Ontario open to uploading costs of Gardiner Expressway and DVP from Toronto, source says

Ontario is open to taking on the City of Toronto's costs related to maintaining the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway, a provincial government source said Friday. 

The source said discussions about Ontario uploading the busy commuter highways are part of an ongoing working group of provincial and city officials that is hashing out a more sustainable fiscal framework for Toronto, which is facing a $1-billion budget hole and major future financial pressures.

But the source said talks are still in early stages and many options are on the table. The Toronto Star first reported the province may be willing to upload the costs of the highways.

Last year, city staff estimated annual maintenance costs for the two highways adds up to about $16 million per year, while $2.2 billion has been budgeted over the next 10 years for the rehabilitation of the Gardiner.

In an interview with CBC Toronto earlier this month, Mayor Olivia Chow said it would be important to discuss the possibility of Ontario uploading financial responsibility of the highways. 

"Is it fair for the residents of Toronto to pay for highways that are used so much by people living outside the city?" Chow said. 

In a statement Friday, the mayor's press secretary said that the uploading of responsibility is one of many options being considered by the working group.

"Ultimately, the goal is financial sustainability," Arianne Robinson said via email.

During the spring mayoral byelection campaign, former city councillor and eventual runner-up Ana Bailão pledged to have the province take on the highways' cost if she was elected. While Chow promised to tear down the eastern leg of the Gardiner Expressway during the campaign, she recently told CBC Toronto she's pumping the brakes on that plan until negotiations with the province are completed.