Work will soon be getting underway on a $500,000 plan that will help guide Halton Hills' transportation needs out to 2051.
Town council approved the development of a new Mobility Master Plan (formerly known as a Transportation Master Plan) during its meeting this week, but not before hearing from several local residents who packed council chambers.
The delegates raised concerns about the plan, which also sparked much debate around the council table during the July meeting as well.
Some of the residents took issue with the cost of developing the plan and its name change from 'transportation' to 'mobility.'
Many heavily expressed fears that the plan will somehow lead to the restriction of people's mobility, surveillance systems and a '15-minute city' - an urban planning concept that aims to place everything a person needs within 15 minutes of their home. But this concept of convenience has also given rise to a conspiracy theory that governments will one day force people to stay within a 15-minute radius of their home.
In responding to the residents, Councillor Jane Fogal said, “The only thing we're talking about is providing people with more options – if they choose to walk, or ride their bike, or drive their car or buy a truck – they can do all of those things. That’s our vision, is that people will simply have more choices.
"That's the end of it. That's what mobility means to us. All this other business about restrictions - we have no intention whatsoever of ever going down that road."
She also said there's nothing in the Town's documents that suggests any such restrictions will be implemented. Mayor Ann Lawlor and Councillor Jason Brass added their voices in reassuring the attendees about the nature of the plan.
Later in the meeting, Councillor D’Arcy Keene also raised concerns about restrictions on mobility and called for ensuring “the primacy of the privately-owned automobile” as the main source of transportation for the community.
The most recent Transportation Master Plan for Halton Hills was adopted in 2011 and is a document that guides the Town’s policies on how to move people. With new realities on the ground – such as population and employment growth – a new plan is required.
The Town says the Mobility Master Plan will look at enhancing mobility for all forms of transportation, whether it's driving personal vehicles, cycling, walking or public transit.
Much like during the July meeting, council members debated the merits suggested in the staff report on the plan. In particular, Councillor Joseph Racinsky continued his objections to the preliminary thoughts listed in the vision and values section of the plan's draft terms of reference, such as ones that say it will “encourage alternative forms of transportation such as walking, cycling, and public transit” and “reduce dependency on passenger vehicles.”
He said he doesn't think it's appropriate to include these statements before extensive public consultation is conducted and suggested removing them, which some other councillors disagreed with, but the majority of council ultimately directed staff to delete them.
Similar talking points were unchanged in other parts of the report.
The Town will now be issuing a request for proposal to find a consultant to help prepare the plan.
Following that, Town staff hopes to get the project underway this fall and finalized by spring 2026, with extensive public consultation planned during that time.
-with files from Melanie Hennessey