A coalition of strange bedfellows will encourage Metro Vancouver residents to vote “yes” in an upcoming transit referendum.
The Better Transit and Transportation Coalition, announced December 10, is made up of business groups, unions and environmental organizations.
They say they are united in urging voters to support a $7.5 billion transit plan put forward by TransLink’s Mayors’s Council, even though it may mean a hike in sales tax or a carbon tax to pay for the improvements.
“It’s easy to be mad at TransLink but this is not about TransLink: this is about the movement of goods and services,” said John Winter, president and CEO of the BC Chamber of Commerce.
The Mayors’ Council is expected to meet and then reveal the transit referendum question on December 11. It is expected to be a yes or no question involving an extra tax or fee, possibly either a regional sales tax or regional carbon tax, to fund the plan. The mayors also expect provincial and federal funds to cover $3.9 billion of the plan.
Winter acknowledged that asking people to pay more for transit will be a tough sell, but he said the funds should be viewed as an investment that will pay off for the region in the future.
“We’re already amongst the highest cost of living in the world,” Winter said.
“By ignoring this and not contributing and not investing … we’re only going to see those costs continue to grow and escalate.”
The province has stood firm on its requirement to hold a transit funding referendum, despite opposition from regional mayors, who have repeatedly pointed out that referendums were not held prior to decisions to replace the Port Mann bridge or Massey tunnel.
In October, Premier Christy Clark told a Vancouver Board of Trade audience that campaigning would be up to the mayors. But last week, Transportation Minister Todd Stone said he would support the yes side.
The new coalition doesn’t currently have any funds earmarked for campaigning for the yes side, but every organization involved plans to contribute in-kind resources and staff time to the campaign, said Ian Bruce, manager of science and policy for the David Suzuki Foundation.
“We have about a million more people moving to the Lower Mainland in the coming years, and investing in the transportation network is one of the most important decisions we can make to improve our communities and improve quality of life,” Bruce said. “This issue is so important that it cuts across politics.”
Besides the BC Chamber of Commerce and David Suzuki Foundation, other members of the coalition include the Downtown Surrey Business Improvement Area, Unifor and the Vancouver Board of Trade.
@jenstden
