Regional Transportation Plan, for a seamless, integrated transportation network. 

In spring 2007, the Board members were nominated for terms of up to three years. The Greater Toronto Transportation Act. 2006 stipulates that the Board comprise 11 members, two nominated by the Province and the others nominated by regional and municipal councils in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. 

Transportation challenges

The Greater Toronto Area occupies less than one per cent of Ontario's land area. But nearly half of the province's 12.5 million residents live in the region.  

The 400-series highways that pass through this area are some of the busiest in North America. Much of the $900 million in two-way trade that crosses the Ontario / US border every day travels on these roads and delays threaten our prosperity.

As well, it is estimated that in the next 25 years there will be an increase of nearly two million vehicles in the greater Toronto and surrounding area. The amount of time spent stuck in traffic could increase by four times and drive the cost of congestion as high as $28 million a day.

The Golden Horseshoe area is estimated to grow by another 3.7 million people over the next 25 years.