Finance committee  Okay, I'll take 10 of those just to thank you all for your support of Bill S-221 on crimes against transit employees. Thank you so much.

Finance committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Honourable members of the committee, we are extremely grateful for the opportunity to appear before you today. The Canadian Urban Transit Association, or CUTA, is the collective voice of Canada's public transit and integrated mobility sector. I'd like to begin by highlighting that over the last decade, all orders of government have recognized the importance of public transit by increasing their investment in this strategic sector.

Finance committee  Yes, thanks so much for the question. I'll make one point of clarification before I respond. There's been a lot of talk in previous years about Canada being the only G-8 country without a national transit plan. That's not entirely true. We've done some broad-based research in the last couple of years to look around the G-8 and beyond and find out what's actually out there.

Finance committee  We do, absolutely, and I can enumerate a couple of them. First, I think the linkage that Mr. Masse mentioned earlier about land use and urban development is critical. If we're to get a strong return on investment for Canadians in terms of the transportation infrastructure that we build, then that infrastructure needs to be aligned with the urban development that's taking place on the ground.

Finance committee  We're not particularly concerned about the source of it. We're more concerned about dedicating the investment to areas that will benefit all Canadians in terms of their day-to-day mobility in their communities. Recognizing the fiscal challenge we're up against right now, we've been very modest in terms of that request and focused more on tax policy and planning as a way of making sure we have our foundation right before we overextend ourselves financially.

Finance committee  I must say—and that's an excellent question—that I am always amazed at what's actually out there and what the needs are that we don't see on the surface. I remember not long ago attending a municipalities association meeting in western Canada and talking to municipal councillors from small communities under 1,000 people about their mobility needs.

Finance committee  There's no question the needs in small-town or rural Canada are enormous. They're going to increase as the population ages in the next generation, and there definitely needs to be some work done in developing policy to help emerging mobility needs in small communities across this country.

Finance committee  I might just add to that, we do have a very strong Canadian-based public transit vehicle manufacturing industry in this country with the world's largest rail rolling stock manufacturer and three of the largest bus manufacturers in North America based here in Canada. You're quite right, Mr.

Finance committee  Five cents from excise tax goes to municipalities for local infrastructure, and we're recommending one more.

Finance committee  In conclusion, the transit industry fully recognizes our significant economic challenges. The challenge for policymakers here is that while spending constraints are real, transit is a key economic driver for the Canadian economy and has very tangible impacts on our economic competitiveness.

Finance committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Bonjour. My name is Michael Roschlau and I'm the president and CEO of the Canadian Urban Transit Association, which represents public transit systems, suppliers, and affiliates across the country. With me is Penny Williams, CUTA vice-chair of finance and general manager of Transit Windsor.

Finance committee  In terms of the current credit, which was introduced three or four years ago, I have no exact statistics, unfortunately. That would have to be requested.

Finance committee  That's an excellent question. In fact in 80% of the cases where employees receive free parking from their employer, this is a non-taxable benefit. That is because, by law, there is a clause that states that if the parking spot is not reserved or guaranteed, it is not taxable. So, an inequity currently exists between the tax treatment of the parking benefit and that of public transit.

Finance committee  It's clearly an improvement. Currently, the federal government provides approximately $1 billion annually. If we do the math for all current programs, this equals approximately doubling the federal investment. We would make the same request of the other three levels of government, the provinces and territories or municipalities in order to make up for the shortfall.

Finance committee  Merci, monsieur le président. Thank you very much. Ladies and gentlemen, it goes without saying that public transit supports the access of Canadians to jobs, to schools, to shopping, and to recreation. But transit is also emerging as a key solution to economic competitiveness, urban congestion, clean air, and healthy living.