Report on road pricing just topic of discussion, for now

Metro Vancouver mayors agree that traffic congestion hurts lifestyles and the economy – but they still haven’t agreed on what to do about it.

The final report from the Mobility Pricing Independent Commission included two options: charging motorists for the distance, or zones they cross, with varying rates throughout the region; or dinging them every time they passed a congestion point, such as Golden Ears or Pitt Meadows bridges.

The recommended fees ranged from $3 to $8 a day.

The report, which was forwarded to TransLink and the Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation, couldn’t settle on one specific tactic and instead decided to let the politicians make the final decision at some point in the future.

That, however, is years down the road and more work has to be done, said Maple Ridge Mayor Nicole Read.

And it’s only the start of figuring out to get people to pay while reducing road congestion.

Read continued to be cautious about the implications for Maple Ridge, whose commuters have longer drives than those in Kitsilano, for example.

“I said to them, that this … is a non-starter for the City of Maple Ridge,” Read said.

The way it moves forward shapes whether it’s going to happen or not, she added.

“People really need to look at this report. It’s really important that people are astute about what’s going on.”

She took issue with a proposed congestion points on the Pitt River and Golden Ears bridges, while the report questions whether congestion charges should go on bridges that cross False Creek into downtown Vancouver.

She also challenged the point in the report that said there’s no point waiting for transit service to improve in outlying areas such as Maple Ridge before implementing road pricing, because people don’t abandon their cars even if transit is improved.

If road pricing was implemented, many people in Maple Ridge have no option but to drive during the busiest times and thus would incur the highest charges.

“They will never be able to change their work patterns. So they’re going to get stuck paying.”

As well, the report notes that traffic has increased on the Golden Ears and Port Mann bridges after the tolls were removed last September, but doesn’t mention a resulting decrease on the Mary Hill Bypass.

The new NDP government removed tolls from the Golden Ears and Port Mann bridges last September.

Read admitted road pricing won’t be coming soon and likely not before the next provincial election.

“It would be really strange for the NDP government to remove the tolls, and to see a point charge be applied back to the bridge.”

In a release last week, the Mobility Pricing Independent Commission said its eight-month study found that charging fees could reduce traffic congestion in the region by up to 25 per cent, while providing revenues to allow for improvements to roads and transit.

It also said that mobility pricing could:

• reduce traffic congestion in Metro Vancouver by up to 25 per cent;

• introduce a fairer way of paying for transportation;

• reduce or eliminate the need for fuel taxes and other charges;

• and allow for ongoing improvement of transportation by providing a stable source of revenue to match provincial and federal funding.