I rise on a point of order to introduce, from the township of Hastings Highlands, Mayor Tony Fitzgerald and Deputy Mayor Tammy Davis.

Welcome to your House today, folks.

My thanks to the minister for leading off this debate and for presenting this bill before the House.

Speaker, it shouldn’t be news to the members of this House that our government has plans to build a better Ontario. We have the most ambitious capital plan in the province’s history. We’re spending almost $100 billion over the next 10 years to build the highways, the public transit that will keep people and goods moving across this province.

We need to build this infrastructure now, Madam Speaker. It’s not something we can wait around for and hope will magically appear. In fact, it’s never been more urgent. That’s why the Get It Done Act will streamline the approval process for key infrastructure projects. This isn’t a new approach; it builds on the great work that we’ve already accomplished.

The Building Transit Faster Act, tabled by our government, became law in 2020 and allowed us to accelerate the planning and construction of priority transit projects. And, Madam Speaker, we certainly put those powers to use. We now have shovels in the ground on multiple subway and light-rail transit projects that, soon enough, will connect hundreds of thousands of people, more communities across the greater Toronto area, and put tens of thousands of Ontarians within walking distance of public transit.

And, Speaker, we’re not stopping there. Our government will move forward to declare the Hazel McCallion LRT extensions into downtown Brampton and downtown Mississauga as a priority transit project so that we can build this much-needed transit infrastructure faster, expanding access to rapid transit across Peel and the GTA. The Hazel McCallion line and its extensions will transform the way people travel, providing two of Canada’s fastest-growing cities with quicker, more reliable service than existing bus routes. By declaring the Hazel McCallion line extensions a priority transit project, we’re looking toward to the future and building the transit network that Ontario needs now and for years to come.

And if the Get It Done Act passes, we will be able to get to work quickly on other projects that also matter to Ontarians. The Hazel McCallion line extensions will join several other priority transit projects that are currently under way, such as the Ontario Line which will add 15 new stations to Toronto’s Line 1 subway.

The Ontario Line will be a complete game-changer for anyone that takes transit in Toronto. And this is essential, for a city the size of Toronto we need to have more transit options to sustain it. Anyone who takes public transit in Toronto would agree that they’re fed up with overcrowding and limited transit options. Our new subway line will accommodate 40 trains per hour and nearly 400,000 riders per day, offering multiple connections to existing subway stations, streetcars and bus routes.

Our government is all about building quickly—and the Ontario Line will get people moving quickly. Wait times for the next train on the line will be as short as 90 seconds. The Ontario Line will reduce crowding at the TTC’s busiest stations by as much as 15%. This project is the difference between having to miss an important meeting or appointment because you were waiting for the next train. It could be the difference on giving up on public transit altogether.

Our new subway will not only get people moving, it will expand their opportunities, giving them better access to jobs, services and housing. And we already have shovels in the ground on this historic project that will change peoples’ lives. We’re getting started on the process of building the southern portion of the Ontario Line, the Pape tunnel and the underground stations and more. As our population continues to grow, our transportation infrastructure needs to grow with it—and we are getting it done.

Our government doesn’t take a piecemeal approach to transit infrastructure. We have a vision to build an integrated transit network all across the greater Golden Horseshoe, which is expected to grow by five million people over the next 10 years. That means building new transit projects that are integrated into the existing transit, allowing commuters to travel from one municipality to another quickly and safely—and this vision will become a reality, Speaker.

To connect communities and create new travel options for people within the GTA, we cannot ignore the commuters beyond Toronto’s borders. The Yonge North subway extension—another one of our government’s priority transit projects—will revolutionize public transit in the GTA by extending the TTC’s Line 1 up into Richmond Hill. For the North York and York region residents, days of driving to Finch station, parking a car before boarding a subway to downtown Toronto will soon be over.

The Yonge North subway extension will put 26,000 more people within walking distance of public transit and accommodate more than 94,000 daily trips. Commuters will save as much as 40 minutes per day—that’s hours more per week to spend with friends and family doing the things you love. The extension will reduce gridlock by taking cars off the road and offering more transit connections, making travel between York region and Toronto easier than ever, enhancing Ontario’s connectivity as we deliver an integrated transit network for all GTA residents.

The people of Scarborough deserve the same access to fast, reliable transit as the rest of Torontonians. That’s why we’ve declared the Scarborough subway extension a priority project. The Scarborough subway extension will add three stops and almost eight kilometres of new track to the TTC’s Line 2 subway, creating high-speed service for commuters east of the downtown core. Riders will benefit from connections to GO Transit and Durham region transit, making travel across the GTA more seamless than ever. We have an ambitious goal to build one of the most integrated transit networks in North America, and prioritizing this important work will finally allow us to do so.

But our government is doing more than just building subways. Light-rail transit will be essential to the transit network that powers our economy into the future. That’s why we recently issued a request for proposals to design and build the seven stations that will make up the Eglinton Crosstown West extension, which alone will put 37,500 more riders within walking distance of public transit. The extension will connect to existing transit lines, including the TTC, GO Transit and MiWay, offering riders anywhere from Scarborough to Mississauga options to get where they’re going. That is what real progress looks like.

In my brief time at the Ministry of Transportation, I am quickly learning that a world-class integrated transit network requires more than just building transit. It requires seamless and affordable transitions from one transit system to another. Hard-working Ontarians shouldn’t have to pay multiple fares for just one trip just because they’re transferring between transit systems, Speaker. The people of this province deserve better than that.

Our government won’t stand idly by while Ontarians miss out on life-changing opportunities because the cost of transit is too high. That’s why, earlier this year, we very proudly launched the hugely successful One Fare program. This new program, fully funded by our government, means commuters now pay only one fare to transfer between the TTC, GO Transit, Brampton Transit, Durham Region Transit, MiWay and York Region Transit. This is how you create an integrated transit network, Speaker: by not only building transit but by removing the financial barriers to taking transit.

Earlier this week, that program officially hit five million transfers by transit users within the program. This program is saving commuters up to $1,600 per year. These savings are real, especially for post-secondary students, some of whom spend upward of $400 on public transit every month. No one should have to skip a class, pass up a job opportunity or miss out on a family event because the cost of transit is too high. Thanks to One Fare, they no longer have to.

One Fare follows the successful introduction of debit and credit card payments on GO Transit, the UP Express and the TTC. Paying for transit should be easy and smooth, not a nuisance. That’s why you can just tap your debit or your credit card—physical or digital—and you can get to where you’re going to quickly and easily. We also launched Presto on Google Wallet, which gives transit riders even more options for payment. The point here is that it’s never been more convenient or affordable to take transit in Ontario. With the Get It Done Act, our government will be able to take those changes to the next level.

I want to interject a little bit here that it’s not just the Golden Horseshoe and the GTA that are benefiting from this. Rural and small communities are also being supported by this government. Just last Friday I had the opportunity to announce some funding from the gas tax program for four small municipal transit systems in my riding. That $600,000-plus is a game-changer for those small municipalities to continue to have even small communities using transit and off the road.

When so many taxpayers across the province are seeing their hard-earned dollars stretched further and further than ever, it is time that we take decisive action to make life more affordable. That’s why our government has been hard at work to save Ontarians money. The Get It Done Act will allow us to build on all the great work we’ve done so far, Speaker. We’re saying no to tolls on new highways. We’re saying no to fee hikes for drivers’ licences and Ontario photo cards. We’re saying no to putting a price on carbon, but we’re saying yes to building a better Ontario, a connected Ontario that will allow our economy to thrive for generations to come.

We’ve all witnessed the slow pace of development in Ontario, and our government has seen enough of it. The greater Golden Horseshoe will have a population of almost 15 million people by the year 2051. If we don’t act quickly to build new infrastructure, the gridlock on our roadways will only get worse—much, much worse. We can’t have 15 million people stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic when they could be contributing to our economy or spending time with loved ones. We need to roll up our sleeves and get to work today so the people who live in this province in the years ahead can have the amazing life in Ontario that they’ve always dreamed of.

Our government is already using the Building Transit Faster Act to accelerate priority transit projects, but the Get It Done Act, if passed, will allow us to do so much more. It will help us build the highways and the critical infrastructure that we need to support our growing population. It will give municipalities across the province the tools and the support that they require to help us build 1.5 million new homes by the year 2031. And it will allow us to slash through the red tape that is holding us back from building a better Ontario.

Thank you very much, Speaker. At this time, I would like to pass it over to the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks.