

Chris Fox, CP24.com





Representatives from transit agencies, automobile manufacturers and environmental groups are all gathering in Toronto today for a series of panel discussions on how to build a “greener, healthier” city.

The Green Cities 2017 breakfast is being hosted by the Transit Alliance with the stated goal of determining how to build an “environmentally effective city.”

The event, which is taking place at the Toronto Reference Library, will include panel discussions on transit and infrastructure as well as keynote speech from Chief Planner Jennifer Keesmaat.

“In many ways the most classic modes of transportation are standing the test of time,” Keesmaat told CP24 on Wednesday morning. “We need to strike the right balance with walkable communities, cycling, streetcars and light rail transit. We can increase the number of people we can move around the city if we get the mix of uses right.”

Some of the attendees at the meeting include Metrolinx CEO Bruce McCuaig, Ontario Environment Commissioner Dr. Dianne Saxe and Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner.

Representatives from the auto sector are also in attendance to discuss how their industry could fit into a changing city and world.

“Right now is kind of an incredible period of technology change in the automobile industry. Things will change more in the next five years than it has in the last 50,” GM Canada’s Vice President of Corporate and Environmental Affairs David Paterson told CP24. “We are making a move to electric vehicles, we are moving to autonomous or self-driving cars and we are adapting to the sharing economy. Instead of owning a vehicle in downtown Toronto you might just have an app where you can access a pool of GM cars and just book time on them.”