A strong majority of Torontonians say they approve of implementing tolls on the DVP and the Gardiner Expressway to pay for transit and infrastructure, according to a new poll released Monday.
The Mainstreet Research poll, which was conducted on behalf of the Transit Alliance, surveyed 2,280 Toronto voters and asked respondents about three possible revenue streams to help pay for transit and infrastructure projects, including road tolls, a property tax hike and a Toronto sales tax.
When inquiring about tolls, the pollster wrote, “Proponents of road tolls for the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway say road tolls would force non-City of Toronto resident to pay their fair share, critics say road tolls are a unnecessary tax hike. Do you approve or disapprove of introducing tolls on the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway to pay for transit & infrastructure?”
In response to the question, 70 per cent of Toronto voters said they support road tolls while just 25 per cent said they disapprove of the idea.
Support for tolls was strongest downtown, with 77 per cent support. In Etobicoke, 61 per cent said they would support road tolls to fund infrastructure and transit and in Scarborough, 68 per cent supported the idea.
The other two possible revenue tools presented to respondents were not as popular.
When approaching the topic of a Toronto sales tax, the pollster told respondents that proponents of the tax believe it would be a “sustainable progressive tax that would affect residents based on how much they spend.”
The respondents were also told that critics of the tax argue it would “move sales outside the city and that the city of Toronto doesn’t have the authority to introduce a sales tax.”
When asked about their support for such a tax, only 21 per cent of those surveyed said they would be in favour of it.
Addressing the possibility of a property tax increase, Mainstreet told respondents that those in favour of a hike say Toronto’s property taxes are “low compared to the rest of the GTA.” Critics, according to the pollster, say increasing property taxes would “price residents out of the city.”
When questioned about their support for a property tax hike, 32 per cent of respondents said they would support it to pay for transit and infrastructure.
Asked to choose their preferred option between the three revenue streams, 65 per cent said they preferred tolls while only 13 per cent preferred a property tax hike and just six per cent said they would choose a Toronto sales tax.
The poll, which was conducted on Nov. 25, is considered accurate plus or minus 2.05 per cent, 19 times out of 20.
The survey comes less than a week after Mayor John Tory announced his support for tolling the two major Toronto roadways.
Another poll conducted by Forum Research on Nov. 24 found that Torontonians are more divided about the idea of tolling the Gardiner and DVP.
That poll found that of 730 respondents, 46 per cent approved implementing tolls on the busy highways to fund infrastructure while 45 per cent disapproved and nine per cent didn’t have an opinion.
